Once upon a time, it was the thing that if you wanted to describe something as "gay" meaning lame, stupid or ludicrously ridiculous, you could. Provided that you added the phrase afterwards, sotto voce, "...in the primary school meaning of the word."
If you didn't remember to do this, you were labelled an obnoxious homophobe, and pilloried for it.
I came across something on YouTube the other day (I don't have the link and I'm not looking for it) where someone - presumably not heterosexual - was complaining about people who are prone to describing things as "gay" under this definition.
It was about at this point that I noticed that the primary school definition disclaimer seems to have all but disappeared. I worked, up to last week, in an office where a couple of the team routinely described things as "gay" without the disclaimer, and no one seemed to bat an eyelid.
In fact, so entrenched was this practice that it never occurred to me to see what the reaction might have been from a particular member of the team. A member for whom, as it happens, the disclaimer was invented in order to avoid causing offence.
This got me thinking: Is the meaning of the word "gay" changing yet again? Or has it already done so?
After all, no one really bats an eyelid at someone's sexual orientation anymore. Just look at the fuss that Lindsay Lohan's coming out caused: That's right, folks. No one could give a rat's arse.
What's caused all this then? Is it the rise of Generation Y? After all, this is the generation for whom, if you believe our media stereotypes, still behave as if they were in primary school. It really goes without say that they might have brought a few words of primary school slang with them, if that was the case.
Discuss.
If you didn't remember to do this, you were labelled an obnoxious homophobe, and pilloried for it.
I came across something on YouTube the other day (I don't have the link and I'm not looking for it) where someone - presumably not heterosexual - was complaining about people who are prone to describing things as "gay" under this definition.
It was about at this point that I noticed that the primary school definition disclaimer seems to have all but disappeared. I worked, up to last week, in an office where a couple of the team routinely described things as "gay" without the disclaimer, and no one seemed to bat an eyelid.
In fact, so entrenched was this practice that it never occurred to me to see what the reaction might have been from a particular member of the team. A member for whom, as it happens, the disclaimer was invented in order to avoid causing offence.
This got me thinking: Is the meaning of the word "gay" changing yet again? Or has it already done so?
After all, no one really bats an eyelid at someone's sexual orientation anymore. Just look at the fuss that Lindsay Lohan's coming out caused: That's right, folks. No one could give a rat's arse.
What's caused all this then? Is it the rise of Generation Y? After all, this is the generation for whom, if you believe our media stereotypes, still behave as if they were in primary school. It really goes without say that they might have brought a few words of primary school slang with them, if that was the case.
Discuss.
