Philosophy and Man on Man

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GLAAD and South Park's "The F-Word"

Check out the latest episode of South Park (season 13, episode: "The F-Word") if you've not yet seen it, and then check out one of the various articles on GLAAD's opposition.

"Fag" and "gay" obviously haven't yet been completely divorced from their time as homosexual slurs, but they are certainly transitioning. I'm a lesbian myself, and I try not to use these words, but I find that I have no other word that encompasses this particular meaning I often want to convey, namely, an annoyingly affected douche. (I'm sure there are feminists (I consider myself a feminist, by the way) who would have a problem with me using the word douche this way, but bear with me because I've already gotten too wrapped up in parenthetical statements and tangents, and I'd use the same argument for that word as I'm making here).

Oh people have suggested "ghetto", "retarded" and "lame" as substitutes, but those words offend some people and none of them really encapsulates my intended meaning anyway.

One thing I find interesting about this episode is its exploration of how in modern times with GLAAD and others groups and individuals constantly on the look out for political incorrectness, these kids have to try to actively, consciously evolve the meaning of a word (to the point of legislation) instead of letting the meme evolve more organically. Well these words have started to evolve organically, and I think the South Park people are helping gay people slough off the derogation of these terms onto the annoyingly affected douches of the world.

I also get annoyed when it seems that almost the only thing - besides the monthly donation requests - I hear from GLAAD is them ripping on a Family Guy episode (the satire of which they didn't seem to understand, or else don't care about meaning so much as the opportunity to voice their opinion that someone is oppressing us) and this South Park episode. First of all, if FG and SP can be said to be on our side or not, they're definitely on our side. Secondly, SP especially is always putting itself out on a hugely politically incorrect limb on every subject imaginable, and as a gay person, I can at least say for myself that I in no way want special treatment from them on topics that relate to me.

Further, I would love to annoy Fred Phelps' cronies and their "God Hates Fags" rallies. At the very least they'll have to repaint their signs, perhaps with the more cumbersome "God hates homosexuals", and that'll take a little zing out of their movement since it was partly their use of such a politically incorrect slur coming from a supposed organization of "God" that made them so notable and newsworthy.

And finally, I'm sorry, but even if I didn't have all these other reasons to "side with" SP on this issue, the "bikecurious" joke is comic gold and makes this episode just plain worth it.

...I could go deeper here about how I think Trey and Matt actually implanted, if you will, a clever trap for GLAAD into this episode (into which they obviously fell, considering their antagonism to this episode) that takes their maniacally satiric genius to a whole 'nother level...okay I'll go there. They're saying we're being fags (in the new definition that actually exists in the real world, not the Harley thing) when we sit around and decide we're not getting enough attention and so we should rumble louder for no reason. Well GLAAD's demand for an apology, is just such rumbling...and, yes, it makes them fags.