Kids using gay as an insult

DannyBo

VestanPance wrote: »

Not at all. Do you understand context, or are you also inferring all homosexual people are happy? In the same way one word can have two completely separate meanings it could have three, it could have twenty-three.

The reason this word is causing such debate is due to homophobia which is vile and disgusting, but the use of the word already doesn't just relate to people who are homosexual.

Discourage the use I'd agree with to avoid possible misinterpretation. Talk with the kids and put that across rationally.

I do understand context.

Yes, many words have many meanings - this is a new, negative 'meaning' because of it's most common meaning.

Or should we all just start referring to naff things as 'Jewish' just because, lets say a radio 1 DJ starts it as a trend?

Jewish is just a word, could also do with a new updated meaning

Gay is used because homosexual sounds clinical and !!!!!! and shirtl****r are crass - whether it meant happy 3 decades ago is irrelevant.

VestanPance

The PC issue isn't a problem. Gollywogs are horrific and don't google Zwarte Piet unless you want a racist Dutch Christmas!

Plus kids use words they don't understand all the time. Worst fear of kids is not knowing the latest swear word, sex word, slang word for fear of ridicule. Despite the fact most kids slagging wouldn't know the meanings either.

System

I nearly had a heart attcke when i head my mum say "f*ck" on the phone the other day :eek: it's weird hearing your parents swear...

VestanPance

DannyBo wrote: »

I do understand context.

Yes, many words have many meanings - this is a new, negative 'meaning' because of it's most common meaning.

Or should we all just start referring to naff things as 'Jewish' just because, lets say a radio 1 DJ starts it as a trend?

Jewish is just a word, could also do with a new updated meaning

Gay is used because homosexual sounds clinical and !!!!!! and shirtl****r are crass - whether it meant happy 3 decades ago is irrelevant.

You don't have a good grasp of English based on you example. Jewish is describing someone's race. Just like homosexual describes someone's sexuality.

Sorry but gay does not just mean someone who is homosexual. In fact as much as you take umbrage with it being used for lame, so would some for it being used for homosexual. Let's face it in terms of the language using gay for homosexual is a very recent adaptation.

Gloomendoom

xXMessedUpXx wrote: »

I nearly had a heart attcke when i head my mum say "f*ck" on the phone the other day :eek: it's weird hearing your parents swear...

I've never heard my mother swear. I have only heard my father say 'f**k' once, and that was under extreme provocation about 25 years ago.

They only use gay to mean cheerful too.

DannyBo

VestanPance wrote: »

You don't have a good grasp of English based on you example. Jewish is describing someone's race. Just like homosexual describes someone's sexuality.

Sorry but gay does not just mean someone who is homosexual. In fact as much as you take umbrage with it being used for lame, so would some for it being used for homosexual. Let's face it in terms of the language using gay for homosexual is a very recent adaptation.

But it's a word - 'Jewish' so we could just adopt it as a new slang word.

Gay is a recent(ish) adaptation, the reason being that; ca. 45 years ago, homosexuality was illegal in this country and therefore 'gays' weren't referred to in a wholesome manner.

So when society started to catch up, a new positive term was coined.

And everyone celebrated, knew what gay people are and rejoiced :T

Now, a word to describe a particular 'race' of people is being used in a negative way (i use the term race as loosely as you and for want of a better word)

VestanPance

The Jews have had insults thrown at them for the best part of 2000 years, none have been 'Jewish' as that is a description of their race. Although it has been used as an insult by some to infer that someone not of that race has some sort of vile trait only possessed by that particular race. Most would see the person using that as an insult as the idiot in that senario.

Dannybo I think we'll just have to agree to disagree. I do think the use of the word in the context I described should be discouraged, but it's not homophobic.

DannyBo

VestanPance wrote: »

The Jews have had insults thrown at them for the best part of 2000 years, none have been 'Jewish' as that is a description of their race. Although it has been used as an insult by some to infer that someone not of that race has some sort of vile trait only possessed by that particular race. Most would see the person using that as an insult as the idiot in that senario.

Dannybo I think we'll just have to agree to disagree. I do think the use of the word in the context I described should be discouraged, but it's not homophobic.

I guess we're going to have to :beer:

My 'Jewish' post were meant to come across ridiculous, to highlight the gay point.

I don't know of any other words that have gone from meaning 'happy, glorious' to something negative. Maybe is the meaning it was used for in the middle?

Gay means lame etc because the word or people it describes are seen as not good enough. That is a fact.

Ill stop now before i give myself an aneurysm

andygb

quietheart wrote: »

It does actually. My son was called gay for getting changed in the same room as his friend. And the child involved is homophobic, he says he hates gay people and they'll burn in hell. :eek:

About six years ago when our nephew was 16 he used to regularly call his BiL "gay boy" to his face, and in the company of adults (when his parents were there). Unfortunately his parents used to laugh it off, but I never found it funny, and neither I suspect did the BiL (who kept quiet simply to keep the peace).
The nephew is now 22/23 and has a criminal record for assault, and is homophobic. His father is also homophobic and a racist.
Back in the old days, if this was becoming commonplace in a school, then the headmaster would talk about it at assembly, and it would be dealt with by some kind of punishment.
Jim Davidson calling black people "chalky" or "spade" wasn't acceptable, and youngsters calling each other "gay" or "gay boy" isn't acceptable either.

Spendless

andygb wrote: »

Back in the old days, if this was becoming commonplace in a school, then the headmaster would talk about it at assembly, and it would be dealt with by some kind of punishment.

Not just back in the old days. My son who is 12 told me they'd had a recent assembly with the HT talking exactly about this issue. It was clear the kids don't see it in the same light as DS said he heard a whisper from behind saying 'you're gay' about HT and it wasn't meant in a he prefers males sense. I used reverse psychology to stop my son. I cleared his bookshelf and half an hour of me asking him if book after book was 'gay' (as in rubbish) trying to find if I needed to keep it or not, was enough to solve it. Apparantly words aren't cool if a parent uses them (not in this house anyway). Never heard him say it since.