Curer and Curer: Tla's 'Gay' Electric Car Connectn

Contents:

• “ELECTRIC VEHICL ARE GAY”
• RON HOWARD: "IF I'M NOT ALLOWED TO LL ELECTRIC RS 'GAY,' ENDANGERS EDY"
• ARE ELECTRIC CARS GAY, OR IS VCE VGHN AN IDT? OR, BOTH?BY BRETT BERKOCTOBER 11, 2010SAVE THIS STORYSAVESAVE THIS STORYSAVEUNIVERSAL PICTUR FOUND SELF ON THE RECEIVG END OF A STEAMG PILE OF PK RAGE THIS WEEK, WHEN BOTH THE SILVER FERRET, ANRSON COOPER, AND THE GAY AND LBIAN ALLIANCE AGAST DEFAMATN (GLAAD) TOOK TO TASK FOR A PEJORATIVE E OF THE WORD “GAY” THE TRAILER OF S UPG MOVIE THE DILEMMA. IN THE CLIP—AND, ONE SUPPOS, THE RRELATIVE MOVIE—A CHARACTER PLAYED BY BOX OFFICE-KRYPTONE VCE VGHN IS DISCSG NSUMER PERCEPTNS OF ELECTRIC RS AND SAYS “ELECTRIC RS ARE GAY.” HE THEN GO ON TO QUALIFY, PILG SULT ON JURY: “NOT HOMOSEXUAL GAY. BUT MY-PARENTS-ARE-CHAPERONG-THE-DANCE GAY.”SHUDR. AT A TIME WHEN NUMERO STARS, PSDO-STARS, AND NOT-FOR-PROF ANIZATNS LIKE THE GAY LBIAN STRAIGHT EDUTN NETWORK (GLSEN) ARE ATTEMPTG—SUCCSFULLY, STUDI SHOW —TO CHANGE KIDS’ BEHAVR WH REGARD TO G GAY AS A SYNONYM FOR LAME, UGLY, MORONIC, OR DISTASTEFUL, THE EXTRAORDARILY TENTNAL E OF THE TERM THIS WAY SEEMS NOT ONLY MEAN-SPIRED, DOUCHEY, AND SPERATE, BUT FORMIDABLY UN-FUNNY. (SORT OF LIKE VCE VGHN!) YET AS THE THOR OF A WEEKLY GAY R LUMN HERE AT , I N ALMOST HEAR THE HEAR MORONS-WHO-LOVE-TO-TENTNALLY-IGNORE-ALL-NTEXT ASKG SO HOW E YOU GET TO LL RS GAY, AND THE BLOWHARD BLOAT OM THE FRAT PACK DON’T? WELL, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE NEVER TAKEN SEMTICS OR BEEN MA TO UNRSTAND THE BASIC UNRPNGS OF THE FIRST AMENDMENT, I’LL EXPLA: ALL SPEECH IS NOT EQUAL. IT HAS DIFFERENT SHAS OF MEANG PENDG ON WHO IS SAYG , WHAT NDN AND SUATN IS BEG LIVERED, WHO IS THE TEND DIENCE, AND WHETHER OR NOT HAS OBJECTIVE HUMORO MER. WHEN I’M WRG ABOUT GAY RS—AND I ALWAYS AM—I’M TALKG JOCULARLY, FACETLY, AND FARCILLY ABOUT THEM ACTUALLY BEG GAY, AS , HOMOSEXUAL: HANDSOME, WELL-SIGNED, PREDATORY, PROMISCUO, VIRILE, MCULAR, AND/OR LIKELY TO BE THE LT OBJECT OF AN MALE, MAN-LOVG TOPHILE. IN THIS AME OF REFERENCE, LLG A R “GAY” IS NOT ONLY SPECIFIC, SARSTIC, OVERTLY NONSENSIL, AND ROOTED A PARTICULAR MUNY (ME, THE GAY ONE), ’S ALSO, GENERALLY, PLIMENTARY, AND (HOPEFULLY) IL. AN OVERHYPED, UNRPERFORMG, STRAIGHT ACTOR LLG ELECTRIC RS “GAY” SOLELY AS AN SULT, YET ANOTHER PATHETIC AND DOOMED BROMANCE FLICK, DON’T MEET ANY OF THE CRERIA. (PARTICULARLY WHEN HE’S PLAYG A CHARACTER WE’RE MEANT