What is Asexual?

[Terminal Blue]

What do you fantasize about, if anything at all?

Personally, I'm not asexual.

But what I will say is that the way different people masturbate can be very different.

 

[Vendor-Lazarus]

What do you fantasize about, if anything at all?

Personally, I'm not asexual.

But what I will say is that the way different people masturbate can be very different.

Too bad it's a taboo topic. People could otherwise try, experiment, and learn something nice.

 

[Kae]

Well I'm unsure, people have referred to me as asexual in the past but I wouldn't know as far as I'm aware of I have felt sexual attraction it's just that the last time I acted on it was over a decade ago, but it's also true that since then I have only ever found 1 person sexually attractive but I opted to not approach her, because to be honest I don't really crave it, I can't really understand many feelings people talk about regarding the topic of sexuality but I'm unsure if that's just because I've chosen to not participate in such activities for such a long time that I just can't recall the feelings or if for real I do not have them.

That being said I think the need of people to put a label on these things is downright silly & I see little point in trying to identify sexuality, so maybe because I haven't had sex in a long time and don't seek it I could be asexual, sure that's a possibility but I've also been with both men & women in the past, so maybe I could be bi-sexual, but if I'm open to have a relationship with trans people apparently that now means pansexual, but if I decide I don't like one of the genders for whatever reason I'm now heterosexual or homosexual, seems awfully convoluted and silly to me, if you ask me we should just let things be & not worry about what is what, it doesn't really matter what it's called.

I think people spend too much time trying to decide what label to put on & how to fight or avoid people under different labels that it seems like a waste of time, besides I fail to understand what there is to gain by declaring oneself as anything, I personally have never answered that question in my life & I don't particularly care to find out and I think anyone that asks is prying for too much information, it shouldn't really be your concern unless your seeking a possible relationship with that person, but whatever maybe I'm just dumb & don't understand people, that's always a possibility.

 

[Silvanus]

I think people spend too much time trying to decide what label to put on & how to fight or avoid people under different labels that it seems like a waste of time, besides I fail to understand what there is to gain by declaring oneself as anything, I personally have never answered that question in my life & I don't particularly care to find out and I think anyone that asks is prying for too much information, it shouldn't really be your concern unless your seeking a possible relationship with that person, but whatever maybe I'm just dumb & don't understand people, that's always a possibility.

It's rather helpful information, isn't it? If I'm interested in asking someone out, it'd sure be helpful to know what they're into.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

Oh hey, one of those rare discussions that I'm totally qualified to speak about. XD

For a long while I considered myself "Demisexual" (ie, only has interest in sex with people with whom I have a deep emotional connection with). Recently I've been forced to come to the conclusion that I'm either Asexual, or so hardcore Demisexual that it functionally amounts to the same thing.

I consider it a complete lack of sexual drive. You can be uninterested in sex but still find people attractive.

It's more or less this. I can totally find women aesthetically pleasing, and I would really like to have a lady romantic partner to share affection with...But "bumping uglies" does basically nothing for me that I can't get on my own in like...a 10th of the time and effort.

Asexual people can masturbate

What do you fantasize about, if anything at all? Because I find it very difficult to rub one out without some kind of mental partner to help move things along.

In my case, I've got an unusual kink that can take me from 0 to 100 in ten seconds flat. It's the only thing that gets a reaction out of my lower regions. *shrug*

Don't really believe in it to be honest.

This oughta be good.

but men are either lying

I assure you I'm not. Being asexual makes finding a romantic partner significantly more difficult. I'd much rather have a sex drive, even a low one.

have suppressed kinks,

My kinks ain't suppressed, I have plenty of healthy outlets for them.

a medical disorder

Pretty sure I don't have anything physical that might impede a desire for sex, and I know plenty of other aspergers/autism spectrum people who have healthy sex drives, so while that might be a factor it's not a definitive one.

are deadly afraid of rejection

This is true. But it doesn't stop me desiring a romantic partner and trying to find one, so...It would be really REALLY weird if that only eliminated my sex drive and not my romantic one. Also, I know a shitton of people who are terrified of rejection and I'm pretty sure I'm one of the only asexuals I know.

