Does gay as a derogatory term offend you?

[Toxic Spectre]

It doesn't offend me personally, but I know others whom are offended by it. To me, the word 'gay' seems to have lost all meaning. Also 'fag,' that word has lost all meaning too it seems.

I don't think when someone comes out of a loss in a video game and say "Well that was gay," they are saying that the game likes other games of the same gender, they're not trying to attack those who do like the same sex. It's just the way society sees the word now. Hell, you can have the same word mean different things depending on which context they're used in.

 

[EeveeElectro]

No, I'm not gay so why should I get offended? It annoys me when people get offended over something that doesn't even affect them.
It's a stupid word to use to insult something because by definition it means happy or homosexual. it's not an adjective or adverb when it comes to insulting something, unless you think homosexuality is bad and anything you call gay is also bad.
There's better words to use. I've probably called someone a fag out of anger when I can't think of anything else to say, but I never mean anything malicious or homophobic. I honestly think now, 'fag' is rarely used as an homophobic slur. It just seems same as twat now.

 

[personion]

When someone says "gay", "******" or "retard" I get the urge to rip their throats out. So I suppose that counts as being offended.

 

[Calibanbutcher]

No I'm not offended. In fact it gives me a sense of social superiority because it reminds me that the user is an insensitive arsehole and I am a good guy. If someone uses it on my server they get one warning and if they re-offend a ban. You can trash talk all you want but you use the magic race and sexuality words and boom, you're gone.

What if someone was to say, say:
This sh*t is so bad, it's really straight / hetero?

Funnily enough it has NEVER come up. I wonder why?

Because you do not have jokers such as me on these servers?
I like the expression because people rarely expect "hetero/straight" to be used as a derogatory term.
I am straight BTW, but messing with people is still fun.

 

[Durgiun]

Eh, using 'gay' as a synonym for 'lame' or 'not cool' or 'stupid' is pretty lame and stupid.

Although, I do use '******' quite a lot when describing socially inept people, or just people who annoy me in general.

For instance, Chris-Chan is the Fag Lord, while Linkara from TGWTG is just a plain old ******.

 

[BiscuitTrouser]

Offend? No.
Annoy? Yes.

I just associate it with the childish crap people used to do when kids, back when it was actually used to imply that you are gay, as if there is something wrong with it.

When I see/hear my friends use it, it just makes me feel that they haven't grown up.

I agree with this message. It doesnt offend me persay. But it annoys me. And if you use it excessively im going to take what you have to say less seriously.

Also the word "Gay" or "******" has changed meaning. However its used in two contexts. One is offensive and one isnt.

"Dude thats really gay" - New context, no relation to anything actually homosexual. Still childish.

"Dude you fucking suck noob are YOU gay/a ******" - Old context. Offensive slur.

Im straight as an arrow but in LoL when ever anyone uses the old context i always respond right back with a "Yeah i am gay. What of it?" It usually results in hilarious awkward conversations as the troll tries to offend me with the fact and fails. Like so:

Them: "Lol youre probably gay"
Me: "Yeah i am..."
Them: "Obviously lol"
Me: "Id hope so, wouldnt want the ladies hitting on me"
Them: ".... stfu"

This is an actual conversation, no lies, i had yesterday with another player. Some people take pride in being hatefull and use the word accordingly. Some people do not connect it with actual homosexuality at all. While at worst id call the language immature it isnt offensive to me.

 

[Korolev]

I don't like people using it. But I also know that a lot of kids just use it unconsciously and don't really mean anything by it. I don't use it myself anymore, although when I was a school kid I did, because as a school kid, I was an idiot.

Furthermore, I don't like using the words "retarded" or "spastic" or "lame" to refer to bad things.

 

[Slayer_2]

I use it like a swear sometimes, but don't get offended by it or think it's offensive.

 

[Jolly Co-operator]

I wouldn't say it offends me, but it certainly annoys me to a certain extent.

 

[Playful Pony]

Muh. I can't honestly say I care, although maybe I should? X3 People throw around these words without even thinking, I doubt most people saying "the new Call of Duty (game inserted, btw)screens are pretty gay" are even considering the meaning of the word.