TO LIKE. IF HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A TOTAL A-HOLE, THE SUATN MIGHT BE DIFFERENT.)PERHAPS MORE IMPORTANT THAN ANY OF THIS, CREATG AND LIVERG SULTS FOR ELECTRIC RS, WHATEVER FORM, IS AN CREASGLY LAME AND OUTMOD PROPOSN. PRODUCTN RS LIKE THE NISSAN LEAF, CHEVY VOLT, FISKER KARMA, AND MY STALKG PARTNER THE TLA ROADSTER ARE ALREADY MOVG THE BAR OF NSUMER PERCEPTNS TOWARD THE POSIVE, PRACTIL, AND SPORTY, AND HOT AND HUNKY FUTURE VEHICL LIKE THE PORSCHE 918, AUDI E-TRON, AND JAGUAR C-X75 PROMISE TO NTUE THAT TREND. AS MY IEND JAMIE KMAN RECENTLY WROTE AS HIS (WNG) ENTRY A NEW YORK TIM BATE ON ELECTRIC VEHICL, “THE ADVANTAG [OF EVS] ARE HUGELY RELEVANT AND UNNIABLE.” HE WAS TALKG MALY ABOUT THEIR ENERGY EFFICIENCY PARED TO THE TERNALLY BTED. BUT ADD QUIET OPERATN, PROJECTED ENHANCEMENTS BATTERY RANGE AND TECHNOLOGY, AND STANT-ON POWER—ELECTRIC VEHICL LIVER ALL OF THEIR ACCELERATIVE THST THE MOMENT YOU H THE GAS—AND I’M NFINT WE’RE GOG TO BE JUMP-STARTG JOUL OF NSUMER NVERSNS THE NEXT FEW YEARS. THE GAYS ARE KNOWN AS EARLY ADOPTERS—WE PNEERED URBAN REVALIZATN, DIS, AND MANSPG, TO NAME JT A FEW MAJOR SOCIETAL NOVATNS—SO I’M GRABBG THIS ONE BACK OM MR. VGHN. I’D LIKE TO STATE FOR THE RERD: ELECTRIC RS ARE GAY. AS HOMOSEXUAL. AND THIS IS NO SULT; ’S A PK-AND-GREEN RALLYG CRY. SO WATCH THIS SPACE THE NEXT FEW MONTHS FOR MORE EXTENSIVE ELECTRIC-VEHICLE VERAGE.[HAT-TIP TO RAY WERT.]BRETT BERK WR GAILY ABOUT CULTURE, POLICS, AND RS FOR , AND IS THE THOR OF THE GAY UNCLE’S GUI TO PARENTG. VIS HIM AT OR FOLLOW HIM ON TWTER.MOST POPULARVANY FAIR’S “IT’S RAG TEENS” COVER AT 20: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?BY SAVANNAH WALSHSOUND OF FREEDOM: THE WILD TE STORY BEHD 2023’S MOST CONTROVERSIAL FILMBY EVE BATEYTHE CAST OF OPPENHEIMER AND THE REAL PEOPLE THEY PLAYBY HILLARY BISBRETT BERK
• "ELECTRIC CARS ARE GAY" THE DILEMMA (MOVIE)
• CHEVY GAY PRI AD HAS ELECTRIC CAR COMG OUT OF THE CLOSET
• IS VCE VGHN RIGHT? ARE ELECTRIC CARS GAY? OR CHICK CARS OR DOUCHEY? YOU PICK WHO TO OFFEND
• CURER AND CURER: TLA'S 'GAY' ELECTRIC CAR CONNECTN
• WHAT ARE THE TOP GAY-FRIENDLY CARS?
• VCE VGHN FILM'S 'GAY' JOKE HAS HOLLYWOOD TAKG SIS
• HEY RON HOWARD: SO ELECTRIC CARS AREN'T THAT 'GAY' AFTER ALL?
• WHY IS 'GAY' JOKE ON 'THE OFFICE' DIFFERENT THAN 'GAY' JOKE 'THE DILEMMA'?
• JAGUARS STRENGTH COACH KEV MAXEN COM OUT AS GAY
• JAGUARS ASSOCIATE STRENGTH ACH OUT AS GAY A FIRST FOR US-BASED PRO LEAGU

