Okay...so here's the deal. I'm not gay.

[ScreamingMeemie]

But I do feel the time to push for equal rights for all is now, because even now is too late. It should be a non issue because of that. But it's not.

I am not gay but..

...I do not allow my children to use the term "that's so gay" "you're queer" or any other such offensive (yes offensive) terms in my presence. I hope they don't use them outside of my presence but I can't be with them 24/7. I will always equate that with equally offensive terms used to describe race.

... I was stunned by the Snickers commercial the other night, and then sickened during my visit to the website. Being straight, I was not "looking" to be offended. And yet, there I was...offended and disgusted.


...I was eye poppingly horrified when I read some comments on DU yesterday...and today.


This is NOT an Olive Garden/smoking section variety of flamewar. This is a commentary on basic human rights. This is an issue. A real issue, that was just undermined on national television and the internet.

Perhaps, a few years ago, my family and I would have laughed at this commercial and wondered what the big deal was. Now, I never could. I see the hurt among good, decent people. People that have, time and again, voted with and worked for the Democratic Party only to be told, time after time, to wait your turn... now is not the time...this is a wedge issue...

Imagine that, human rights equated to a wedge issue.

And so, these people, these friends of mine/OURS wait. For how long should they? How long should they let a brother who never cared in life get to make the life ending decision for a sister he cut off the day she came out of the closet? How many times should fathers be okay with giving up children they helped raise to grandparents who weren't even there for the birth...because they were disgusted by his lifestyle. How long should these people pay the same taxes, fight in the same wars, live in the same neighborhoods and yet be less than me? How Long?

Some, by the tone and content of their posts, would let it be forever. They would have them "get over it already" or tell them to stop "whining"...to stop "looking for reasons to be offended."

I ask you this... Do they really have to look that hard? I don't think so. And that, in itself, disturbs me.

These people are not crying children in restaurants, smoking in bars, a trip to Olive Garden when in NYC. They are our friends, neighbors, fellow DUers... and we should treat them with respect. They've had our back...now let's get theirs.

This is my opinion, and I'm sticking with it.

Thank you.

[Midlodemocrat]

1. I'm not gay and I stand by what Mrs. G. said. Wholeheartedly.

[racaulk]

15. I know you do, Midlodemocrat.

As a gay man, your posts in all these horrible Snickers ad campaign flamewar threads have not gone unnoticed by me. Thank you for always being a strong voice of support and encouragement for GLBT people everywhere.

:pals:

[LostinVA]

20. I know, Midlo -- I love you and MrsG

[NMDemDist2]

65. what Midlo said bigtime n/t

[Behind the Aegis]

2. Bravo!

:applause:

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

3. MrsG, you fucking rock.

:yourock:

:hug:

[blonndee]

4. Well said, MrsG. K & R n/t

[LisaM]

5. I heard a young woman say this on the bus the other day, on her cell phone

I haven't really heard the phrase in use before, and it was pretty shocking. Her conversation was inappropriate on many levels - she was swearing (they all do this on the bus), talking about another person's weight, talking really loudly, you name it - but it was the first time I'd heard someone say this in public and it was really offensive.

[KenHodson]

21. I'm curious. What did she say?

[LisaM]

43. She described someone she disliked as "totally gay"

more than once. She was also telling some long, complicated story about her mother and some guy who drove them all to Wal-Mart where they bought $300 worth of stuff, and her mother got in a fight with the guy, who proceeded to leave them there with all there stuff. Though he eventually cooled off and came back and got them.

[keepCAblue]

52. It's akin to "sooo gay"

As in, Oh my god, did you see that pink shirt he had on! It was soooo gay!" This is a euphemistic way of saying "That's a faggot shirt"...

[brer cat]

67. Oh My!

Off subject....I will be ordering one of those bumper stickers!

:rofl:

[LostinVA]

6. I love you,. MrsG!

[meegbear]

7. Thank you MrsGrumpy!

:hug:

[MuseRider]

Very well said

Mrs. Grumpy. I stand with you and I have your back always. :hug:

[myrna minx]

8. Perfectly stated.

:applause:

[Obamarama]

9. Okay...so here's the deal. I'm gay.

Can we have permission to clone you, MrsGrumpy?

I've never been much of an activist reagrding my sexual orientation, though I've never been one to suffer discrimination quietly or remain silent at the expense of office jokes.

