Have you noticed the recent increase in the use of the term "Brokeback" as an adjective in conversation? I can cite examples ranging from church people to Alice Cooper's radio show where I've heard the term applied as a proxy for the word gay. I find it very annoying because someone who says "Brokeback" instead of "gay" thinks they are somehow being less offensive or more hip, or both. This is annoying because they have some sort of misplaced self-righteousness when in reality they're being no less offensive than if they just used the word "gay". The more people use the term "Brokeback", the more they show just how desperately they want that "gay" advective available to them in their vocabulary. We need to be able to use the word gay as an adjective!
Posted by tdupuy at March 8, 2006 3:12 AMGay is offensive. Period.
Posted by: Lara at March 9, 2006 10:22 AMWhat's offensive is the fact that Brokeback Mountain glorifies adultery -- just because it's same-sex adultery instead of hetero, and therefore it's new and shiny and we can get a thrill out of it and become more open-minded and accepting people for it. It's fucking cheating, bottom line -- get a hold of yourself and stay true to the partner you chose.
Also, it helps in our universal accepting of gay love that both of the gay lovers here are goddamn gorgeous. Let's see the same movie starring, like, Steve Buscemi and the killer from Silence of the Lambs. Let's see if that one gets the Oscar nomination.
Posted by: Bess at March 9, 2006 10:55 AMPreach it!!
Posted by: Lara at March 9, 2006 2:15 PMHmm, I had a feeling there was something wrong with this movie without even seeing it . . .
And while I'm not trying to say whether gay is actually offensive or not in this post, I'm not convinced it is. I mean, any more so than "lame" would be offensive to disabled people or "gyp" is offensive to, um, gypsies.
Posted by: Trent at March 9, 2006 3:07 PMI bet I couldn't offend a gypsy, even if I tried. I actually consider myself rather unoffendable, but gypsies, I bet it's pretty hard to stir their pot.
Posted by: jankowski at March 11, 2006 8:29 PMWHO ARE YOU AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH OUR BESS?!!?
Gol dang, girl, do tell ... Is this our erstwhile Other Woman? Our aficianado of the unattainable married man? What gives? Is it the cheating that offends you so, or is it that these pretty boys have slid through a loophole that seems to make their infidelities more tragically tolerable than garden-variety heterosexual creeping around?
And since WHEN is "gay" offensive, anyway? To whom? Not to homos.
As I am hearing this term creeping into speech, it is used specifically to refer to closeted homos, not just any queer. And in such case, I think it's a nice addition to the vernacular, because we've been using "closet case" now for decades without any viable alternatives appearing. It's about time.
Posted by: ae at March 13, 2006 6:21 PMOh just write me off as a little wet blanket AE. I also find the regular equation of "retarded" to "stupid, irksome, obnoxious" offensive. Why don't I just go make myself a sign and picket outside the Bigwhoop HQ because everyone uses the word "gay" to mean "bad, stupid, ridiculous" and I don't like it.
But of course gay people don't care. So what the hell do I know.
Posted by: Lara at March 14, 2006 11:14 AMYeah, and then left wing groups use the word "Justice", "Fair", etc. to mean things they don't mean either.
Point being, you'd have to work really hard to offend a cheating, homosexual, picketing, gay, activist, retarded gypsy.
Posted by: jankowski at March 19, 2006 9:18 PMGay schmay. No one will be saying "Brokeback" in another few months anyhow.
Posted by: Ari at March 21, 2006 10:26 AMGood point AE, about it being used specifically used for closet gays. But one of the two people I've heard use the term was Alice Cooper referring to Denis DeYoung of Styx, who is probably out if he's gay. But sadly I don't know whether he's out or not off hand . . .
Lara, I don't like retarded either and I never use it; it just doesn't seem right.
And Ari, it is my supreme hope that you are right.
Posted by: Trent at March 27, 2006 5:18 AM