I think that all of you are partially right. Clearly there is some fan-service involved, and the Major is definitely a "very interesting exercise in sexuality," but I think it goes deeper as well.
Notice how there is a very clear division between "The Major" and "Motoko." The Major is all business, she is interested in results and is very dedicated to her work. I think that this part of her personality is attracted to Batou, Aramaki, and men in general. After all, her only real comrades are men. They can be counted on to get results and follow her without question. The men in her life (even her enemies) also respect her greatly. Motoko, on the other hand, is very different. We don't see very much of her in this role, but we see enough to guess. This part of her personality is interested in cutting loose and forgetting all about work. I think that her girlfriends help her to do this. During the scene in Decoy, when she is hanging out with Kurutan and Ran, notice how her girlfriends get upset when she starts working, and they eventually lose interest and fall asleep. They couldn't care less about her work, and I think that Motoko wants it that way. She does kind of chuckle when she realizes that they are sleeping. It is the same way when she is getting her new body later in the series. Her friend is blissfully ignorant that Motoko is fighting for her life until the nurse's body goes crashing through the glass right in front of her.
So I think that the real difference between her attraction to men and women comes from the sharp division she has created between her work life and her home life. It's hard to see because she is not really sexual in any normal way. She has never had physical sex in her life. Instead she gets emotional love and respect from her working relationships and a weird form of physical pleasure from her girlfriends (the manga goes into much more detail on this).
Another interesting aspect of all this is her relationship with Prime Minister Kayabuki in the 2nd GIG. It is clear in the beginning of the series that the Major does not respect the Prime Minister, and sees her as being ruled by female emotions. But she has a short conversation with Aramaki about her, where he explains why he respects Kayabuki. From that moment on, she takes a different attitude with the Prime Minister. I think that this says something interesting about the Major and her views on gender and sexuality.
You know, this could have been a really stupid topic, but the OP made a great argument and it helped me to think about all this more intently and see that there was a deeper meaning to it. Cheers.
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