or closet homosexual

I assure you this is not true. I thought I might be gay back when I was younger, for reasons that will make sense shortly. As a young adult I did the thought experiment and here are the results:

Imagining myself with a woman: *Warm fuzzy feelings*
Imagining myself with a dude: *Nothing*

With men who consider themselves asexual I think the desire to feel 'different' or special as some kind of emotional or psychological crutch with the intent to sublimate the sex drive for an alternative emotional pay-off

Mate, I'm an aspergers hyper nerd with a goofy personality, a deep love of role play, with a weirdass kink. I don't want or need any additional "specialness" on top of what I already have, I'm already weird enough, probably TOO freakin' weird to be honest with you.

And...Sublimate it? Mate, I would love to have a sex drive, it would make finding a future partner much more mutually satisfying.

Espescially people flaunting their 'asexuality' as some kind of statement that need to be socially validated are highly suspect in my opinion. I assume true asexuals wouldn't even be pre-occupied with being asexual in the first place.

Or maybe because anytime people like me are involved in a conversation where people are talking about how they enjoy sex/talking about their sexual "conquests"/it's a base need/etc etc and we go "Yeah, I don't really care, I have no real interest in mashing my nether bits together with someone else"...Society and the people in it tend to have the following reactions:

"Lol, yeah you do, EVERYONE wants sex"
"What are you, GAY?!"
"Whaaaaaaat, how could you not want sex?!?"
"Lol, Ur Ghey!"
"...Really? ...How...How does that feel?! It must be WEIRD!"
" (Insert slur for gay person here) "
"Hahaha, right, sure, you're just saying that 'cuz you can't get any, NERD!"
"...Son, be honest with me...Are you gay? It's totally ok if you are!"
"Dude, you can't say your asexual if you're a virgin. I bet you'll change your mind once you get your cherry popped!"
"Asexuals are a type of gay, right?"
"People like you will be the death of humanity, we need more babies!!"
" (Something something, implication of gayness) "
"Lol, you're not a Real Man (TM) if you don't want sex!"
"Don't really believe in it to be honest, etc etc".

Not to mention:
Friend: "Wait, you were in a 3 year relationship with a woman and never had sex?!?!?! HOW?!?!? WHY?!?!"
Me: "She was never really ready for it. We discussed it a few times and she never felt ready."
Friend: "But...How did you SURVIVE!?! If it was me I'd have dumped her after like...3 months of her withholding sex!!"
Me: "I just don't care all that much.
Friend: "...What is WRONG with you?! Are you, like...closet gay or something?"
Me: "...If I was, would I have stayed in a committed, loving relationship with a girl I actually loved for like 3 years?"
Friend: "But...Like...The sex!"
Me: "... *sigh* Is it THAT hard to believe I don't care much?"
Friend: "YES! It's weird!"

So, while on a personal level, my reaction to finding out that I'm Asexual is a Dorkly styled "huh, neat", on a societal level I feel like too many people either consider me a freak, or "broken" in some way, or that I'm closeted gay, which REALLY is getting on my nerves after years of it even when I considered myself Demisexual or with just a very low sex drive.

So, I speak out more and more about it, and plant my personal flag, going "Yeah, I'm here, we exist, so could you people PLEASE stop freaking out about it and just accept we're a thing so I don't have to have this annoying conversation over and over, thank you?"

Sex is a base biological drive of which the survival of the species depend.

You realize that variations and mutations happen all the time in nature, basically at random, right? And not all of them end up furthering the expansion of a species. What's stopping asexuality from just being another one of those?

 

[Saint of M]

As far as I can tell their seems to be two definitions for asexual (as it applies to human beings).

1 Not being attracted to anyone.
This follows the logic of if heterosexual is attracted to not like, homosexual is attracted to like, pansexual is attracted to all, than asexual is attracted to none.

2 Not being interested in sexual activity.
As in if someone is sexual than they are interested in sexual activity so asexual would be not interested in sexual activity.

