# So "ammosexual" is a sexually offensive word now? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [April 3, 2022, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176 "2022-04-03T04:24:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/124 "2022-04-06T07:25:40Z")
You seem to be implying that metrosexuals are necessarily _not_ homosexual. That is decidedly not the case, according to the guy who coined the term. And ammosexuals are like metrosexuals in that they are all about the display of their obsessions (clothes vs guns). ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 11:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/125 "2022-04-06T11:14:20Z")
> [@The\_Librarian](#): > > If you want to go with: “it was a bit of a weird situation where we felt we had to help another mod prop up his hobby horse. Our hearts weren’t in it either way, but we felt we needed to do something so we asked the more gun-control people to let it lie. It sucks, but it was the best we could do.” — we are good. > > If you seriously want to claim the moderation there is consistent with board rules, we are going to be here a while. 100% this. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 11:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/126 "2022-04-06T11:18:03Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > I think “ammosexual” is a quite apt descriptor for a number of people. Including some relatives. I’m a member of the “gun culture”; I have many guns, a ton of ammo (literally), etc. But I don’t have an emotional attachment toward any of it. On the other hand, I _have_ met a few people in the gun culture who seem to have an… unnatural attachment to their tools & hardware. I steer clear of them. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/127 "2022-04-06T11:50:05Z")
I am usually on the “anti” side of the gun debate. I don’t use “ammosexual” and would not mourn its loss. It’s dumb and cringey. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/128 "2022-04-06T14:38:14Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > You seem to be implying that metrosexuals are necessarily _not_ homosexual. That is decidedly not the case, according to the guy who coined the term. Regardless of who coined the term, the term as its used today includes being heterosexual. > **[Definition of METROSEXUAL](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/metrosexual)** > > a usually urban heterosexual male given to enhancing his personal appearance by fastidious grooming, beauty treatments, and fashionable clothes… See the full definition > **[Dictionary.com | Meanings & Definitions of English Words](https://www.dictionary.com/browse/metrosexual)** > > The world's leading online dictionary: English definitions, synonyms, word origins, example sentences, word games, and more. A trusted authority for 25+ years! > **[‘Metrosexuals’ Were Just Straight Men Who Loved Self-Care. Right? (Published...](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/15/style/metrosexuals.html)** > > In the early 2000s, heterosexuals who favored European jeans, wine bars and fancy face creams — the calling cards of some women and gay men — sparked a marketing frenzy. Language does evolve, and once someone coins a term it takes a life of its own. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/129 "2022-04-06T14:42:14Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > I don’t use “ammosexual” and would not mourn its loss. It’s dumb and cringey. Nor do I. But that’s not the point. I have yet to hear sound reasons for _banning_ its use. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/130 "2022-04-06T14:42:37Z")
> [@Atamasama](#): > > {…} Language does involve, and once someone coins a term it takes a life of its own. And that slippery slope would demand that this board allow the use of at least one racial, and at least of homophobic, slur. ---
**Author:** ![Falchion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a88e57/32.png) [@Falchion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Falchion)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/131 "2022-04-06T14:50:13Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Do you think metrosexuals are getting _sexual gratification_ from living in large cities? Because I see those two as in the same lexical space. Unless I missed something, a “metrosexual” was supposed to be a heterosexual man who exhibited “feminine” behaviors (like being fashion conscious, being meticulous in one’s grooming, an enjoying shopping). These feminine behaviors were associated, in men, with homosexuals. A “metro-” is a gay-acting “hetro-” – you can see the play on words. The term embodied so many assumptions about gender norms and sexual orientation that I’d be rather surprised if it hasn’t become viewed as offensive. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/132 "2022-04-06T14:55:41Z")
I’d be rather surprised if it didn’t start out with the intent to be offensive. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/133 "2022-04-06T14:58:05Z")
> [@Falchion](#): > > Unless I missed something, a “metrosexual” was supposed to be a heterosexual man who exhibited “feminine” behaviors Nope. Verbatim from the guy who coined the word (my emphasis): > The typical metrosexual is a young man with money to spend, living in or within easy reach of a metropolis – because that’s where all the best shops, clubs, gyms and hairdressers are. **He might be officially gay, straight or bisexual, but this is utterly immaterial** because he has clearly taken himself as his own love object > [@Atamasama](#): > > Regardless of who coined the term, Naah. Sorry, you can be exclusively descriptive for a word that’s naturally evolved (although I can find [dictionary](https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/metrosexual) cites that _don’t_ say it’s exclusively straight men), but for a specific made-up term with a precise known origin, you have to give weight to the originator. Not _exclusive_ weight (I still say gif with a hard G) but quite a bit. That a patriarchal system has since related the word to exclude gays isn’t something we need to resign ourselves to. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/134 "2022-04-06T15:00:36Z")
You can read the original article where it appeared for yourself, and see that wasn’t it at all. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/135 "2022-04-06T15:06:09Z")
Most of the times I’ve heard it used it was coming out of the mouths of the ‘Beer, beef, and bullets’ type of American conservative. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/136 "2022-04-06T15:38:35Z")