However, I find that as the years progress, and attitudes exhibited in that sorry excuse for a Snickers ad continue to be okay, I find a more activist voice rising.

It's so refreshing to know that I am not alone with people like MrsGrumpy in the world. Thank you.

[sandnsea]

10. It's intentional denigration

It's not that any given minority group chooses to be offended - it's that certain majority groups choose to denigrate segments of society.

[racaulk]

11. As a gay man, I've got your back, MrsGrumpy!

This is the most uplifting post I've read in GD in the last two days. The blatant homophobia in some of the posts here regarding the Snickers campaign is absolutely disheartening, but I'm glad to know there are good people like you on my side. Thank you for posting this and for your support of the GLBT community, we could use more allies like you.

I'm so happy to K&R this post!

:loveya:

[La Lioness Priyanka]

12. this is why i love you mrs grumpy. human rights issues are never wedge issues.

even if only 10 people a year get tortured doesnt mean torture is a wedge issues

[niyad]

13. THANK YOU, MrsG-- we stand with you. I had no idea such idiocy was going on on

national TV, and I do not allow people to use such language around me. Like you, I am not gay, but many of my friends are, and I do not wish to see them hurt by people's ignorance and hatred and stupidity.

[redqueen]

Great post!

:applause:

[malaise]

14. Great post

The snickers ad was offensive. It's simple - it violated people's human rights.
Sp.

[rzr77]

16. I agree completely

It's the bizarro world PC mentality, that somehow it's ok to make fun of some minorities, but not others deemed more "cool" at the moment. If we believe in civil rights as a principle, it must be for all, not for who the cultural elite deem is worthy of "protection" at the current moment.

The most annoying is the slang "that's so gay" (usually said by some obnoxious ken/barbie type to denote something negative/weak/uncool) and when pointed out even libs will try to deny it as offensive (of course, even libs are suceptible to sucking up to the popular kids .. can't be seen as too aligned with the underdogs now can we .. ken and barbie may not invite us to their next party).

[ThomCat]

17. Awesome, wonderful post!

:applause:

[jobycom]

18. My daughter the other night on AIM

got into a fight with the stepmom of one of her friends. This friend is neurotic and lies constantly to gain attention, making up stories about men stalking her and such. My daughter doesn't quite believe she's making it all up. That's not the point, just setting the background.

So, my daughter was on AIM with several friends, including the neurotic one, when the stepmom came on line and began chewing the other girls out. She told them they were all bad influences on her daughter, that her daughter was now bisexual because of all of them. This was the first time anyone had heard that this neurotic friend was bi, for the record. Stepmom then began blasting al of them for ruining and confusing her stepdaughter, and picked out one girl in particular as evil, because the girl claimed to be a Wiccan, not a Christian. We are talking about 13 year olds, btw.

My daughter got really upset. She told the stepmom that she should accept her daughter, and that if she were bi she should be proud of her and not reject her. The stepmom then accused my daughter of being wicked, and a bad Christian, to which my daughter responded that she was an atheist. Stepmom told my daughter that she should respect her elders and the parents of her friends, to which my daughter repeated that stepmom should love her stepdaughter and be proud of her.

So then Stepmom told my daughter, again, that she was a very bad child, and that she was going to have a long talk with her parents. My daughter's response: My parents are proud of me for standing up to a bully. And my mom is standing behind me, reading all of this. (that was true). Stepmom had no reply to this.

I was out of town when this happened, so I heard about it a couple of days later. My wife (we're separated) told my daughter she should not have fought with someone else's parents, but that she was proud of her for sticking up for her friend, and for her attitude. Without consulting my spouse, I told her almost the same thing.

Has no relation to the Snickers commercial (which I was upset with). And I forgot my original point. But it feels good to know I raised my kid right on at least one thing, so... thanks for reading. That's all.

Oh yeah, Mrs G. :toast: Although, I don't think of the issue as one where we straight folk are "helping out our friends." I think of it as an issue where we the people are banding together to fight for equality of all people, irregardless of labels applied to some people. The whole gay/straight dichotomy is a false one, to me.

[sniffa]

19. ....

i <3 u

:loveya:

[Zookeeper]

22. Perfect. Thanks for expressing that so well, Mrs.G.....

I'm with you! :thumbsup: :patriot:

[Nimrod2005]

23. What website?

[johnnie]

24. I am with you

I have been for the rights of every human being everywhere for many years now. I get queasy when someone shows a hateful side toward someone else just because of their gender, sexuality, race, religion and anything else that is just plain wrong.