I bring this up Because I find I just do not care about sex but I do have a preference. So by definition 1 I would not be asexual but by definition 2 I would.

From what I understand of the orientation essentially Being an Asexual means you don't get anything out of sex. You don't really have a desire to do any sexual activity with someone. This ranges from the act being boring to something incredibly uncomfortable or even disgusting. Anime reviewer Prof (Professor Otaku) likens sex to eating garbage.

This does not an Asexual (or Ace for short) can't want some romantic activities like holding hands, kissing, and or cuddling. It also To use Prof as an example again, he has enough hetoro romantic views to have a body type he likes.

Other like Maven doesn't really get anything out of the act either way but has had significant others.

The core of it is you are not into sex, which sucks because you are surrounded by a bunch of horny monkeys and said monkeys' entertainment reflect that.

There is a similar orientation called Demisexual. Where an Ace doesn't feel any sex drive or sexual desire with another person, a Demisexual only gets this when they form a strong emotional bond with someone. When they say they love you for your brain, they literally mean it. This dosn't preclude them from seeing a stranger and suddenly romantic music starts playing in their head, but most of the time this is where it starts.

That being said I think the need of people to put a label on these things is downright silly & I see little point in trying to identify sexuality, so maybe because I haven't had sex in a long time and don't seek it I could be asexual, sure that's a possibility but I've also been with both men & women in the past, so maybe I could be bi-sexual, but if I'm open to have a relationship with trans people apparently that now means pansexual, but if I decide I don't like one of the genders for whatever reason I'm now heterosexual or homosexual, seems awfully convoluted and silly to me, if you ask me we should just let things be & not worry about what is what, it doesn't really matter what it's called.

I think people spend too much time trying to decide what label to put on & how to fight or avoid people under different labels that it seems like a waste of time, besides I fail to understand what there is to gain by declaring oneself as anything, I personally have never answered that question in my life & I don't particularly care to find out and I think anyone that asks is prying for too much information, it shouldn't really be your concern unless your seeking a possible relationship with that person, but whatever maybe I'm just dumb & don't understand people, that's always a possibility.

I think it depends. As long as it doesn't pigeon hold you, they are ok. At best they tell you either where one's limits are or where one can have a start point.

Finding out I had autism when I was 4 months into my 19th year made somethings in my life make sense, and I took some psycology and public speaking classes in college to fill in the gaps.

When I was a kid, my bleeding disorder could get so bad I was like a one man Tarintino filmography.

Other labels tell me my does and don'ts.

Vegans don't eat anything with animal parts or byproducts.
Arachnophobes can't go near spiders.
Guidos will die if they don't have Axe body spray.
Epileptics can't watch "Electric Soldier Porygon.

 

[McElroy]

You realize that variations and mutations happen all the time in nature, basically at random, right? And not all of them end up furthering the expansion of a species. What's stopping asexuality from just being another one of those?

Nothing at all. It seems very simple, whatever the reason. However, by all means psycho-sexual development should lead to sexual desire. An "asexual identity" or whatever one wants to call it won't save them from it. It's a trait that also seems to correlate with social ineptitude, autistic traits, fears of rejection and social ridicule, and stunted psycho-sexual development, not forgetting the possibility of a physiological problem. Draw a hard line and it never occurs on its own in men. In reality it probably does, super-rarely but nevertheless.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

Nothing at all. It seems very simple, whatever the reason. However, by all means psycho-sexual development should lead to sexual desire. An "asexual identity" or whatever one wants to call it won't save them from it. It's a trait that also seems to correlate with social ineptitude, autistic traits, fears of rejection and social ridicule, and stunted psycho-sexual development, not forgetting the possibility of a physiological problem. Draw a hard line and it never occurs on its own in men. In reality it probably does, super-rarely but nevertheless.

While I can definitely see that it's possible or even likely that it develops due to mental/social issues, I'm pretty sure I've always been ace.

Like, as far back as high school, when I was surrounded by testosterone-happy gorillas who bragged about "sexual conquests" that they never had, I didn't really have an interest. I'm sure the bullying caused by that, and my aspergers, social reclusiveness, etc didn't help, but I already had no interest.