“ELECTRIC VEHICL ARE GAY”

Last month, Ford created a one-off Ranger Raptor wh a LGBTQ+ rabow livery rponse to a hateful ment on social media plag that the tck's Performance Blue lor was "very gay. When he told his biker mat that she was gettg an electric vehicle, they said: “Electric vehicl are gay, mate!

“Let’s have a drag race, ” he says to his mat — “your bike, my EV — we’ll soon see if EVs are gay.

[Edor’s note: There are clearly ser issu wh the phrase and suatns regardg “EVs are gay. When Universal Pictur altered the trailer for s upg Ron Howard-directed edy The Dilemma to remove a joke about how “electric rs are gay, ” set off a miature ntroversy about e of the word “gay” as a pejorative, pecially such an uncreative eratn as “electric rs are gay. ” After all, maybe right now is not such a good time to be throwg that around, what wh the entire untry tryg to nvce gay teens not to kill themselv, bee ostensibly one day they’ll get olr and fally be a place where llg somethg or someone “gay”—you know, “gay” like an electric r, which is gay somehow—isn’t an sult.

RON HOWARD: "IF I'M NOT ALLOWED TO LL ELECTRIC RS 'GAY,' ENDANGERS EDY"

Michelle Yeoh brought her Osr to her weddgOffEnglishA uple of weeks ago, Vghn issued a statement sayg that jok like “electric rs are gay” help to “brg together” and “break tensn” by jokg about our differenc, bee gay people are jt so tense the days.

