I Am Gay. I Will Not Be Tortured Again.; Huffington Post, 11/11/16

David Michael Conner, Huffington Post; I Am Gay. I Will Not Be Tortured Again. :

"I survived six years of psychological terror and physical abuses, sanctioned by my peers and by authorities, throughout my youth. At that time, I had been convinced that something about me was “bad” and that I deserved it. I know better now, and I will not abide by it.

LGBT people and our allies must be vigilant as a new regime takes over our country. This is not a joke, and there is no evidence at this time that suggests fearing the worst—that our government would commit inhumane crimes against its own law-abiding people—is unreasonable.

I have lost more faith in the decency of the American people this week than I knew I had. Because of what I went through when I was young, and because I have seen how quickly attitudes changed toward acceptance, I know how quickly those attitudes can revert with a little peer pressure. I know how cruel people can be without a second thought.

LGBT people and our allies must not give a millimeter or else this administration may take 666 miles. We also must ally ourselves with all other marginalized populations because, from a practical standpoint, greater numbers equals greater security—but more importantly because all of us are human beings and all of us are at a very real risk of being confronted by overt state-supported hate crimes, and these things usually happen in waves, one targeted population at a time. We are all in this together, and we have to be ready to fight for our souls."

Young, in Love and Sharing Everything, Including a Password; New York Times, 1/17/12

Matt Richtel, New York Times; Young, in Love and Sharing Everything, Including a Password:

"The digital era has given rise to a more intimate custom. It has become fashionable for young people to express their affection for each other by sharing their passwords to e-mail, Facebook and other accounts. Boyfriends and girlfriends sometimes even create identical passwords, and let each other read their private e-mails and texts...

Counselors typically advise against the practice, and parents often preach the wisdom of password privacy. Winifred Lender, a child psychologist in Santa Barbara, had her three sons sign “digital contracts” that outline terms for how much media they will consume, how they will behave online and that they will not share passwords."