What if another word was used instead? ... I still don't find it offensive really X3. I know when people say "gay" of "******" around me, they aren't talking TO me, or people like me. It's just a word to my friends and they don't really think about what it means. Again, maybe they (and I) should, but most of the world don't seem to so...

 

[Thaluikhain]

Not offended as such, but I'm not going to think well of people throwing it around casually.

 

[Squilookle]

Not really- when you consider that the term originally meant something completely different before it was appropriated to mean homosexuality, I'm not so sure that anyone really has a right to complain when the same word gets appropriated into yet another meaning.

Who knows what 'gay' will mean 50 years from now?

 

[templar1138a]

It doesn't matter to me whether or not gay people are offended by its use. Gay is not synonymous with stupid. As long as people use it in that way casually, it's going to be a lot harder for homophobia to diminish in society. So I come down hard on anyone who does.

 

[Zburator]

I get more offended by people who are too easily offended.

To that point, 'gay' is a word I find that is used to voice frustration. As long as there is no real malice behind it, I think nothing of it. That said, I am far more scathing of people who take the white knight act and take shots at people who used the word harmlessly, or take it as a sign that they are somehow higher on the social scale of things.

In the end, it matters on what the context is.

But used in the sense that "This OP bullshit is so gay", "Doing the dishes is gay", etc, means nothing to me. If all our speech had to adhere perfectly to political correctness, our vocabulary would be much more boring.

 

[Soxafloppin]

No, one of my friends is gay and he describes everything as "Gay as fuck" and often calls me a ******..so no it does not offend me.

I'm straight by the way.

 

[Rellik San]

I always justified it as "GHEY" not "GAY" just most people obviously aren't familiar with the former spelling and so use the more common one.

Definition of Ghey; Something that blows... or sucks... or both.

True story my girlfriend, once in college was being hit on by a lesbian, but she didn't realise it at the time, so anyway they were talking and my girlfriend described something as being "ghey" and the person hitting on them walked away in discuss. As such I vowed to raise social awareness of the difference between "ghey" and "gay" by attempting to organise a "ghey pride" festival where people could freely use the word "ghey" and not face discrimination from the few that have no understanding of contextual differences in phonetically similar words can sometimes be who other words.

 

[Andy of Comix Inc]

It depends on the context. If it's used as a slur, then yes, I will be offended for you using it as such. I won't be offended by being called it, but I will be offended by your use of it.

But as far as banter between friends goes, you know. It's the intent behind its usage (same goes for "fag" and "faggots" and such) that makes it offensive.

 

[DSK-]

Unfortunately as with many other forms of profanity I use 'Gay' in the same sense one would say something is bad or terrible. I don't actually have anything against homosexuality, and I don't use the word in it's actual context or meaning.

This is coming from someone who would use the phrase "You fucking bastard!" in the same way as someone else might say "Oh you silly sausage!".

When I was growing up use of the word 'gay' was heavily widespread, so I guess I've become desensitised to how it may affect other people and cause offense.

 

[duckers101]

i use it a fair amount and have two gay friends, one who also uses it and one who it doesn't even clock with, its just a school boy insult which doesn't mean "you're homosexual" anymore more "that lost what made it good" or not even that alot of the time, i understand how that connection between whats said and whats ment looks bad but whenthe connection isn't even in your mind when you say it, then theres nothing there is just become another word to use like when people say fuck off or oh shit they dont want you to go and bone somthing while you walk away nor (for the most part) have they found feces lineing the room theyjust walked into the word has the meaning you give it and, as far as my social circle of frinds go (who are quite diverse as we're all poor in a very rich county in england and that lack of security breeds variaty) we dont see it as an insult, apart from alan but he looks like a horse and beats women. (sorry if i dyslexa'd everywhere)

 

[Baldry]

Well no. Mainly because when I use the term gay I just use it as an insult completely ignoring the gay aspect, when I call someone a gay I'm not trying to offended them with the fact the like guys I just use it to call people douchebags, the meaning of the word is slowly changing which is good. Also if anyone does use it as an actual insult to me it's kind of weak and unoriginal so they're welcome to do it.