Posted on 10/14/2010 8:15:50 PM PDT by 6ft2inhighheelshoes
That's So...... (Insert Word Here)!
The hysteria over Vince Vaughnʼs line in a movie is hilarious, ironic, and culturally fascinating all at once. Canʼt wait for that paragon of sensitivity and maven of innocuous mouthiness, Wanda Sykes, to weigh in on the issue. Here is her commercial defending the exclusive meaning of the phrase “Thatʼs so gay”, and a comedy routine that is patently offensive; the difference to her is the perceived intent by the victim. She scolds the teens in the commercial for being disrespectful to a protected group, but doesnʼt consider how disrespectful and gross she is in her routine. Despite the best efforts of the folks who usurped the early 20th century meaning of the word “gay”, and conscripted it into the service of an agenda meant to transform homosexuality into a more friendly, fluffy concept, the word is being hijacked again. Thus is the nature of linguistics; words are forever malleable, shaped into whatever meaning a culture can define. Over time, young men, who are overwhelmingly heterosexual, and distinctly uncomfortable with the thought of homosexuality, have used a variety of words to describe homosexuals: fairy, girly-boy, puff, fag, sissy, homo, etc. The usage of these slang terms declines as boys mature into adults, and change with each generation; my father sometimes used the term “fairy”, but boys of my generation said “fag”. Today we all say “gay”, but 20 years ago, it was said through gritted teeth. It was a word that was thrust upon us with the expectation we would welcome an opportunity to name something that maybe grossed us out a little, but described, at the same time, a virtuous minority of noble people unfairly maligned. OK, whatever. Iʼve liked every one of my self-identified gay friends, but Iʼm not a big fan of entering someone elseʼs sexual privacy, invited or not, and I donʼt want to separate my friends according to their sexual preferences. Back to the hysteria over Vince Vaughnʼs line and the phrase “Thatʼs so gay”. Consider for a moment the culture of 12 year old boys growing up today, and the power
of their choices in language. If you watch the commercial with Wanda Sykes, itʼs obvious the kidsʼ meaning is “Thatʼs so lame!” What seems to upset Ms. Sykes is the replacement of “lame” with the special identifying language of a culture that claims victimhood. It is disrespectful, and by inference, harmful to a class of people that must constantly be on the watch for hateful action. Leaving aside a judgement of whether we are experiencing a violent backlash against gay men due to clueless teen talk, I respectfully submit that the term “Thatʼs so gay!” has become a thoughtless catch all phrase for youth, and is now the ultimate phrase to drive coarse talking adults like Wanda Sykes crazy. Whatʼs really interesting is Sykesʼ insistence that people like her have the right to decide which words are verboten, regardless of intent. Whatʼs even more interesting is the likelihood that teens are more aware of their language than adults know, and covertly are screwing with their traditional tormentors, the grown-ups. Consider, if you will, that the gay culture decides next week to change their identifier to “lol” (common texting term meaning “laugh out loud”). Militant homosexual men begin to dance in lol pride parades, etc. If the term catches on, parents will excoriate their kids for texting the term, and within a few years, kids will be saying, “Thatʼs so lol!” Why? Because “lol” is a common term, and hijacking it for the exclusive and protected use of a minority would not be welcomed any more than it was by my generation, who lost forever the perfectly lovely word, gay, and it's meaning. But itʼs all cool; the bodacious adults will prevail upon the bogus dudes to toss the wayward word that seems so offensive, and maybe, for the first time in history, teenagers wonʼt want to create their own exclusive language, and perhaps young people will behave in a more mature fashion to the betterment of all.........NOT!
Vince Vaughn...the Movie!
you’re gay!
I love Vince Vaughn. He was hilarious in Clay Pigeons and Mr. And Mrs. Smith.
What a shock!! I wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that Vaughn is an outspoken Republican???? George Clooney could have said this all day with no response.
Hasn't worked for me. I still associate homosexuality with the bizarre urge to have sexual relations with the anuses of strange men.
Somehow, “That’s so Dinnermasher !” doesn’t quite have the same ring to it.
I like potato chips with ranch dip.
Waaaaaaaaaaa.
I am so sick of these PC puds. Like that homosexual guy on CNN, you know; the guy calling everybody tea bagger, was having vapors over this.
Pathetic.
Also, “Four Christmases”, which my wife has watched parts of dozens of times. — which also had Robert Duvall.
And the iconic sports classic, “DodgeBall”.
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