I would dearly love to start a debate with you on this excellently written and seriously thought-out response; the problem is that I could not, for a number of reasons, debate the issue of homosexuality in public. I mean, not in order to defend my views - there are things I would not want the lurkers to get hold of. In private, face to face, it would - not so much be a pleasure, but the proper response to something set out with such intelligence and moderation. You have paid me a great compliment by the very tone and content of your answer, and I appreciate it.

I will say only one thing: at forty-five, and with some knowledge both of myself and of my own background, I still cannot get rid of this instinct of rage. If it is not inborn, it is the very next thing - so deeply buried in my individual past as to be virtually ineliminable. So I cannot agree with you there. But I am sincerely grateful for the time you have taken and the way you have chosen to respond to this.