'Gay' just means 'weird': Key

John Key has made a faux pas for an adult. Trying to use teenage lingo, to ingratiate oneself with young people, only brings contempt from the same people. Just ask young teachers, who have gone down this road....to their cost.

I should have made my point clearer Sparrowhawk. It was simply that political successes are never reported nearly as widely as political failings. There's always some "crisis" to keep the media busy - last year it was wages vs. inflation, and this year it is "he said, she said, is there a video tape or isn't there a video tape, did he know, didn't he know?".

Far from defending Key's comments, I was adding some balance and perspective to this thread.

Thank you Rob (Fischer), for putting me straight. I had always thought the expression was, 'As thick as pigsh*t'. Or, as a substitute which passes muster with the PC Brigade, 'Porcine Tutae'.

Which in itself is sad....that we think money is the only criteria for success here.

Ian, I guess you weren't aware of Key's later comment when you responded to my earlier post. Perhaps you are right. It may be just because he is "as thick as batsh*t" (apparently, it's OK to call people that when you are "mucking around") that he followed up a bullying remark with the quintessential cliche bully's defense, but I suspect there is more too it than that.

Check out this link

Wages are up 2.1% year ending September while inflation was at it's lowest since 1999.

See this link 

The last couple of years have seen the hysterical John Campbell and others harp on about cost of living and wages not keeping up. Now the results are more positive but you don't hear them mention it now. All you hear is "John Key said this, John Key said that..." 

In the Herald today Key is reported as telling Firstline that he was just "mucking around" when he made his comments. Keyword search "just mucking around" and "bullying" on google and you get 66,000 hits mostly comments like:

"They were very afraid of being embarrassed if they mistook “mucking around” for bullying. Their fear was that they would be rejected for not “reading” the culture accurately. This, of course, reinforced the bullies to claim that they were “just mucking around” when accosted by teachers, or the occasional brave peer." - Source

"Bully - "I was just mucking around, can't they take a joke?' This is the most common response to bullying." - Source

Really, he ought to go. I'm ashamed that he represents our country to the world. We are better than this. Oh, and for the anti-PC brigade ... if you see nothing wrong with this behaviour, you have a problem.

Not quite on the button, Rob Fischer. Our Prime Minister does not sound like a playground bully. He comes across, to me, as 'not all that bright' But then, it's he who is the multi-millionaire, reputedly, not me. So, he satisfies all the criteria for success in the city he represents.

Yeah, me too. But the politicians of the day set the tone for the population that gives bullies in schools the perceived right to harass gay students and make their life hell to the point that they want to commit suicide. So yes, words do harm. Some are strong enough to survive it. Some are not. But for that sort of abuse to be perpetuated by our Prime Minister is not a good step forward top solving suicides or anything else. All it does is give the racists, sexists and all the other bigots an excuse to continue and call it 'joking'.

Or both? This man is trying to tell us that he 'picked it up off" his kids?? That a PM would try to say he doesn't know the implications of the word "Gay' circa 2012, then he should go back to school with his kids. I don't believe you would find that word meaning 'weird' in any dictionary. Let's be straight (play on words Mr Key). He just says whatever he likes to whomever he likes and is not interested in the affect or impression this leaves because he is so far above us all, that nothing can touch him (as far as his concerned).

What I fear is that he is right and that the NZ public don't care that their representative in the world is a name calling, arrogant, autocrat who cares about nobody but his bottom line. I guess the next election (too far away) will tell what we are all made of. Our leaders reflect us they say.

Helena says "I was forever being told to "Go back to your own country, you dirty filthy foreigner". The comment hurt but hasn't damaged me. "

Your dictionary shows it has two meanings, joyous and homosexual. He was using the latter meaning.

You say it yourself; the comments hurt. Did the Prime Minister of the day say it?

And yes, the country has more to worry about, like the suicide rate of young gay men.

"I'm gay and I find it offensive to call something gay when you mean it in a negative sense. it isn't just a word - it is who I am," says QueenZ.  Some-THING is what he used it about, not some person. People who see themselves as things have more complicated issues to resolve than just being offended because the word "gay" has several meanings and can be used in different ways.  Gay = happy, joyous, is that offensive?  Gay = homosexual is apparently the one QueenZ sees as the one true meaning, though for most of last century at least, this was uncommon usage in non-homosexual circles.  Gay = weird, naff, is recent usage but one that has spread from teen jargon to more general usage within the last 20 years tops (at a rough guess).  

And this is ultimately the sort of government we have.

They are control freaks. Their legislation reeks of it.  They don't want a nannny state but they want to legislate like they still are in charge of one.  

The arrogance of this man.  He needs to go.  

Helena is making the common mistake of thinking this is political correctness.  John Key is supposed to be the leader of this country and is supposed to show care and respect for all the individuals who reside here. 

I'm gay and I find it offensive to call something gay when you mean it in a negative sense. it isn't just a word - it is who I am. [Abridged]

Rather than picking up the use of the word gay in a derogatory manner from his children, perhaps he should be having a discussion with them about whether it is acceptable to use it in this fashion. By using it this way he legitimises it. [Abridged]

John Key clearly lacks the leadership skills to be prime minister. It appears he no longer wants the job, so he should resign.

My Webster's dictionary states the meaning of the word "gay" as follows.  "In or showing a joyous or merry mood.  Cheerfully lively; Given to or abounding in social pleasures; A gay social event; Dissipated; Licentious; Bright or brilliantly coloured."  Informal. Homosexual

There is more than one meaning to the word.

I was born in New Zealand but because my parents were post Second World War immigrants, I was forever being told to "Go back to your own country, you dirty filthy foreigner".  The comment hurt but hasn't damaged me. 

Hasn't this country got more to worry about than stupid political correctness?

It's certainly offensive but I'd be a hypocrite to criticise him because I have used it as a derogatory term before, as have most people of my generation. Not to say it's OK of course, particularly being broadcast.
However, his comments on Beckham were well founded and I found that hilarious!

I might accept the explanation if Key was refering to something other than an item of clothing that clearly wasn't a masculine enough colour for him. Every now and again he sounds like a schoolyard bully and this is one of them.

In a time when young gay people are killing themselves and gay people's rights are under threat here and in other countries, this disgraceful behaviour is the limit.

He must resign.