You can argue I was a "late bloomer" and the other factors "turned me into an ace", but honestly, I don't feel like that's accurate. I just never really had an interest, outside of "well, society tells me I should want it, maybe I should???"

An "asexual identity" or whatever one wants to call it won't save them from it.

Not every deviation is something you can or should want to be "saved from", you know.

The best path is acceptance, which allows you to better work with your traits. Every negative core trait about myself (that isn't a habit) I found was MUCH easier to manage and even turn positive when I accepted I couldn't get rid of it, and found ways to live with it.

I WOULD like to have a sex drive so that I can make sure future relationships are mutually pleasing, but other than that I'm quite content not having sexual distractions hijacking my mental power.

 

[McElroy]

An "asexual identity" or whatever one wants to call it won't save them from it.

Not every deviation is something you can or should want to be "saved from", you know.

When we're talking about normal people, sure. But plenty do make it a big thing. Just recently on *sigh* ResetEra a bunch of people got internet-mad over others not respecting their asexual share of the sexuality spectrum. Then again, ResetEra.

My final two cents on the matter: there are people who have problems fitting in, like they are not interested in sex like kids normally are. It takes more time and effort to look into it, through the list of issues that might (also) be there than simply say "we have a term that you can use so people will stop asking about it". Because that's deception. Like that Professor Otaku guy who likens sex to eating garbage. That's fucked up. Such an association won't develop on its own.

I'm quite content not having sexual distractions hijacking my mental power.

Okay, let's not get crazy.

 

[stroopwafel]

You can argue I was a "late bloomer" and the other factors "turned me into an ace", but honestly, I don't feel like that's accurate. I just never really had an interest, outside of "well, society tells me I should want it, maybe I should???"

What society? Sure, maybe the media tend to be sex obsessed but the media is fake garbage anyway. In reality there are millions of single people who are probably rarely to never having sex and ofcourse look at how many(espescially women) are complaining of dead marriages. Talk about sexual mores and sexual identity seems more commonplace in the modern era than, well, people actually having sex(as demonstrated by the drop in marriage rates and amount of singles claiming not to have sex).

Thing is there is also tremendous variation in people. Some are absolute horndogs and others have a much lower sex drive(like, some want it every day and for others once a month is enough). But to absolutely never feel horny probably belies a psychosocial or medical problem as it is completely contradictory with normal hormonal activity. And, I also imagine, exceptionally rare. If people just don't feel like acting on it for whatever reason(or have absolute zero opportunity) then OK, join the millions of others who apparently do the same. You don't need an elaborate justification for that.

 

[Silvanus]

What society? Sure, maybe the media tend to be sex obsessed but the media is fake garbage anyway. In reality there are millions of single people who are probably rarely to never having sex and ofcourse look at how many(espescially women) are complaining of dead marriages. Talk about sexual mores and sexual identity seems more commonplace in the modern era than, well, people actually having sex(as demonstrated by the drop in marriage rates and amount of singles claiming not to have sex).

Written as if you've never been a teenager. The social focus on getting with someone was overwhelming where I grew up, and I gather that's not uncommon.

If people weren't having sex, they were lying about it. And if you weren't, you were weird. That's not the media-- that's the people kids will spend most of their time around, at an age when they're at their most hormonal.

You don't need an elaborate justification for that.

A medically-recognised term is an "elaborate justification"? Its much more elaborate and nonsensical to believe everybody's just making it up, and the scientists, researchers and psychiatrists are all in on it.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

You can argue I was a "late bloomer" and the other factors "turned me into an ace", but honestly, I don't feel like that's accurate. I just never really had an interest, outside of "well, society tells me I should want it, maybe I should???"

What society?

You...didn't read my last post where I responded to yours, breaking down why each of your claims really doesn't apply to me, did you?

Because I find it hard to believe you'd have missed this part if you had:

Espescially people flaunting their 'asexuality' as some kind of statement that need to be socially validated are highly suspect in my opinion. I assume true asexuals wouldn't even be pre-occupied with being asexual in the first place.

