[kristopolous]

So it's 2007. LGBT groups are trying to protect people from getting fired for being gay and legalize gay marriage.

There's a conservative christian billionaire who is actively funding political groups blocking this.

You, a journalist, working at a tabloid, finds out he's secretly gay. Sound like a story?

There's context to all of these things.

[tasuki]

Yes it's a story. But the thing I'm most interested in is... Why? Why does he do that?

[kristopolous]

Because people mostly behave based on their virtues and principles not on greedy self interest

We all have different ones

[tasuki]

An optimistic answer. I like it!

But, like, Peter Thiel genuinely thinks life ought to be harder for gay people? He's a good Christian and thinks gay people will go to hell? I still don't really get it.

[kristopolous]

No. He supported conservative and christian groups because that's who he is. He founded https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Stanford_Review funded by conservative luminary William Kristol. He went on to get a philosophy degree and a JD. He was a clerk and worked for Sullivan and Cromwell, one of the most prominent law firms in the country that defends corporate interests.

He's always worked on the law/capital/property side. The man can't code and has never claimed to be able to.

He's a deeply libertarian conservative christian who happens to get titillated by men.

But that last part is just what he is, it's not really who he is.

Being gay doesn't constrain you to a particular set of beliefs.

There's plenty people active on the right that are all kinds of diverse; hispanic, gay, asian. Look at that recent shooter, a trans person with a history of far right activism with neonazi tattoos who said they were "to the right of hitler" but also, transgendered.

It's really all over the map. Shit's complicated.

[rbanffy]

> Being gay doesn't constrain you to a particular set of beliefs.

It must be a miserable life to think your very existence is wrong.

But he has the billions to buy him happiness anyway, so, I guess he's OK.

[tasuki]

> But he has the billions to buy him happiness anyway, so, I guess he's OK.

That's not at all how happiness works.

[tasuki]

Thank you for the explanation. I find the "conservative christian who happens to get titillated by men" hard to grok, but it looks like you're correct.