FWIW (from [the NY Times](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/128) link above): > So what were “metrosexuals” anyway? For those who were cryogenically frozen before “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” first debuted that year, metrosexuals were a supposed new breed of aesthetically-attuned straight men promoted by trend forecasters like Marian Salzman and epitomized by the soccer star David Beckham, who “paints his fingernails, braids his hair and poses for gay magazines, all while maintaining a manly profile on the pitch,” as Warren St. John wrote in [this](https://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/22/style/metrosexuals-come-out.html) much-discussed Styles feature. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/137 "2022-04-06T15:46:23Z")
Is “gundamentalist” ok, or does that trigger (so to speak) people’s religious sensitivities? ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/138 "2022-04-06T16:11:01Z")
Bit of a sidetrack here, but for a lot of posters, it seems we’re heading down the old ‘how reprehensible do you want to be’ Pit thread. IE - we’re trying to decide in (especially) non-Pit forums how insulting we can be to general classes (that aren’t protected) of people. Personally I’m ambivalent, and already stated my opinion upthread about the specific term from the OP. But this feels a LOT like trying to find a way to be as offensive as possible without provoking a mod response or rules lawyering 101, rather than following a general ‘don’t be a jerk’. I would -definitely- suggest, per my analysis of why the original thread went off the rails so fast, is that (outside of the Pit) we try to avoid using such terminology in the title or OP of a thread. Because that IMHO poisons the well, and invites nothing but counterattacks rather than discussion. In the thread proper? I don’t worry so much, as the conversation and arguments is going to evolve naturally, and people can and will exchange snark freely. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/139 "2022-04-06T16:31:58Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > a general ‘don’t be a jerk’. Agreed. I’m never going to accept that it’s appropriate to impose a blanket _ban_ on mockery or satire of (say) religious beliefs because it hurts people’s feelings. Mockery and satire are a legitimate and important strategy in pushing back against stupid and harmful ideas. But mocking grandma’s beliefs at grandpa’s funeral _certainly_ makes you a jerk, and adopting a tone of mockery or satire with a believer who is attempting to engage in a good faith debate of substantive issues arguably does too. But some people here seem to be opposed to the use of the term ammosexual to mock the likes of Thomas Massie because somehow that’s insulting to _anyone_ who supports private gun ownership. That seems equivalent to a claim that mockery of young-Earth creationism is insulting to all people with _any_ religious belief. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/140 "2022-04-06T16:37:28Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > decide in (especially) non-Pit forums how insulting we can be to general classes (that aren’t protected) of people. Yes, but we are also debating whether or not certainly classes of people deserve to be protected from insult. I assume that we can freely insult serial killers, child molestors, and people who talk at the movie theater. I advocate that we can put those who work to prevent keeping guns out of the hands of the criminal and/or irresponsible into that category. People who _do_ fetishize their guns, and consider their access to them to be more important than the safety and well being of society. So sure, using it against people on the board should be verboten. Using it in breaking news certainly _can_ seem a political jab. Using it to describe people who carry their AR-15s into a restaurant in order to protest against their no-gun policy seems entirely fair. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/141 "2022-04-06T18:24:32Z")
Thank you, very reasonable. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/142 "2022-04-06T19:21:52Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > Bit of a sidetrack here, but for a lot of posters, it seems we’re heading down the old ‘how reprehensible do you want to be’ Pit thread. IE - we’re trying to decide in (especially) non-Pit forums how insulting we can be to general classes (that aren’t protected) of people. > > Personally I’m ambivalent, and already stated my opinion upthread about the specific term from the OP. But this feels a LOT like trying to find a way to be as offensive as possible without provoking a mod response or rules lawyering 101, rather than following a general ‘don’t be a jerk’. > > I would -definitely- suggest, per my analysis of why the original thread went off the rails so fast, is that (outside of the Pit) we try to avoid using such terminology in the title or OP of a thread. Because that IMHO poisons the well, and invites nothing but counterattacks rather than discussion. In the thread proper? I don’t worry so much, as the conversation and arguments is going to evolve naturally, and people can and will exchange snark freely. Thank you, that’s a good perspective. > [@Riemann](#): > > But some people here seem to be opposed to the use of the term ammosexual to mock the likes of … If your goal is to mock someone, you probably want to start your thread in the pit. At any rate, you shouldn’t be presenting it as if it’s a breaking news topic in MPSIMS. > [@k9bfriender](#): > > but we are also debating whether or not certainly classes of people deserve to be protected from insult. No, I don’t think we are. At least, I don’t think the moderation had anything to do with that. If you want to talk about that, I suggest you start a new ATMB thread, because it’s not really relevant to this one. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2022, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176/143 "2022-04-06T19:27:32Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > If your goal is to mock someone, you probably want to start your thread in the pit. Since when is it out of bounds to mock a public figure outside the Pit? I hope you’re not suggesting that mockery and satire as rhetorical devices to oppose stupidity can have no place in any serious discussion outside the Pit here. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-ammosexual-is-a-sexually-offensive-word-now/962176.md?page=8)