Unfortunately, I have a hard time feeling sympathy for an individual's cause when they throw the same bigoted remarks in the face of others. Saying "let me guess, you are a white straight male" or "too bad that child wasn't a white blond girl" and many of those types of remarks shoots a person's argument down with me.

If a person is honestly for equal rights for everybody, they would try to refrain from calling out other nationalities, genders, sexuality and such. Yes, white males have pretty much had a monopoly on the power for quire some time. But truthfully, I'm not one of them. I am still a liberal and to see those comments all the time here at DU is disheartening also. It's Ok to bash men and white people here I guess, but it does show that when you do, you really aren't for equal rights, you seem to be more out for yourself. (Not you specifically, of course).

[Cerridwen]

25. K & R...well said!

:applause: :applause: :applause: :applause:

[bear425]

26. Thanks for a great post and standing with us in our struggle

for equal rights.

k/r

[helderheid]

27. I'm not gay, and you speak for me.

[Burma Jones]

28. I'm with you too, tolerance is not acceptance

Last week, two teen girls from the neighborhood were found dead in a car near the WV/VA border...I can't help but think they felt persecuted.....

If my wife and I should die together, we have made it clear in our will that our kids, 8, 6 and 6 months, are to be raised by a lesbian Couple in NJ. One of them was my Wife's Maid of Honor at our wedding, and my wife was hers. It pisses me off to think there will be challenges to our well thought out decision. We hope that the fact they're in New Jersey makes life easier for our two most trusted friends.

My Wife's sister is also in a committed relationship with another woman, she had been married to a guy for 12 years, but got fed up being miserable trying to conform to what she thought her parents and the rest of society expected of her...she's happy now, and has custody of her three daughters. It's funny, while she was married to he ex husband, we would not consider giving them custody of our children if the "worst" happened, now.......I suppose we could change our will, because she is definitely the most fit parent (besides us) in either of our families.....

I've played poker with a group of guys for 21 years now. One is Gay. We all finally got comfortable with it about five years ago.....

All of this means that it's high time this wasn't a wedge issue and that I can arrange my life as I see fit and that life includes Gays and Lesbians.

It also shouldn't matter whether you live in NJ, MA, MD or OK

I don't care if you're "born that way" or choose that path. I do not think that tolerance is equal to acceptance.

[LeftyMom]

29. Exactly.

I can't believe we have a bunch of straight people trying to tell gay people what they're allowed to be offended by. When you're in the empowered majority it's easy to say what you'd feel as the marginalized minority and very hard to actually know. So if people tell me that something is offensive to them based on their race, ethnicity or orientation, I have no reason not to believe them and little reason not to act to prevent further offense, especially in a case where there's so little to lose. It's not as if M&M/Mars has a lot to lose in pulling and apologizing for a shockingly unfunny ad campaign that did anything but make a snickers bar look appetizing.

[Solly Mack]

30. I'll stick with your opinion as well

:)

[Pathwalker]

31. What I DON'T get: Rights are for everyone.

If anyone is excluded from these rights, they are no longer rights, but privileges. Which puts those with the priveleges into a "special" group, so I get testy with those who say gays are asking for "special" rights. No, they're not, they're just asking for the same rights that everyone BUT them has enjoyed forever. I also don't see how people who are against equal rights for gays, don't see their stance as being PRO-discrimination, because it's discrimination, plain and simple. They get mad when I call them bigots, but to me - that's what they are. To me, telling someone it's okay to discriminate against someone because of their sexual orientation is just as bad as saying it's okay because they're of this, that, or another gender, or because they're this, that, or another race.
I get easily pissed over this issue, I admit, but I took many beatings from my brothers and cousins over a cousin who was gay, just trying to protect him from their hate. I never understood their hate - and I don't think I ever will. It seems such a simple issue to me - rights are for everyone. :shrug:

[bicentennial_baby]

32. I love you

but you knew that already :loveya:

:hug:

[RaleighNCDUer]

33. Being one of the 5 people in the country who did not watch the

superbowl, when this commercial presumably aired, I have no idea what this is about.
Could somebody fill me in?

[mcscajun]

38. I've been "playing catch-up" on this as well. I've been out of touch

until about an hour ago.

