Note for staff: If this is still considered inappropriate, feel free to lock or delete. What are your guys' opinions on the whole use of sexual slang here? I won't list all of the slang here, mostly because it wouldn't be appropriate for the forum, so I'll just go with a few. To start off, penis and dick. I would prefer to say penis, but most of the time I end up saying dick just because it seems easier, and it's usually when I'm around my friends. Even though this example somewhat contradicts my statement of not preferring sexual slang, I don't use the slang for what I believe a lot of the people use it for, which it because it sounds cooler. Another one is gay, which actually means happy. While I don't mind gay being used for a homosexual instead of saying homosexual itself, I mind it when people say things like that's so gay or you're gay, which mean stupid / dumb, but using it that way is derogatory, whereas saying something like, "He admitted to me that he was gay" instead of, "He admitted to me that we was homosexual" really isn't rude at all. Thoughts? Discuss.
I don't really tend to talk about penis with my friends that much. But on the rare occasion that the subject of human genitalia comes up, we tend to go for the slang as opposed the scientific term. I don't really think any of the slang terms for any of them is offensive, with the exception of the c-bomb. I only use that if I am very, very angry with someone, and I usually regret it. Gay can mean both happy or homosexual. I'd have to agree with you though about the word being used casually. If I'm talking about or to someone who is actually gay, then sure, I'll use it. It's relevant. But I don't like it when it is used as a placeholder for 'stupid'. Example: A friend thinks an activity you do is weird or unusual, and replies 'That is so gay!' It has become standard to use gay as an insult to someone or something, regardless of whether or not they actually are. As such, teenagers are being subconsciously reminded that being gay is 'bad'.
I don't think sexual terms like dick are offensive, either. What I mean is do you use the actual words or the slang?
The way I see it, depending on the situation, the use of sexual slang can just make someone sound immature. I won't give any examples, as I don't want to risk getting an infraction, but it should be sort-of obvious what I mean. Of course, like in the example you gave, Amaury, sometimes saying "dick" instead of "penis" is easier for some. Personally, I prefer to use the former as I feel using the latter talks about the male reproductive organ as a toy, when it's anything but. But I won't get on anybody's case if they use the latter. On the case of using the word gay when calling something stupid. I disagree with using it that way completely, mainly because it can be taken as putting someone or something down for being homosexual. I know that's not what it means when it's being used that way, but still, I don't think it's okay.
It's all dependent on who I'm with. If I'm with my friends, my language is what some might call 'vulgar'. This includes using words like 'gay' and '******' and all kinds of sexual slang. I know that my friends aren't going to be offended, they know I don't mean 'homosexual' or 'handicapped', even my homosexual friends, so it's not an issue. I would never use those words online or in the presence of people who don't know me well. On the topic of the word 'gay', when used casually, you could argue that it is taking on a new definition, ie 'dumb/weird'. This does happen; think about words like lame or queer. Neither are considered offensive now despite originally being used to describe people, disabled and homosexuals respectively.
Depends on the context. I have friends taking anatomy and when we start talk about their class then everything is by technical name. If it comes up outside of that then I tend to go for the neutral slang, where it doesn't do much outside of providing an alternate name. Derogatory slang I try to stay away from. The subject is crude enough on it's own, no need to go adding unnecessary baggage. On the gay / homosexual piece. First the primary meaning of gay is no longer happy. That definition is obsolete really, but it is important to know so that you don't get the wrong idea when reading Shakespeare. Second, I try to just use homosexual. As you've already brought up many people see gay as an insult unless there is context to suggest otherwise (usually being homosexual yourself) and I don't want to give anybody the idea that I'm hating. Really just follows my rule above. I count gay as derogatory slang so I default back to the technical. Doesn't really apply to sexual slang, but as a side note; I really wish people would leave technical names technical. When the technical becomes derogatory and you need to enter into all the politically correct stuff, that get's annoying fast. Especially when it is a touchy subject that is then forced to change terminology often.
I reject the idea that we should avoid using "Gay" as an insult and opt for a more "Correct" term because we are then giving into the insult hierarchy. For example, did you know that the first politically correct term for what we currently call "Mentally handicapped" was "Idiot"? That used to be a perfectly political correct term. Then people started using it as an insult, so the term was changed to "******ed". Yes, that was also a completely politically correct term. So people started using that as an insult and now we have "Mentally handicapped". And yes, me and my friends call each other "Mentally handicapped" when we do something stupid all the time; it's not going to be much longer before it changes again. It's ridiculous. We can't just keep changing the terms because they become insults, otherwise in fifty years the proper term for a "Homosexual" is going to be a "Same-sex preferring individual". Just accept that people are going to use it as an insult and get over it. As a Mexican, it gets tiring keeping track of whether I'm a Mexican or Hispanic or Latino or "Our friends from down south". It's stupid, just keep one and stick to it. I don't care what connotations it gets, because I don't let stupid shіt like that get to me.
I tend not to use slang anyway, so this doesn't really apply to me. As far as hearing it goes, I prefer to hear euphemisms such as "have relations" or "shag" rather than the slang of my people. Even "shag" sounds way more elegant than "f***," "screw," or "bang." That can't really be helped though. When a term is applied to something that may be seen as a bad thing, it is almost impossible for it not to become derogatory. Mental ******ation, for example, doesn't even have a term anymore, it's just lumped in with "Developmental Disabilities" as if it's not a unique disorder anymore.
That would be the primary one that annoys me. My mother works in a school for severe and profoundly handicapped students. Obviously, a decent number of them are mentally ******ed. And there is still a technical term for it but I couldn't begin to tell you what it is anymore. The running joke in my house is that it changes every two weeks. She has trouble following all the terminology changes that happen there, most for the same reason as the mental ******ation case.
It depends who I' m talking to and what I' m talking about really, I don' t stick to any general rule. About the "that' s gay" case, there are a few matching expressions in French but they don' t imply "gay" to be a synonym for "weird" or "stupid". They are rather used to describe a fashion choice or a behavior stereotypically associated to homosexuals. I guess in both cases it' s only as derogatory as you choose to make it. ^ This. So much. Political correctness is an insult to our intelligence. It doesn' t lift any barrier, it enforces them. I mean come on, "our friends from down south" is ****ing hilarious, it' s so awkward and detached you cannot help but wonder if he/she actually has any friend down there. I hold that no word is derogatory in and of itself. When people pay more attention to the word package I chose than to its actual content/intent, implying some of the words I chose are necessarily narrow-minded choices, I can' t help smiling at the irony of the whole situation.
That's almost the same as where my mom works. She used to work for the Franklin County Board of MRDD (Mental ******ation/Developmental Disabilities) and now it's just Developmental Disabilities. And according to Wikipedia, it has just been lumped in with Developmental Disabilities, though intellectual disability is also used often enough.
well, for saying that something is gay, i don't do that because i know the reason i'm not supposed to say that. it's not like it's a huge inconvenience for me to say stupid instead of gay. by the way this thread reminds me of this stupid commercial with Hilary Duff in it which is about this. take a watch, it's such a silly commercial but a little amusing. [video=youtube;TVicCD8FmMs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVicCD8FmMs[/video] ...if anything this commercial makes me want to say it even more and if anything's gay, it's this commercial....kidding.....ok i'll stop talking now.
