And your personal experience is the measuring stick for the history of the word and its use in sports? I played hockey from 11-21 and can say I heard it literally every time I went to the rink- whether in my own teams room or on the ice. Although I stopped using that word many years ago I still didn’t understand the…

I actually think “gay” and “fag” were terms used when I was younger and seriously had no idea of what it meant. I think it kind of gets burned in your brain where you use it almost automatically. There are people I know who literally cant go more than two words without swearing, and I feel its the same thing. They…

I love how all the 40 year old never-faggot-saying-truthers are in complete defensive mode, just like the boston-racists they mock for doing the same denials.

I used that very example not too long ago while trying to explain the ubiquity/casual usage of such terms in the 80s to a younger guy at work, like, “dude, we used to play a game called ‘smear the queer’. That was just what everybody called it.” And it was interchangeably called ‘fumble rumble’ like there was no…

Really sounds like you are trying to compensate for something. I have an inkling you bullied the shit out of the gay kids and internet virtue signaling is how you’re making amends. No other reasonable explanation for how big of an asshole you are being here.

Sure... I’m a brown man how has been called Sand nigger and way worst. I’m sure your friends never called anyone that or worst. It happens and happened. P.S. Saying Brah just proved you have said worst!

Jesus, can I link to this comment for the next time someone asks what virtue signaling means and why people don’t like it?

I was born in 79 and I can honestly say that fag and goof were definitely the go to insults where I grew up (Ontario). Then you weren’t allowed to say “goof” anymore as (some-fucking-how without any heads up) all of a sudden, out of nowhere, it meant pedophile. Then you couldn’t say “fag” anymore because it meant…

How are you even having to have this argument? Did all of these non-saints also throw around the n-word until after high school because they were too young to realize its impact?

Your experience was not universal. I’ve lived all over the country and played a lot of rec sports in different leagues. Some places I heard gay slurs a little, some a lot, some maybe not at all. Overall it is still pretty common and was pervasive as recently as 10 years ago.

And that’s awesome. Good for you for never having been taught the word when you were too young to consider its impact on others.

I used the word interchangeably with ‘fuckhead’ until after high school. Then I realized that wasn’t a word anyone should use. My experience is that there were a ton of people growing up that…

It is literally the most powerful insult you can use on a white male in the age range of 30-50. That’s a fact. It’s not meant to insult the gay community, but there is nothing we hate more than anyone insinuating we might possibly be homosexual.
That being said, yeah, we really need to work on that, and I am hopeful…

Yup, Mid-30's, I remember that word including the shortened version thrown around a lot in middle/high school.

2 points:

Also man in his 30's -- I can’t even come close to estimating how many things we called “gay” when I was a kid. “That’s gay” was a pretty common phrase.

Lotta saints claiming they never used these words. Personally, I used them all the time in high school and college, usually amongst friends. Now? Never. We live, we learn.

Well, we’ve already got a pretty strong start on literally every 30-40 year-old man checking in...

When I was seven I went around calling people cocksucker until my dad told me I should probably come up with another term of endearment. As a seven year-old i definitely had no idea what a cocksucker was but I heard the term somewhere and I liked it.

It is ridiculous, but yeah - many, many people I play sports with, especially hockey, use the word all the time. Extremely, extremely common. Same age range.

Curt Schilling has reported that he hasn’t seen any actual evidence of homophobia, but for the life of him cannot understand seeing so many snowflakes in late May.