You're gay.

I used to use it as an insult, I got that from the people I tended to hang around with in my early years in high school. 4 years from that, I stopped using "gay" and any words related as a bad word, as I just found it wrong and insulting to those who are actually gay, especially since I was once told off by someone who was gay for saying it. I just thought it was bad from there on.
 
When there are so many other words that I could use that wouldn't offend anyone, I've got no reason to use something like "that's gay" instead of "that's stupid." And while I'm not personally offended by anyone saying it, I put it on the same level as using "retarded" as a synonym for stupid, and I almost feel embarassed just to hear someone use it in a negative way like that.
 
Zeffy said:
Where is the freedom of speech in that? (A bit off-topic, I know, but one can only wonder.)
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The freedom of speech is there. Freedom of speech refers to the fact that the government won't arrest you for saying a word that goes against their belief. People will still hate you if you use rude terms though and quite frankly people just need to... not be bothered by the fact that people will use offensive words to empower themselves. (If they're a marginalized group anyway)
 
Harlequin said:
There is a difference between freedom of speech and being an insensitive/homophobic/sexist/racist jackass.
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One could use other words and still be called "an insensitive/homophobic/sexist/racist jackass." I'm just saying. Why focus on these words when there are still plenty of words that can be used in the same context? Also, this:
Moogles said:
frankly people just need to... not be bothered by the fact that people will use offensive words to empower themselves. (If they're a marginalized group anyway)
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I swear I remember this conversation from somewhere here already.

Like serious I just spent twenty minutes searching for it.

Well.

****.


Do I like how it's used? No, not at all. Can I stop someone from saying it? No.

I just think it's rude, just as rude as any other derogatory term. I won't take it to heart. Though I have mentioned it to people before. Most will say sorry, there are a few though that I want to punch in the face.
 
Do I use the word "gay" to describe things that I don't like? No, I much prefer creative expletives. If I'm going to have a limited vocabulary that reflects how uneducated I am, then I want to at least smash together some swear words and make a new abomination a la Frankenstein's monster.

Do I care if people around me use "gay" in that context? Not really. I view it as one of those issues that people are hypersensitive about because the times demand that we all be offended by at least one word, but then again I grew up being called a ****/wetback/beaner so what I find offensive is a tad different.
 
Harlequin said:
I have a straightforward opinion on this - if you're LGBT, use gay in whatever way you want to. It's your word, use it how you want. But if you're straight, use it in the way it was meant to be used and not as a synonym for something bad or terrible. You don't have the right to use it that way.

This also applies to a certain f word - I'd prefer it if the word died out completely, but many LGBT use this word as a way of reclaiming it, making the word they're own. But if you're straight, don't use it at all. Ever. It's a terrible word which I'm not going to physically type out as the less this word is used, the better. Find your own way of insulting someone without degrading another person's sexuality.
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Wait what? I wasn't aware that people could own a word just because they personify one of the multiple meanings of the word. Im a happy person so i should be able to use the word gay as much as i want, shouldn't I? Didn't realize we were still that segregated. It's like the whole (black-person-derogatory-slang) ordeal with only certain people being allowed to say it. The way i see it.. if its not meant to be derogatory or used in a negative sense towards a person then the intention is not ill and people should try and take it with a grain of salt. Same with saying " me and my ( female dogs) " butmeaning it in a jokingly way. Not exactly the same because they'd be referring to a person, and not some random object or situation.. but it is a bit similar. Words naturally change overtime: Nice: It started off meaning foolish, stupid (from Latin nescius - unknowing), then migrated through wanton --> strange --> tender --> coy and a few others before settling into its modern meanings of 1. precise and 2. pleasant. The word gay has an evolution too, and unfortunately the 90s made the word a negative one, but I see it as being a homonym now, and not the same word as the one for homosexual.
Some may be a bit offended because there are better words to use, but if there is no intentional harm there should be no problem.

For those who don't know:
In linguistics, a homonym is, in the strict sense, one of a group of words that share the same spelling and the same pronunciation but have different meanings. A cross, and to cross, are completely different, despite being spelt and pronounced the same. Doesn't seem like an issue to me- as they are completely different words to me.
 