Here's a site where you can see the offending commercial: http://usatodayadmeter.feedroom.com/ifr_main.jsp?nsid=d-26435251:110981a7d6b:-4420&fr_story=FEEDROOM177774&st=1170791456340&mp=FLV&cpf=false&fvn=9&fr=020607_025055_w26435251x110981a7d6bxw441f&rdm=621958.4123649485

It's on the last page, all by itself. No telling how long it'll be available there.

[xultar]

40. Make that 6...I didn't watch the SB either nor have I seen the commercial

[Pacifist Patriot]

45. I hid in my room and read a book. Amazingly, the one time I stepped...

out to say something to my husband was when the Snickers ad was on. I'm sticking with books.

[kdpeters]

83. I didn't watch the superbowl either. When was it?

:-) But seriously, if it hadn't been for the Snickers controversey, it would have completely escaped my notice that it had even taken place. Looks like there's nothing on television any better today than when I got rid of my television a few months ago.

[FourScore]

34. Hear! Hear!!

Well said, MrsG.:applause:

[Maven]

35. Oh, Mrs. G

:loveya:

[merh]

36. I'll proudly stand next to you and with you, Mrs. G.

I could never have put it in to words as well as you have in your OP, you speak for me.

:yourock:

:hug:

[emulatorloo]

37. Kick and rec n/t

[swimboy]

39. Well done, Mrs. G

Wow. Thank you! :loveya:

[Starbucks Anarchist]

41. Well said.

:thumbsup:

[keepCAblue]

42. Thank you, MrsGrumpy

There was a recent DU thread re: an initiative the WA-DOMA group is trying to introduce to the WA state legislature in response to a WA Supreme Court ruling which stated the state has a legitimate interest in preserving marriage for procreation; thus, the state is justified in denying equal rights to gays and lesbians.

There are a couple of people on that thread who could learn much from you, MrsGrumpy. You have restored my faith...

[Pacifist Patriot]

44. Bingo!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x137434

[Missy Vixen]

46. I'm not gay and I'm standing with you, Mrs. Grumpy

When one of us is oppressed, we all are.

Julie

[Initech]

47. I'm not gay either but I fully support gay rights

[ArbustoBuster]

48. Recommended and kicked.

Well said.

[Madspirit]

49. Yay You! k&r

Thanks for your support. There are some issues that people just feel it is okay to diss. Makes me sick. People like you are exactly what this world and this site, need more of.
Madspirit

[prairierose]

50. I teach English....

and have for over 20 years,. I am one of those people who is always being accused of being PC. I have often told students not to use that particular phrase in my presence. It is one that I really hate. I remember how shocked I was to hear it used in that denigrating way the first time. I thought that our society had made some progress but that convinced me that we had a really long way to go to be a civilized society. I have tried to teach tolerance to my students. Language has meaning. Words have meaning and power.

Any language that marginalizes any group, diminishes all. It does not matter what group is being made to feel small or unworthy. What does it say about our culture and the people who continue to yell, "It's just a word, get over it"? I believe that it says that we do not really care about people. Who makes the decision of who is worthy of any right?

What I have seen in my lifetime is that we made some progress for a time but we have fallen so far back down the hill that I wonder how long it will take to climb back up.

Words do matter.

Mrs. G, thank you for your eloquent words. I'm with you.

[HappyWeasel]

51. great way of dealing with the issue.

I think it may be time to start pushing hard on this is the blue and purple states. They already have in Colorado with a ballot initiative. It narrowly failed, but I think we should campaign harder next year. We should use conservative to centrist values of protecting those who are contributing to the government through taxation and public service in order to push for rights for homosexuals.

[uppityperson]

53. Thank you MrsG. Me too. Human rights for humans.

regardless of color, age, sexual orientation, sex, etc. Human rights for humans and shame on those who think or have said otherwise.

[Bluebear]

54. Love to you, MrsG. nt

[cboy4]

55. Thank you MrsG. As always.

:loveya:

[DKRC]

56. Well said!

I'm not gay, not amused, & not afraid to stand up when others can't or won't.
I missed the commercial because I don't watch the SB, but as soon as I read the DU comments here yesterday I went to the website. I saw for myself what was being put out there and immediately wrote Mars a letter. I've stopped buying ANY of their products because of the Snickers commercial.

[me b zola]

57. I stand with you, MrsGrumpy

:applause:

[terrya]

58. No...thank you

:hug:

[wildhorses]

59. well said, mrsg!! happy to stand beside you and get their back

:headbang::bounce::applause::pals::hug::grouphug::yourock::grouphug::hug::pals::applause::bounce::headbang:

[ulysses]

60. damn.