ARE ELECTRIC CARS GAY, OR IS VCE VGHN AN IDT? OR, BOTH?BY BRETT BERKOCTOBER 11, 2010SAVE THIS STORYSAVESAVE THIS STORYSAVEUNIVERSAL PICTUR FOUND SELF ON THE RECEIVG END OF A STEAMG PILE OF PK RAGE THIS WEEK, WHEN BOTH THE SILVER FERRET, ANRSON COOPER, AND THE GAY AND LBIAN ALLIANCE AGAST DEFAMATN (GLAAD) TOOK TO TASK FOR A PEJORATIVE E OF THE WORD “GAY” THE TRAILER OF S UPG MOVIE THE DILEMMA. IN THE CLIP—AND, ONE SUPPOS, THE RRELATIVE MOVIE—A CHARACTER PLAYED BY BOX OFFICE-KRYPTONE VCE VGHN IS DISCSG NSUMER PERCEPTNS OF ELECTRIC RS AND SAYS “ELECTRIC RS ARE GAY.” HE THEN GO ON TO QUALIFY, PILG SULT ON JURY: “NOT HOMOSEXUAL GAY. BUT MY-PARENTS-ARE-CHAPERONG-THE-DANCE GAY.”SHUDR. AT A TIME WHEN NUMERO STARS, PSDO-STARS, AND NOT-FOR-PROF ANIZATNS LIKE THE GAY LBIAN STRAIGHT EDUTN NETWORK (GLSEN) ARE ATTEMPTG—SUCCSFULLY, STUDI SHOW —TO CHANGE KIDS’ BEHAVR WH REGARD TO G GAY AS A SYNONYM FOR LAME, UGLY, MORONIC, OR DISTASTEFUL, THE EXTRAORDARILY TENTNAL E OF THE TERM THIS WAY SEEMS NOT ONLY MEAN-SPIRED, DOUCHEY, AND SPERATE, BUT FORMIDABLY UN-FUNNY. (SORT OF LIKE VCE VGHN!) YET AS THE THOR OF A WEEKLY GAY R LUMN HERE AT , I N ALMOST HEAR THE HEAR MORONS-WHO-LOVE-TO-TENTNALLY-IGNORE-ALL-NTEXT ASKG SO HOW E YOU GET TO LL RS GAY, AND THE BLOWHARD BLOAT OM THE FRAT PACK DON’T? WELL, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE NEVER TAKEN SEMTICS OR BEEN MA TO UNRSTAND THE BASIC UNRPNGS OF THE FIRST AMENDMENT, I’LL EXPLA: ALL SPEECH IS NOT EQUAL. IT HAS DIFFERENT SHAS OF MEANG PENDG ON WHO IS SAYG , WHAT NDN AND SUATN IS BEG LIVERED, WHO IS THE TEND DIENCE, AND WHETHER OR NOT HAS OBJECTIVE HUMORO MER. WHEN I’M WRG ABOUT GAY RS—AND I ALWAYS AM—I’M TALKG JOCULARLY, FACETLY, AND FARCILLY ABOUT THEM ACTUALLY BEG GAY, AS , HOMOSEXUAL: HANDSOME, WELL-SIGNED, PREDATORY, PROMISCUO, VIRILE, MCULAR, AND/OR LIKELY TO BE THE LT OBJECT OF AN MALE, MAN-LOVG TOPHILE. IN THIS AME OF REFERENCE, LLG A R “GAY” IS NOT ONLY SPECIFIC, SARSTIC, OVERTLY NONSENSIL, AND ROOTED A PARTICULAR MUNY (ME, THE GAY ONE), ’S ALSO, GENERALLY, PLIMENTARY, AND (HOPEFULLY) IL. AN OVERHYPED, UNRPERFORMG, STRAIGHT ACTOR LLG ELECTRIC RS “GAY” SOLELY AS AN SULT, YET ANOTHER PATHETIC AND DOOMED BROMANCE FLICK, DON’T MEET ANY OF THE CRERIA. (PARTICULARLY WHEN HE’S PLAYG A CHARACTER WE’RE MEANT TO LIKE. IF HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A TOTAL A-HOLE, THE SUATN MIGHT BE DIFFERENT.)PERHAPS MORE IMPORTANT THAN ANY OF THIS, CREATG AND LIVERG SULTS FOR ELECTRIC RS, WHATEVER FORM, IS AN CREASGLY LAME AND OUTMOD PROPOSN. PRODUCTN RS LIKE THE NISSAN LEAF, CHEVY VOLT, FISKER KARMA, AND MY STALKG PARTNER THE TLA ROADSTER ARE ALREADY MOVG THE BAR OF NSUMER PERCEPTNS TOWARD THE POSIVE, PRACTIL, AND SPORTY, AND HOT AND HUNKY FUTURE VEHICL LIKE THE PORSCHE 918, AUDI E-TRON, AND JAGUAR C-X75 PROMISE TO NTUE THAT TREND. AS MY IEND JAMIE KMAN RECENTLY WROTE AS HIS (WNG) ENTRY A NEW YORK TIM BATE ON ELECTRIC VEHICL, “THE ADVANTAG [OF EVS] ARE HUGELY RELEVANT AND UNNIABLE.” HE WAS TALKG MALY ABOUT THEIR ENERGY EFFICIENCY PARED TO THE TERNALLY BTED. BUT ADD QUIET OPERATN, PROJECTED ENHANCEMENTS BATTERY RANGE AND TECHNOLOGY, AND STANT-ON POWER—ELECTRIC VEHICL LIVER ALL OF THEIR ACCELERATIVE THST THE MOMENT YOU H THE GAS—AND I’M NFINT WE’RE GOG TO BE JUMP-STARTG JOUL OF NSUMER NVERSNS THE NEXT FEW YEARS. THE GAYS ARE KNOWN AS EARLY ADOPTERS—WE PNEERED URBAN REVALIZATN, DIS, AND MANSPG, TO NAME JT A FEW MAJOR SOCIETAL NOVATNS—SO I’M GRABBG THIS ONE BACK OM MR. VGHN. I’D LIKE TO STATE FOR THE RERD: ELECTRIC RS ARE GAY. AS HOMOSEXUAL. AND THIS IS NO SULT; ’S A PK-AND-GREEN RALLYG CRY. SO WATCH THIS SPACE THE NEXT FEW MONTHS FOR MORE EXTENSIVE ELECTRIC-VEHICLE VERAGE.[HAT-TIP TO RAY WERT.]BRETT BERK WR GAILY ABOUT CULTURE, POLICS, AND RS FOR , AND IS THE THOR OF THE GAY UNCLE’S GUI TO PARENTG. VIS HIM AT OR FOLLOW HIM ON TWTER.MOST POPULARVANY FAIR’S “IT’S RAG TEENS” COVER AT 20: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?BY SAVANNAH WALSHSOUND OF FREEDOM: THE WILD TE STORY BEHD 2023’S MOST CONTROVERSIAL FILMBY EVE BATEYTHE CAST OF OPPENHEIMER AND THE REAL PEOPLE THEY PLAYBY HILLARY BISBRETT BERK