Or maybe because anytime people like me are involved in a conversation where people are talking about how they enjoy sex/talking about their sexual "conquests"/it's a base need/etc etc and we go "Yeah, I don't really care, I have no real interest in mashing my nether bits together with someone else"...Society and the people in it tend to have the following reactions:

"Lol, yeah you do, EVERYONE wants sex"
"What are you, GAY?!"
"Whaaaaaaat, how could you not want sex?!?"
"Lol, Ur Ghey!"
"...Really? ...How...How does that feel?! It must be WEIRD!"
" (Insert slur for gay person here) "
"Hahaha, right, sure, you're just saying that 'cuz you can't get any, NERD!"
"...Son, be honest with me...Are you gay? It's totally ok if you are!"
"Dude, you can't say your asexual if you're a virgin. I bet you'll change your mind once you get your cherry popped!" (spoilers, it didn't)
"Asexuals are a type of gay, right?"
"People like you will be the death of humanity, we need more babies!!"
" (Something something, implication of gayness) "
"Lol, you're not a Real Man (TM) if you don't want sex!"
"Don't really believe in it to be honest, etc etc".

Not to mention:
Friend: "Wait, you were in a 3 year relationship with a woman and never had sex?!?!?! HOW?!?!? WHY?!?!"
Me: "She was never really ready for it. We discussed it a few times and she never felt ready."
Friend: "But...How did you SURVIVE!?! If it was me I'd have dumped her after like...3 months of her withholding sex!!"
Me: "I just don't care all that much.
Friend: "...What is WRONG with you?! Are you, like...closet gay or something?"
Me: "...If I was, would I have stayed in a committed, loving relationship with a girl I actually loved for like 3 years?"
Friend: "But...Like...The sex!"
Me: "... *sigh* Is it THAT hard to believe I don't care much?"
Friend: "YES! It's weird!"

So, while on a personal level, my reaction to finding out that I'm Asexual is a Dorkly styled "huh, neat", on a societal level I feel like too many people either consider me a freak, or "broken" in some way, or that I'm closeted gay, which REALLY is getting on my nerves after years of it even when I considered myself Demisexual or with just a very low sex drive.

So, I speak out more and more about it, and plant my personal flag, going "Yeah, I'm here, we exist, so could you people PLEASE stop freaking out about it and just accept we're a thing so I don't have to have this annoying conversation over and over, thank you?"

...Oh wait a sec.

But to absolutely never feel horny probably belies a psychosocial or medical problem as it is completely contradictory with normal hormonal activity.

You DEFINITELY didn't read my previous post. You probably should. I addressed this.

What society?

Written as if you've never been a teenager. The social focus on getting with someone was overwhelming where I grew up, and I gather that's not uncommon.

If people weren't having sex, they were lying about it. And if you weren't, you were weird. That's not the media-- that's the people kids will spend most of their time around, at an age when they're at their most hormonal.

This. VERY much this. -_-

I still get it in my adult life, but mercifully a lot less, and with a lot less people assuming I'm gay and proceeding to treat me like shit. It also helps that the people I hang out with are interesting people with open minds for whom "someone doesn't care about sex" only merits a "Oh, neat" instead of shock.

Still, I occasionally run into people who hear/read that I get nothing out of sex that I can't get on my own in a 10th of the time and effort and immediately assume I've got a medical condition/it's purely because I'm an aspie/I'm closeted. -_-

 

[Avnger]

An "asexual identity" or whatever one wants to call it won't save them from it.

Not every deviation is something you can or should want to be "saved from", you know.

When we're talking about normal people, sure. But plenty do make it a big thing. Just recently on *sigh* ResetEra a bunch of people got internet-mad over others not respecting their asexual share of the sexuality spectrum. Then again, ResetEra.

My final two cents on the matter: there are people who have problems fitting in, like they are not interested in sex like kids normally are. It takes more time and effort to look into it, through the list of issues that might (also) be there than simply say "we have a term that you can use so people will stop asking about it". Because that's deception. Like that Professor Otaku guy who likens sex to eating garbage. That's fucked up. Such an association won't develop on its own.