:thumbsup:, Ms G.

[sundog]

61. nice post mrs g

thank you :)

[rosesaylavee]

62. Great post.

I too won't let my son or his friends use 'gay' as a negative adjective in our home or at anytime within my hearing. They know now that I will stop wherever we are and 'embarrass' them by talking about their use of that word and what it would mean to a friend who may be gay and not have the courage to tell them because of their use of the word as a negative. Only had to do it twice when they were much younger and haven't heard it since. My son has great friends who are growing up to be fine sensitive thoughtful people.

It is important to stand up and speak your mind when you see an injustice. Thank you for doing that on this issue.

[proud patriot]

63. straight but not narrow here too

:patriot: equal rights for all now :patriot:

[sugar magnolia]

64. Great post!

You rock.

[Cabcere]

66. Very well said. K&R.

:applause: :kick:

[gratefultobelib]

68. Awesome post. Thank you. I missed the commercial on TV, but I just now

watched it, thinking, "Oh, good grief, it can't be as bad as everyone says," AND it was WORSE! Good heavens! How on EARTH did that get on the air? It's so offensive it takes my breath away! What have we become? :shrug:

[riderinthestorm]

69. Wow! Nobody says it better than you!

Go girl! I'll stand with you too.

:yourock:

[Turn CO Blue]

70. Your post rocks, MrsG! n/t

[brer cat]

71. "our friends, our neighbors"

Excellent post! I really loved it, but I have a minor quibble...I prefer not to use "they", "these people", etc. I think we should stick with variations on "my friends", "our gay/lesbian colleagues/neighbors", etc. "They/these people" is very impersonal, and I think it leads to greater stereotyping.

But then, maybe I'm overly being overly sensitive to the use of general terms. :shrug:

Recommended!

[Hekate]

72. Well done, Mrs. G. I completely missed the SB, didn't know what the threads were about...

...and I guess just generally clueless about our great Murkin Culture when it comes to the Super Bowl and its ads.

But you nailed it, Mrs G. As with so much else that's wrong with this country, we are supposed to be better than that. And gay rights are not some arcane set of "privileges", they are basic human rights due to all of us. Period.

Thank you, from one straight married mom to another. My marriage isn't threatened by someone else's love, and it looks like yours is not either. Imagine that.

Hekate

[Maat]

73. Straight But Not Narrow here also!

This PFLAGer was wandering around the house talking to Spouse and Daughter when the ad came on. We weren't really paying that much attention, but, as soon as I saw this thread, I remembered what you were talking about. I remember thinking at the time, "How offensive. Mars was really stupid to put that on." I missed the threads on DU about this topic.

I fully support equal rights and equal opportunity for all; moreover, I support equal protection of the law for all (which is what this is really about)!

Thanks for posting, Mrs. G!

[tnlefty]

74. Thank you for stating this much better than I could!

I'm rather tired of righteous anger being equated with whining.

[Heathen57]

75. I'm with you MrsGrumpy

I happen to live in the most Conservative county in our state and have to put up with Evangelical Gay-haters in our backyard. "Dr." Dobson among them.

My family has helped a lesbian couple move 4 times due to harassment, and in one instance an eviction by the property owner. I have seen Gays harassed on the job. One person who was fired because the rumor that they were Gay.

I have marched with the Gays. Attended rallys for their cause, and had more than one confrontation with individuals when they would make remarks in my hearing.

I say this not to blow my own horn, but rather to back up what I say. And that is the Gay and Lesbian community cannot gain equal rights on their own. It takes a massive group from all walks of life. Gay, straight, Christian, non-Christian, and from all 'races' (for lack of a better word) to make those with prejudices understand that civil rights are for EVERYONE!

Even if we have to convince just a few at a time, it will be worth it. We will have to shrug off the references to our own sexuality. I have been 'outed' as a Gay man on another forum, even though I am straight and have been faithful to my wife of 27 years. By calling me Gay, I guess that it is supposed to upset me, but when you consider the source as well as consider the company that would put you in, then it is more of a compliment.

**Stepping off my soapbox**

Heathen-

[ScreamingMeemie]

87. I look forward to getting to know you Heathen.

:toast: Welcome to DU.