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Well, I may use it from time to time, but usually just for yelling out when playing first person shooters :P
 
I'm not particularly offended by "that's so gay," but it's not something I say myself (unless it's ironically...).
 
Harlequin said:
I have a straightforward opinion on this - if you're LGBT, use gay in whatever way you want to. It's your word, use it how you want. But if you're straight, use it in the way it was meant to be used and not as a synonym for something bad or terrible. You don't have the right to use it that way.

This also applies to a certain f word - I'd prefer it if the word died out completely, but many LGBT use this word as a way of reclaiming it, making the word they're own. But if you're straight, don't use it at all. Ever. It's a terrible word which I'm not going to physically type out as the less this word is used, the better. Find your own way of insulting someone without degrading another person's sexuality.
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Not sure if you were being sarcastic here, but I found some contradictions in logic in your post.

if you're LGBT, use gay in whatever way you want to. It's your word, use it how you want.
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But if you're straight, use it in the way it was meant to be used and not as a synonym for something bad or terrible. You don't have the right to use it that way.
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but many LGBT use this word as a way of reclaiming it, making the word they're own.
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But if you're straight, don't use it at all. Find your own way of insulting someone without degrading another person's sexuality.
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Wait, what? All of what you wrote pretty much goes against everything the LGBT community believes in and fights for each and every day. Just because you label yourself within a certain group doesn't give you the right to use a specific word more freely than another group of people, especially a word that can be very offensive to some. I really don't understand the reasoning behind your post. How can you (which I hope you do) fight for equal rights when you're just adding to the stereotype? How ignorant and egocentric it makes you sound going around saying, "'We're here, we're queer, and we aren't going anywhere," when you, yourself, are against everything the LGBT community is trying to get rid of (in this case, the negative stereotypes).

If gay is literally a description of who they are, then they should be allowed to use it in whatever way they want, lol.
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Also, as others have mentioned, the term 'gay' has been largely used out of context for many years now, and nowadays the word is generally used as synonym for 'stupid'. You're pretty much just calling those who are gay, stupid, and telling them to use that word without restriction. No one "owns" the word. That's just absurd. And someone who's gay and goes around saying "that's gay" all the time, just makes themselves sound extremely hypocritical. In the end, there are plenty of other synonyms for the word, so why force yourself to use something that could be considered so insulting to yourself and to others?
 
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Well, there's always been words people use to insult.

I hear it all the time. I simply ignore and move on. I never use it myself, and when I first heard the word, I was taught it meant carefree and happy. xD Took me a month later to learn what people knew it as in my school.
 
Nope,i don't use that word..but i do insult,it's fun to tease people from time to time ^^
 
I do when I'm around my friends exclusively. 2 of which are bisexual, one of which is homosexual. And usually when I say "you're gay!" the bisexuals go "only half way!" so it's.. I don't know. It doesn't seem the same as if I were to go up to a painting and say "this painting is gay" as a way to indicate that I don't like it.

I'd never use gay as an insult to anyone but my friends who all know that we aren't using it to be offensive to homosexuals... Since all but one of us is interested in the same sex.
 
I don't use this word at all. The word itself seems outdated to me. If I want to refer to LGBT, I'll use the appropriate term, and if I have to offend someone, well, let's just say there are plenty of other ways. Therefore I am not offended by it, either.
 
Yes, I do tend to get offended, because well, it does offend people right? Homosexuality? Anyway I don't take it a point to ever call a person gay, unless he acts suspiciously so and maybe not even then.
 
TheNM22 said:
Well, I may use it from time to time, but usually just for yelling out when playing first person shooters :P
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As a general message to everybody, when you say this over Xbox Live or whatever other medium you have the chance of... alienating gay gamers!!! Wow!!!! How about be considerate to the other people playing. Be mad, but bringing someone's gender or orientation into it is so unnecessary. I know too many gay gamers who are uncomfortable with Xbox Live because of the user base and the rampant homophobic language it uses.
 
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