I’ve been called gay for many things, being vegetarian not the least among them. I think it’s just that for your average troglodyte, “gay” is the catchall term for anything different. All alternative roads lead to Gaytown. Homosexuality is the sea level, and any behavior that doesn’t fit the mainstream is a tributary feeding into it. I’ve been called a fag for having long hair, having earrings, reading books, listening to certain styles of music, being extremely taciturn, preferring world football to the American version, getting along better with women than men, and insisting that I don’t find the typical blond bimbo supermodel attractive. My own parents wondered if I were gay since I spent a lot of time alone as a teenager instead of chasing skirts – not hanging out exclusively with guys or anything, just keeping to myself. Whuddayagonnado?
These days, I just point out that since I’m not a reactionary, I don’t have any hangups about it and would be out and proud if that were the case; it’s only the right-wingers who have to sit in those dark closets loathing themselves.