[undergroundpanther]

76. Mrs. Grumpy..

This transgender feline heart purrs for you.
I'd be tempted to ask you out for coffee, BUT Since you are straight I'd still ask to go hang out with ya and get good coffee,as a freind, it might make you feel less grumpy either way .
Anyways thanks for standing behind me and all the other GBLT people out there, you do the straight community proud.Thank you for telling it like it is. Stating the obvious,and standing up.

[OneBlueSky]

77. this gay man thanks you most sincerely . . . n/t

.

[Robeson]

78. I knew there was a reason I liked you, MrsGrumpy....

...your post reinforced why I do.

[nofurylike]

79. very well said. thank you, MrsGrumpy. eom

[struggle4progress]

80. Can we start saying this WITHOUT feeling obligated to say "I'm not gay but" first?

I've really never understood why "I'm not gay but" has to be added to such statements.

"I'm not a --- but" really takes some of the edge off

If somebody slanders a religious group, for example, I just disagree. I don't start with "I'm not Jewish but" or "I'm not Muslim but" or "I'm not Catholic but." Should the question arise, just what my religion is, I'm gonna tell them that it's none of their business.

Same for sexual orientation. If somebody wants to know my sexual orientation after I object to a homophobic statement, my response is gonna be a condescending "No thanks. I'm not interested." The hell with feeding the homophobia.

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

84. Trust me, MrsG is not feeding any homophobia by starting with "I'm not gay but.."

She is one of the BEST allies a GLBTer can have. EVER. She was simply using saying that to point out that she was a heterosexual and that she felt that way. It's valid to point out since so many people here dismiss those with rainbow avatars as "uppity" gays, when they fight against homophobia. MrsG stands in strong solidarity with us. I know this from both on and off of DU.

Hell, I've even seen a straight DUer stand up against homophobia today and not have people believe that she was straight, because of the rainbow avatar. Apparently, it's a hard concept to grasp that some straight DUers might choose a gay pride symbol as an avatar.

[struggle4progress]

86. OK -- perhaps my final sentence was not required -- and can be misunderstood

Regarding rhetorical approaches, however, I remain to be convinced that my point is in error: "I'm not a --- but" is always a weak formulation.

Why is it weak? Because it suggests a dissonant subtext, namely, I really want to tell you that I'm not a --- because I really accept your rejection of ---.

I'm not claiming that everybody who says "I'm not a --- but" is trying, consciously or unconsciously, to communicate this subtext. But there are enough people out there, who are trying to communicate the subtext, that in the wider culture the subtext will often be heard, whether it is really present or not.

[ScreamingMeemie]

88. I stated it that way on purpose.

1. Because the thought among many yesterday was that the GLBT community was being overly "sensitive" in this case.

2. How many times have we all heard an idiot say "I'm not gay but..." or "some of my best friends are gay" and then continue on to post the most homophobic crap? It was meant to be ironic and I felt that most here knew my intent.

[struggle4progress]

89. Apparently my sarcasm meter is on the fritz

[ScreamingMeemie]

90. Sorry I missed that.

Sometimes I need the sarcasm thingy.

[struggle4progress]

91. My busted meter's not your fault. And I despise the sarcasm thingy and never use it myself

[LostinVA]

93. Self Delete

[Prophet 451]

81. Can someone explain?

I'm English so can someone explain what made the Snickers commercial so controversial? Please, no directions to YouTube, bandwidth won't take it.

[FunkyLeprechaun]

82. I don't think it's the commercials themselves

but the player's reactions to the commercials that promoted the outrage. I can SEE why people are outraged due to the players comments.

I am deaf but what I could see from the comments that the football players are deriding the two men kissing, being quite uncomfortable with it. That was what the outrage was (it's on YouTube now, no longer on the Snickers website).

The first commercial (the one aired during the superbowl), the men kiss, "Quick do something manly!" and rip out their chest hair.

The second one, same kiss, but then an effeminate mechanic comes by and asks if there's room on the love boat.

The third one, same kiss, same "Quick do something manly" and drinks motor oil.

The fourth one, same kiss, same comment, and the first guy picks up a wrench and hits the second guy with it (once) and the second guy puts the first guy under the hood of the car and slams it on him (once).

Only the first commercial was aired. The player's comments and the other three commercials weren't aired.

[LostinVA]

94. Sorry, two men trying to beat each other to death because they "acted gay" is homophobic

And, has more than a few shades of Matt Shepherd.

And, the other ads were going to be aired, the next one during the Daytona 500.

