Evolution and Genetic Homosexuality

[MrMon]

[ QUOTE ]
This is an honest question and something that I was thinking about last night. How can evolution and genetic homosexuality coincide? It would seem to me (and my very basic understanding of both items), that if we supported evolution, and homosexuality was genetic, we would see a natural "weeding out" of people born homosexual ... I mean, you can't really continue a species without procreating (or being attracted to) the opposite sex. So if we follow the idea of "survival of the fittest", wouldn't we be seeing a lot less homosexuality? (instead of more?).


[/ QUOTE ]

There are many conditions where if an individual has one copy of a gene, they are afforded a certain advantage, but if they hold two copies of the gene (get it from both parents), then the condition results. I believe sickle cell disease is an example, where if you have one copy, you have a resistance to malaria, two copies result in sickle cell. The chances of producing a child with the trait but not the disease are 2:1.

This is not to say that homosexuality fits this mold, just that if it did, there's no reason that failure to reproduce by the affected individual would weed it out.