Well anyway, over the weekend, Howard issued his own plementary statement a very long, kd of preachy e-mail to the Los Angel Tim, sentially argug that, even though gay people probably don't need any extra sh right now g om a Ron Howard/Vce Vghn pic of all plac, if he allows himself to be “strong-armed” to changg the joke, would be nyg edy’s right to be offensive as a means to provokg thought. As we said before, the timels of the trailer—and the fact that cid wh the “It Gets Better” mpaign and some of the most fervent discsn about the bullyg of gays this natn has ever had—undoubtedly ntributed to the sensivy wh which was received. And fely there have been other movi and TV shows who have ma “this is gay” jok whout Anrson Cooper llg them out.

"ELECTRIC CARS ARE GAY" THE DILEMMA (MOVIE)

But if storytellers, edians, actors and artists are strong armed to makg creative chang, will endanger edy as both entertament and a provoker of, fair pot, but keep md that this is all fense of keepg the joke “electric rs are gay, ” which only gets ls funny the more you hear . Perhaps ’s an illtratn that people who rort to g “gay” as a go-to punchle are part of a lazy, unfunny, slowly dyg breed that should be mocked for their lack of creativy?

Universal Pictur found self on the receivg end of a steamg pile of Pk Rage this week, when both the Silver Ferret, Anrson Cooper, and the Gay and Lbian Alliance Agast Defamatn (GLAAD) took to task for a pejorative e of the word “gay” the trailer of s upg movie The Dilemma. In the clip—and, one suppos, the rrelative movie—a character played by box office-Kryptone Vce Vghn is discsg nsumer perceptns of electric rs and says “electric rs are gay. ” He then go on to qualify, pilg sult on jury: “Not homosexual gay.

CHEVY GAY PRI AD HAS ELECTRIC CAR COMG OUT OF THE CLOSET

But my-parents-are-chaperong-the-dance gay. At a time when numero stars, psdo-stars, and not-for-prof anizatns like the Gay Lbian Straight Edutn Network (GLSEN) are attemptg—succsfully, studi show —to change kids’ behavr wh regard to g gay as a synonym for lame, ugly, moronic, or distasteful, the extraordarily tentnal e of the term this way seems not only mean-spired, douchey, and sperate, but formidably un-funny. ) Yet as the thor of a weekly gay r lumn here at, I n almost hear the hear morons-who-love-to-tentnally-ignore-all-ntext askg So how e you get to ll rs gay, and the blowhard bloat om The Frat Pack don’t?

