"gay agenda"

[Geoffrey Nunberg]

>
>As for Scalia's using "homosexual" rather than "gay", remember that his
>dissent is a formal document, written in formal language, and the
>word "gay", even
>if PC, is still slangy or at least colloquial.  And why did I use "gay" in the
>previous paragraph?  Because it has seven fewer letters to type.


'Homosexual' is more frequent than 'gay' in the decision, but Justice
Kennedy did use 'gay' at a couple of points in giving the majority
opinion:

"Texas argues, however, that the sodomy law does not discriminate
against homosexual persons. Instead, the State maintains that the law
discriminates only against homosexual conduct. While it is true that
the law applies only to conduct, the conduct targeted by this law is
conduct that is closely correlated with being homosexual. Under such
circumstances, Texas¹ sodomy law is targeted at more than conduct. It
is instead directed toward gay persons as a class."

My sense is that there's a distinction in this passage -- Kennedy is
using 'homosexual' for a sexual activity or orientation, and 'gay'
for a social identification.

Geoff Nunberg