Do you have any studies or scientific evidence to back this up or are we just supposed to accept your feelings on the matter as truth?

I'm quite content not having sexual distractions hijacking my mental power.

Okay, let's not get crazy.

As a cis straight male, the idea that sexual distractions haven't interfered with rational decision making during my life would be crazy. I (and every single other guy and gal I know) all have points in our lives we can look back on where logic went out the window in favor of horniness.

 

[ObsidianJones_v1legacy]

Do you have any studies or scientific evidence to back this up or are we just supposed to accept your feelings on the matter as truth?

Honestly, this statement should be the end of the matter.

Person A: "I feel a certain way"

Person B: "That can't possibly be the case. Because I don't feel that way. I don't know many people who feel that way. Therefore you're either lying to yourself for your entire life or you're just confused. You probably need help"

Why should a random someone's general feelings be somehow more indicative of a specific person's reality than that very specific person's own feelings?

 

[McElroy]

My final two cents on the matter: there are people who have problems fitting in, like they are not interested in sex like kids normally are. It takes more time and effort to look into it, through the list of issues that might (also) be there than simply say "we have a term that you can use so people will stop asking about it". Because that's deception. Like that Professor Otaku guy who likens sex to eating garbage. That's fucked up. Such an association won't develop on its own.

Do you have any studies or scientific evidence to back this up or are we just supposed to accept your feelings on the matter as truth?

Disgust for anything non-disgusting is a learned response. By no means should a disgust for sex be in any way tied to asexuality. Something else is involved, probably something on the autism spectrum since it's an anime professor being talked about here (just a guess). It's not like neurotypical people can't be conditioned to go fully against their instincts.

Anyway, the rhetoric part. I don't know if "I'm asexual" is used to shut people up (outside ResetEra). It's the term "sexual orientation" that I'm critical of, because it has come to mean something that one is born with or somehow destined to develop. Sure, what you end up with is what it is, but something happened before. When we develop our more mature sexuality as teens our brains are at peak neuroplasticity, so things can go many ways. And in the end you might become a furry. Or worse.

I'm quite content not having sexual distractions hijacking my mental power.

Okay, let's not get crazy.

As a cis straight male, the idea that sexual distractions haven't interfered with rational decision making during my life would be crazy. I (and every single other guy and gal I know) all have points in our lives we can look back on where logic went out the window in favor of horniness.

Those temptresses! I wake up every morning with UNLIMITED mental POWER, but the first pretty woman I see just hijacks it, and my world domination is postponed yet again.

Do you have any studies or scientific evidence to back this up or are we just supposed to accept your feelings on the matter as truth?

Person A: "I feel a certain way"

Person B: "That can't possibly be the case. Because I don't feel that way. I don't know many people who feel that way. Therefore you're either lying to yourself for your entire life or you're just confused. You probably need help"

Why should a random someone's general feelings be somehow more indicative of a specific person's reality than that very specific person's own feelings?

Yes. Strawmen have feelings too.

I'm generally against people manipulating kids with their identity politics, asexuality included. Even if their intentions are good, I believe they are misguided, and the support needed for kids who don't neatly fit the heteronormative ideal is not a bunch of labels. To put it simply.

 

[Erttheking]

I'm generally against people manipulating kids with their identity politics, asexuality included. Even if their intentions are good, I believe they are misguided, and the support needed for kids who don't neatly fit the heteronormative ideal is not a bunch of labels. To put it simply.

Oh. A "Someone please think of the children" card. Classy.

Introducing kids to alternate identities and concepts is exactly what they need. Or is this "manipulating" kids in the same way that the Texas GOP thought that teaching critical thinking skills would undermine parential authority?

 

[ObsidianJones_v1legacy]

Yes. Strawmen have feelings too.

I'm generally against people manipulating kids with their identity politics, asexuality included. Even if their intentions are good, I believe they are misguided, and the support needed for kids who don't neatly fit the heteronormative ideal is not a bunch of labels. To put it simply.

