Does this Zit have a msg?

[StormTigger]

Okay.. This was the Zit's comic that was ran in the papers yesterday (07/25/06)

Zit's comic 07/25/06

I was talking to a friend of mine about it and between the 2 of us, we ended up w/ 3 different views of the comic and I was wondering others thought.

1 view is it's just a comic

another was it's positive showing how using the term gay to mean lame is still hurtful

the last was more of a feeling that it was just a non-PC thing to run ... but like I said ... we wheren't sure on that one


So what do you guys think?

 

[haydenct]

I see it as just this...it supposed to funny and it succeeds!

 

[Psychometrika]

I'd say it's just a comic too. But I'd also say it's really LAME.

 

[ChrizJen]

I see it as a somewhat sad but true commentary about how little people actually think about the affects of what they say before they say it.

I don't know HOW MANY people I have had to point this out to in much the same way. They'll say "Oh that is SO GAY!!" And, just like the cartoon, I will remind them that I am gay. And, also just like the cartoon, they'll say something like "Aw, come on. You know we're cool. I didn't mean gay like that." People in general for some reason cannot grasp why it would be hurtful to say that! I guess maybe they think there is a distinct difference between "gay" as in homosexual and "gay" as in lame. I usually have to explain in no uncertain terms to them that when they use the term "GAY" to mean lame or stupid, it's just the same as calling me lame or stupid. They generally think that I am misunderstanding what they are saying. But the irony is that they themselves really don't have a complete understanding of what they are saying and how it affects people. I ask them how it would feel if we started using the term "straight" in the same way. That's the point at which they usually mutter something like "oh, yeah I guess..."

But anyway, I think the comic is just one of those "inside joke" type things that if you've lived it (as a gay person), you look at it and can relate to it and see the irony in it.

But here's where I see it as potentially somewhat negative:
Let's take those very people who think there is a difference between "homosexual/gay" and "lame-stupid/gay". They already feel like we misunderstand them. So they may see this comic as sort of an affirmation to what they do.

Who knows...
But I'd like to see others' thoughts on it!

-Christal

 

[Viki]

It surely means, "it's positive showing how using the term gay to mean lame is still hurtful."

But it's humor, so it's multivalent and someone always has to bear the brunt - in this cartoon it looks like they both did, which is the reason, I think, for the confusion.

 

[DVC~OKW~96]

I'm choosing to interpret it as a fairly successful attempt to demonstrate that using the term gay to mean something other than homosexual is lame.

 

[Race the Reaper]

Eh, it's just a comic.