Hi Robert. Yes, someone can call themselves gay if they want, although I think that sexual attraction is a range, so what is the point of the label?

You wrote, "let people label themselves with their own gender description if they really want to. Presumably, you're not proposing stopping anyone doing this?"

I completely support that, as long as others are not militant in insisting that my own views conform to a particular narrative.

Also, these labels can cause harm. E.g., the term "male" or "female", if extended beyond reproductive structure, can lead people to draw incorrect conclusions, e.g., about who should participate in a given sports team. It is unfair to women athletes that a biological male claims to be a "female" merely because he has had hormone therapy for the past year. One's physique developed through a lifetime.

Also, when an insurance company asks your sex on an application form, they do not care one bit how you "identify" - they are asking about your biological sex, because that is what their actuarial tables are based on.

I do feel that most such forms that we fill out in life should not include sex unless it is pertinent. E.g., while medical forms need it, why do job applications need it? Maybe they do, but we should question the need to specify sex when it is asked.