When I’m wrg about gay rs—and I always am—I’m talkg jocularly, facetly, and farcilly about them actually beg gay, as , homosexual: handsome, well-signed, predatory, promiscuo, virile, mcular, and/or likely to be the lt object of an male, man-lovg tophile. In this ame of reference, llg a r “gay” is not only specific, sarstic, overtly nonsensil, and rooted a particular muny (me, the gay one), ’s also, generally, plimentary, and (hopefully) il. An overhyped, unrperformg, straight actor llg electric rs “gay” solely as an sult, yet another pathetic and doomed bromance flick, don’t meet any of the creria.

IS VCE VGHN RIGHT? ARE ELECTRIC CARS GAY? OR CHICK CARS OR DOUCHEY? YOU PICK WHO TO OFFEND

The gays are known as early adopters—we pneered urban revalizatn, dis, and manspg, to name jt a few major societal novatns—so I’m grabbg this one back om Mr.

I’d like to state for the rerd: Electric rs are gay.

As homosexual.

CURER AND CURER: TLA'S 'GAY' ELECTRIC CAR CONNECTN

]Brett Berk wr gaily about culture, polics, and rs for, and is the thor of The Gay Uncle’s Gui to Parentg.

As wh all the rs on the list that have been stereotyped as “gay, ” the Forter is stylish, strayg om the “strong” or “bold” more mascule sign. The notn that a product is girly or feme was also associated wh beg gay. The general ia was that gay mal were effemate and would have an affy for “girly” products.

You n see how this would have been terpreted as homophobic when the LGBT muny felt margalized and targeted. There exist r brands that are known as “gay iendly.

WHAT ARE THE TOP GAY-FRIENDLY CARS?

One of the pani is Volkswagen, which offers domtic partner verage for their gay staff members. The gays support Volkswagen bee Volkswagen supports them.

I bet you didn’t know this, but gays are said to fancy style while lbians favor fuel enomy.

VCE VGHN FILM'S 'GAY' JOKE HAS HOLLYWOOD TAKG SIS

In Febary of 2021, Tla was voted the number one place for gays and lbians alike to work ncerng safety, rights, and regnn.

It is not unmon to see gays and lbians alike drivg a Tla.

Regardls of the tentn, maybe was jt gays or lbians who preferred style and fuel enomy. This show foced on the liv of three gay men who were iends livg Manchter and the many plexi their liv had. ” So whenever you’d see a Jeep Wrangler, you’d immediately thk of gay men Manchter.

HEY RON HOWARD: SO ELECTRIC CARS AREN'T THAT 'GAY' AFTER ALL?

For the gays who prefer the sign facet when to rs, this is tricky but surprisgly easy to rencile. What is nsired “mascule” also appli to the gay man, who would have to thunk , right?

WHY IS 'GAY' JOKE ON 'THE OFFICE' DIFFERENT THAN 'GAY' JOKE 'THE DILEMMA'?

Gay Friendly Ci.

It was such an unual cisn—and such a succs—that helped ph gay and lbian advertisg om the g to the mastream.

JAGUARS STRENGTH COACH KEV MAXEN COM OUT AS GAY

Mastream movi and TV shows wh gay characters—like Will & Grace—were still a few years away, and few celebri were openly gay.

JAGUARS ASSOCIATE STRENGTH ACH OUT AS GAY A FIRST FOR US-BASED PRO LEAGU

When Ellen Degener beme a rare exceptn 1997, and her character the show Ellen me out as gay an episo of the s, many pani pulled their ads. ”At that time, gay-iendly advertisg was largely limed to the fashn and alhol dtri. When a 1994 IKEA ad featured a gay uple, the Amerin Fay Associatn, a nonprof, mounted boytts, and someone lled a (fake) bomb threat to an IKEA Poux explas, the attu of most bs toward LGBTQ advertisg was: “Why would you do somethg like that?