[FunkyLeprechaun]

96. Sigh

In the commercial, the Wrench version has the first guy hitting the second guy once with a wrench, and the second guy slammed the hood on the first one once. Hardly beating each other to death. If a gay man and a lesbian woman kiss would they have the same reaction?

Go look for Football Thing (MadTv) they deal with the same thing. Watch Planes Trains and Automobiles, the same thing happens when the guys accidentally become intimate. Little Britain, I can't count the number of times they've made fun of gay people (and one of the actors is gay himself!).

Going even further, where was the outrage when "But I'm A Cheerleader!" was released? It was a farce about a de-gay-ification camp.

How about Comedy Central's "Straight Plan for the Gay Man"? Where was the outrage then?? Making a gay guy a straight guy?? I did not hear a peep from HRC or GLAAD back then! (Actually, gay people did find the show really really funny)

I've scoured the News websites (CNN, Yahoo, Google) and there are no press releases from well-known gay celebrities on this commercial (yet). I think at this stage, that's very telling. I even looked for Rosie O'Donnell on Google/Yahoo/CNN, and I assume the View is still aired weekdays, and she hasn't said anything about this commercial. I really like Rosie and I consider her one of the more outspoken gay celebrities. What about the Queer Eye for the Straight Guy people? They haven't commented on this either. Only HRC, Matthew Shepard group, and GLAAD has released their criticism of the commercial, but I think a Celebrity denouncing the ad has more weight.

I get bored of this whingeing over little things. Truly a mountain made out of a molehill.

[JackBeck]

100. Rosie voiced her disappointment on Tuesday's "The View."

She was pretty pissed about the depictions of violence. And she said that when she first saw the commercial on Sunday that she "knew there would be lawsuits flying." She was not happy and also commented about how she's getting tired being the "gay police" on the show.

As for your other examples, I would have to say that, for me, the reason why I'm so outraged over this ad campaign is because it deals with a much bigger issue: homophobia is allowed to run rampant and unchecked in American professional team sports. Gay athletes come out only after they retire from playing on a team because they fear being "taken out" on the playing field. This is not "a mountain made out of a molehill" because it speaks to an institutionalized acceptance of athletes who are allowed to gay-bash at free will.

[orleans]

85. yea! i'm with you all the way.

(and when my daughter's friends have tossed out the "that's so gay" phrase i have informed them "my best friend is gay and you say it like it's a bad thing when he's the best friend i've ever had...for over 30 years!" i'd wait for their response/explanation and then tell them they couldn't talk that way in my house and to please not talk that way around me because i find it very offensive)

[Chorophyll]

92. I'm with you, Mrs. Grumpy!

:applause:

[donheld]

95. Yes but, if you keep listening to those rock bands and eating soy

You just may suddenly switch :evilgrin:

[bluescribbler]

97. James Spader on Boston Legal last night

"Same Sex Attraction Disorder is a life threatening disease. If God doesn't get you, the skinheads will."

I could never understand why some people believe that homosexuality is a choice. Who, in their right mind would choose to be shunned by their peers, to be disowned by their family, to invite attacks from people like the men who killed Matthew Shepherd? :shrug:

[rubberducky]

98. Agree 100%

Someday this should be a non-issue.Equal rights for everyone should be the norm.

[InsultComicDog]

99. I'm not gay

but I do like "Project Runway"...

[demigoddess]

101. I'm not gay and I have been

proud that my kids had gay friends and invited them to our house. I saw part of the snickers commerical, not really paying attention, but did not get the part that was insulting. I thought the commerical I saw was making fun of homophobics. I guess not being gay, it went right by me. I guess we need more awareness and also commericial should probably stick to selling the product.

[MessiahRp]

102. I think the commercial could cut both ways

My first reaction was the same as MrsGrumpy's but after further review I could see how it could be construed a a slam on homophobes. Either way offending people just to draw attention to yourselves doesn't make a lot of sense especially when your product is one of the largest selling items in it's market.

Rp

[ScreamingMeemie]

103. I was disturbed by it and then outright disgusted when I went to the

website and viewed the alternate endings and the players' reactions to the commercial. It cannot be taken in any other light in my opinion. It has hurt quite a few of my friends and I really don't think they're off the mark. I think they've been the butt of "all in fun" types of jokes for too long.

I think your post is well worded and right. There might have been a time when I would have laughed but now I realize I just wasn't paying attention.