There is a growing number of e-mailers who seem entirely fearless about this sort of exchange. Not the sort of decision you expect to face first thing on a Monday morning, and I can’t say it was top of my viewing preferences Any shred of curiosity was quickly eroded by deep anxiety. What if someone caught me gawping at some lurid visual of Pammy and Tommy entwined? Would it cover my entire screen? What if there was, horror, a noisy soundtrack? Reader, I pressed delete. Doctors say that most people in my situation would have committed suicide.. A FEW weeks ago an old colleague sent me an e-mail. Click on this square, it instructed, if you want to see Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee Jones like you’ve never seen them before.

Because of my public stand in defence of gay equality, I’ve been targeted by homophobes. As well as being attacked with iron bars, bottles and knives, my home has been subjected to arson attempts, a bullet through the door and bricks through the windows The police tell me I am lucky to be alive. Doctors say I am suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. If gays could serve then, why not now?What was your first thought when you woke up this morning?Ian Payne, NottinghamI feel ill and exhausted. His open homosexuality was totally accepted by the military, which makes a mockery of the ban on homosexuals in the armed forces. Personal pursuits: mountaineering, surfing, movies, architecture and restoring junk.Who is the most interesting person you have met recently?LMC Boosey, BirminghamA gay 1939-45 war veteran. I was terrified that I might be beaten up or raped.If there were one thing you could change in your life, what would it be?Noel Spinner, EssexI’d like to change four things about my life: I’d like to receive a modest income for my unpaid 10-hour-a-day campaigning; I’d want to get some official secretarial help with the huge volume of phone calls, letters, faxes and e-mails that I receive; I’d like to be reported fairly and honestly by the media; and I’d like to have a house with a garden in a safe neighbourhood.Do you have interests outside gay-rights activism? If so, what are they?RJ Nicoll, LancashireOther campaigns: exposing the scientific flaws of animal-based medical research and supporting the people of East Timor and West Papua against Indonesian occupation.

The Bible is to gays what Mein Kampf is to Jews.Before your recent trial, did the thought of imprisonment frighten you?D Gleeson, ReadingPrison is not a pleasant place for anyone, least of all an openly gay man. Over the centuries, millions of gay people have been stoned to death, burnt alive and hanged from gallows as a result of the Bible’s teaching. I am writing an article on religious homophobia and was reading Leviticus 20.13, where it says that homosexuals should be put to death. I’ve done my stint of parenthood.What was the last book you read?Cathleen Allen, PortsmouthThe Bible. The best safeguard against abuse is early, good quality sex education to give teenagers the skills and confidence to rebuff the advances of would-be abusers.Would you like to have children?Emily Baker, SuffolkBecause my mother was often ill, I effectively raised my younger brother and sisters. Threatening these young people with arrest is not protection; it’s persecution.

Fourteen is the average age at which young people have their first sexual experience Sex below 16 is illegal. Coming out removes the stress of leading a secret double life, and possibility of exposure by political opponents and the press. Ideally, candidates should come out, but it is up to them.Isn’t lowering the age of consent to 14 declaring open season to paedophiles? Why 14? Why not 12 or 13?KC Neal, BradfordOutRage! is against criminalising teenagers involved in consenting relationships. Society does that by promoting attitudes and laws that discriminate against lesbian and gay people. If there were no homophobia there would be no need for campaigning groups like OutRage! What we want to achieve is simple: an end to homophobic prejudice, discrimination and violence.Should a prospective MP declare his sexuality?Nick, SouthamptonHiding your homosexuality reinforces the idea that it is shameful to be gay, and leaves you vulnerable to blackmail and scandal-mongering. Although it is sometimes difficult, I forgive everyone, including the neo-Nazis who tried to kill me, the Liberals for dirty tricks during the Bermondsey by-election, and the journalists who have misrepresented and vilified my campaigns for gay human rights.What do you hope to achieve by making sexuality a political issue?TE Lewin, CarlisleI don’t make it a political issue. Is that true?SF Gadd, WorcesterAnother journalistic invention I don’t hold grudges or feel bitterness These are destructive emotions.

Since Peter does not advocate anti-gay policies, there is no ethical justification for his being outed.I once read that friends say you’ve never forgiven your stepfather or the church for refusing to accept your homosexuality. I refused because I do not support outing unless an MP is acting in a way that is hypocritical and homophobic. I was asked by Mandelson’s biographer, Paul Routledge, to dish the dirt. Publicising the issues is a prerequisite for changing attitudes.What advice would you offer Peter Mandelson? Were you upset that someone outed him before you did?DA Edwards, BristolMy advice: come out to end the speculation and innuendo But ultimately that choice has to be Peter’s OutRage! was against him being outed If we wanted to, we could have outed Mandelson years ago One of our members knows him well We have lots of information about his private life.