/\ Childish insults...the last resort of a moron that has lost the argument and has nothing of value to say.

I'm not arguing. I dropped out of this thread because I don't give a fuck. It's just that your grammar left that one wide open.

"- the meaning of words changes based on usage.

"It clearly HAS changed, in that it is now being used, at least by some here, in this alternative way."

orathatic,

I agree. In fact, that is exactly my point, if you read what I'm saying. I'm arguing that word meanings are determined by usage, and that in this case, for most people, this word *hasn't* changed, and still refers to sex. In that event, it's questionable at best to attack people as bigots merely because they don't use your preferred (and recent) definition of a longstanding word.

If the meaning of words changes with usage, as you say, why do so many people have an issue with the word "gay" being used as an insult, but not in the homosexual way? When I say my friends are being gay, or that something or some event is gay, I don't mean it's homosexual-I mean it's stupid-and by your logic that means the old definition is wrong.

You kind of are saying it's homosexual. You just correlate "homosexuality" and "bad", and decide to use gay to signify anything you dislike, because you dislike gays.

I don't get how someone can be transgender. I have testicles, I'm male, I'm a guy. I don't know how people can think differently. I suspect you have a similar situation.

This doesn't mean we can't recognize what other people think. I have no idea how people can look at their crotches, and come to the conclusion that they don't what to be what their genitalia say that they are. But I know that they do.

I don't experience the difference between gender and sex. I don't know anyone who does.

But does it harm me to go along with it? If someone who looks like a girl to me wants to be called "Joe" and "him", does it hurt me?

It costs me nothing to accept what they think about themselves. Just like when someone comes up to me and the hallways and starts cursing the Dallas Cowboys, I just nod and play along. I don't care about sports. I don't understand what would make someone want to watch some guys playing baseball.

I don't understand why someone would be transgender. But it's not really my business, so why antagonize them?

@Subotai: And there's the thing - I don't have anything against homosexuals. I use the word "gay" as an insult, like a lot of other people in their 20s or 30s, but most of us don't mean it to bash homosexuals. I think South Park did a funny bit like this, about how words change.

Gay used to mean happy. Then it meant homosexual. It still does, but it also means stupid or dumb.

": And there's the thing - I don't have anything against homosexuals. I
use the word "gay" as an insult, like a lot of other people in their 20s or 30s,
but most of us don't mean it to bash homosexuals. "

Thats a thing; but you are not using it without an association with homosexuals. It uas acquired a new meaning, and your use doesn't make it ok, because it recalls the previous association - partly because of history, and partly because of the fact that the word still still holds these two meanings (it has more than two, but using it to mean camp/flamboyent/fun/happy is much less common and largely forgotten)

You can use it without meaning to offend, and still be offensive. It is the effect which is important, not merely your intention.

Well the term "man" has a meaning still, meaning a genetic man. Yet it's OK to make a new meaning? Seems like a double standard.

And by the way, Chaqa, You seem fairly intelligent, so you are intentionally using 'gay' in what you have been told is an offensive manner. You are more than capable of learning new words, even ones which are more awesome, to say bad/crap. It is a choice of yours to be homophobic and ignore the feelings of others.

And you have every right to be this douché bag.

Does using the term man to mean trans-man offend and insult men?

Look at the history and use of the word nigger. Do you think it is ok to use it? Why is 'gay' any different? Is it because the voices of the people who shout at ou for using the n-word are louder? Is it because you respect them while not caring about the gays?

Also we were talking about the usage of the words gender and sex, not man and woman.

And lastly, 'genetic man' is a pretty stupid term... Because, genetics doesn't determine whether one is a man. In fact, there is an unknown number of perfectly healthy 'genetic men' who are XY but have androgen insenitivity syndrome and thus never developed into anything other than women. (though they are exclusively infertile)

http://www.parents.com/videos/v/63953585/boy-or-girl-how-genetics-determine-your-baby-s-gender.htm
Just the first link to come up....
GENDER....boy or girl....determined by genetics.

You ignorant fucking twat.

The video itself never used the word "gender"...

Orath, a Y chromosome means you're a male. Simple as that.

As for using the word gay, it's just a word. If I see some stupid looking car and I say "that's gay" about it, and a gay person gets offended, then that means they think I was calling a car homosexual. It's insane.

It reminds me of those PSAs a couple years ago with Wanda Sykes. Remember this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWS0GVOQPs0

Stupidest thing I've ever seen.

no chaqa, not always. Biology loves to make things far more complicated.

And no, that is not what a gay person finds offensive, and your inability to see that makes talking to you about rather pointless.

@Trpadro, which video?

The one krellin posted.

Sorry, i mus have that troll muted.

Yeah....the brilliant orathaic -- afraid of actually talking about science in his perverse desire to normalize perversity and mental illness.