I'm going to ask you to clarify your Strawmen comment. Because in this very thread, I see CyanCat47 [https://v1.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.1057537-What-is-Asexual#24323069] and aegix drakan [https://v1.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.1057537-What-is-Asexual#24323770] share their asexuality and have had some say their way of life is a lie.

And what you spoke of has been child-rearing in society up to this point. I'll admit to over-correction of late, but I understand why. We have forum members chased out of their home due to bigotry. Due to being true with what they feel. That touches people, and that makes people who care never want their children to feel unloved or like they were abandoned. Everything is in the extremes nowadays, but I have no issue whatsoever with parents tripping over themselves to make sure that their children feel safe and loved.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

Person B: "That can't possibly be the case. Because I don't feel that way. I don't know many people who feel that way. Therefore you're either lying to yourself for your entire life or you're just confused. You probably need help"

Why should a random someone's general feelings be somehow more indicative of a specific person's reality than that very specific person's own feelings?

Yes. Strawmen have feelings too.

You...DO realize that stroopwafel has made more or less that exact argument, right?

Unless you think he's made of straw?

 

[stroopwafel]

Person B: "That can't possibly be the case. Because I don't feel that way. I don't know many people who feel that way. Therefore you're either lying to yourself for your entire life or you're just confused. You probably need help"

Why should a random someone's general feelings be somehow more indicative of a specific person's reality than that very specific person's own feelings?

Yes. Strawmen have feelings too.

You...DO realize that stroopwafel has made more or less that exact argument, right?

Unless you think he's made of straw?

OK, so let's say you have me convinced that true asexual people exist that never experience sexual desire and that there are no disturbances in the formative years or in psychosocial development or hormonal activity that would rationally explain it. Would you then atleast concede such 'orentation' is so exceptionally rare as to be practically statistically irrelevant?

 

[Kae]

-Snip-

It's rather helpful information, isn't it? If I'm interested in asking someone out, it'd sure be helpful to know what they're into.

Sure thing, which is why I said that probing for that information is rather invasive unless you have interest in seeking either a relationship or sex with that individual, however I do understand the appeal of announcing it, I guess it's a way to let people know which kinds of relationships you'd be open for, which is definitely useful.

Perhaps it's just my lack of interest in the subject that makes me so annoyed about the over-abundance of sexuality labels, it in part is because I'm greatly annoyed at how often people ask about the subject, it personally makes me a bit uncomfortable to answer those kinds of questions, but sometimes not answering leads to more trouble than it's worth, for example every time a friend asks if X person is attractive I just have to answer yes in some manner or another to avoid further probing because that's really not something I care to explain, but my apathy tends to come through anyway so I still get asked which is just annoying.

-Snip-

I think it depends. As long as it doesn't pigeon hold you, they are ok. At best they tell you either where one's limits are or where one can have a start point.

Finding out I had autism when I was 4 months into my 19th year made somethings in my life make sense, and I took some psycology and public speaking classes in college to fill in the gaps.

When I was a kid, my bleeding disorder could get so bad I was like a one man Tarintino filmography.

Other labels tell me my does and don'ts.

Vegans don't eat anything with animal parts or byproducts.
Arachnophobe can't go near spiders.
Guidos will die if they don't have Axe body spray.
Epileptics can't watch "Electric Soldier Porygon.

Certainly due to the topic at hand it should be pretty evident that I was referring to things such as sexuality rather than medical & psychological issues, certainly a thing such as a guido is pretty pointless, but to illustrate my point when someone insists in boxing themselves into a label of sexuality it might stop them from experiencing a relationship they might have enjoyed, happened to a friend once, he was head over heels for a woman who was a mid-op trans, & he denied himself the opportunity to go out with her due to a hang-up because he was straight, he ended up expressing a lot of regret over it later when he was drunk.

But anyway that's the kind of thing I was referring to, I obviously have no issue between labelling jam & preserve bottles differently or being sure that schizophrenic person is labelled appropriately so that he can receive the appropriate treatment & of course if someone has dietary restrictions & you can sum it as easily as saying Vegan or Vegetarian & you knowing what it means without further explanation that is of course extremely useful & not something that I would find disagreeable.