A father can be just as nurturing as a mother. I've known plenty of dads who are loving, caring, supportive and many mum's who are like a cold fish. More and more fathers are also becoming stay at home dads. Being nurturing is about who you are as a person rather than what gender you are.

Me too. However, I'm the product of hetero parenting and I'm pretty damn dysfunctional, actually

My cousin was raised by two mums and turned out well adjusted, loved, and now has children with her long time boyfriend and never 'caught the gay' as some anti-gay family bigots like to spout. She doesn't seem to have problems relating to the male species and adores her children.

I look around where I am and despair at the amount of real dysfunctional relationships that are everywhere. They live up to their gender stereotypes to the extreme, which clearly doesn't work. Perhaps people should work out their own f*** ups before breeding? That way, when little Mary-Lou or Little Tommy-James remark on their 2 mums or 2 dads, they are not met with derision from nursery to college, because the kids around them have been raised by well adjusted individuals who have taught their children a live and let live attitude. And as long as gay couples have a healthy social attitude and a strong support of mixed friends, children DO see hetero relationships. But, ultimately, if they are exposed in an environment to love and affection and support and boundaries, it is those attributes which are instilled in the child and generally when they become adults will look for in the potential partners, regardless of gender? Surely? I think all a child wants is lots of love and support and to feel very safe that they can thrive in their environment? As long as the parents don't lock them away from the positive influences of other people, i.e. gender interactions, in their lives, surely they will be well adjusted anyway?

I agree with the op that "you can have the greatest parents in the world, but we all know from the news that isn't always the case".

That is certainly true with the amount of kids today ending up in care or foster homes because their parents are not the greatest. Nothing wrong with a gay couple adopting children and if they can't do that then consider fostering an older child.

Generally speaking the mother nurtures the young lady to become a young woman, a man can't do that job. Come on this is obvious isn't it?

Not really, no. Especially in this day and age.

Women don't need 'nurturing to become young ladies and young women' girls (and boys) need to be taught to be well rounded and decent human beings which doesn't require a certain genitalia to do.

I'm assuming at this point you're either trolling or traveled to the 21st century by time machine and are looking for a way back to the 1920's.

If a man is in touch with his feminine side and emotionally articulate and good at nurturing himself (and men like that are rare and utterly adorable), then yes, he can. In fact, if a woman raises a son and its a healthy relationship in which he cultivates a healthy respect for women, hasn't it been proved those types of men are more attractive to women and they make better husbands and fathers? Or am I living in cloud cuckoo land?

So, effectively the woman has nurtured the boy to become a real man. A man hasn't done that. So, yes it can work. I'm sure there are men out there, single dads or widows who are doing this or who have done this and have wonderfully well adjusted daughters. I think as long as you have both the feminine and masculine qualities well balanced within your own nature, the sex of the parent really doesn't matter.

No i'm not trying to troll you, far from it. I'm trying to understand this idea of gender roles being interchangeable or simply redundant. If two Women raise a son, i don't see how he's not feminized by his upbringing. Where is his male role model?

Sorry it's just the whole being 'taught to be a young lady' was a little.

Anyway gay people have friends and family and their children go to school. It's not like lesbians never interact with men ever.

Oh please... you didn't get nurture from taught, in respect of raising children... stop messing.

And like iv said all along the ideal situation is to not need to invite friends around for lunch in order to provide a role model for your kid, Ideally it's a parents job.

Night Night..

I've read your first paragraph over and over and cannot for the life of me make out what you're on about.

I don't know about you but I've had plenty of role models in my life and not all of them are my parents. Gay parents just like every other parents can be role models for their kids and have other people be role models.

I think ideally a child needs a safe and loving environment and it's a shame that many children have been denied that right because other people don't understand gender roles.