I hate that show, “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.” I think it makes us all look like rude, aggressive, flaming, queeny morons. It embarrasses me; it’s just another shitty image for us gay guys. Ugh. What do you think of it?

Dear Far:

We won’t address why “flaming, queeny” queer men bug you (too obvious). However, let’s look at the show itself, a much more interesting topic. Let us entertain the notion that this show is actually a mere beginning, a step in the right direction, but it doesn’t go far enough. And here’s why:

As queer people (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender) we have a lot to teach straight people … and each other. On this show, it’s mostly about visuals (personal and home aesthetics) and, whether we love it or not, this show can be our foot in the door. At this point in time, I think straight people can more easily handle queer advice on matters of visuals than they can about matters of the heart and mind. But, believe me kids, this is what’s next. “Queer Eye” is a warm-up for what’s to come.

We need more shows like this, and not just for straight people. We need them for us! While we certainly need “Lesbian Eye for the Straight Woman” and even (take a deep breath) “Lesbian Eye for the Queer Guy,” we also need “Queer Black Eye for the Queer White Guy” and “Lesbian Latino Eye for the White Lesbian.” Get my drift? It’s not only straight people who can learn things from us. We can learn a lot from us … and we need to. White queers need to learn from queers of color. Gay men need to learn from lesbians. And I’m not just talking about how to dress and style a home.

As queer people, we have so much we can share with each other and with our hetero brothers and sisters, and it’s a two way street; no one has a monopoly on wisdom, beauty, maturity, insight and all that good stuff.

Straight people may wonder what else we can give besides fashion and style advice. Let’s look at what we’ve been through as queer people. Queer white men experience plenty of oppression, mockery, self-hatred and the poison of living in a 99 percent heterosexist world. Now, add racism to the picture: queer men of color have an even more death-defying (literally) task before them. Now add sexism: queer white women earn less than queer white men, and have a lot less “power” in the world than queer white men. And as for queer women of color, why, we white queers can only imagine and admire what obstacles are thrown in their way. Indeed, we should get down on our knees and salute them.

The point of all of this? Why, it started from your sweet little hateful question about a relatively benign television program. This show may not be perfect, but it is a start: a start of the gifts we as queer people have to give not only to straight people, but each other. I hope that next year we’ll be seeing “Asian Dyke Eye for the Queer White Guy” and the like. You may not like this show either, dear reader, but are you willing to admit we are all here to both teach and learn?