How 'gay' became children's insult of choice- Mar 18- BBC News
The word "gay" is now the most frequently used term of abuse in schools, says a report. How did it get to be so prevalent and why do children use homophobic insults to get at each other?
The commenters pile on the usual confusion except for the fellow who noted: "I suspect this is a reaction to the pushing of politically correct ideas on a reasonable population... The same has happened with the term "special" which comes from "special needs"... I often hear it used by young people to question people's intellectual capacity. The currency of kids' conversation is often mean - and that's part of the rough and tumble of their lives. Children relish the use of unacceptable terminology.
(link via hayley campbell, our bad language correspondent))
********
Anthony Minghella, British film director of Cold Mountain, Talented Mr Ripley, English Patient, has died aged 54.
********
Heather Mills poured a jug of water over the head of Sir Paul McCartney's lawyer Fiona Shackleton at the end of their divorce case, she has admitted.
********
Man auctions his life

SYDNEY (Reuters) - A man in Australia is auctioning his life -- his house, his job, his clothes and his friends -- on eBay, after his marriage broke up, saying he wants to start a new life. Ian Usher, 44, said his life auction, which starts on June 22, included not only his house, a car, a motorbike, a jet ski and a spa, but also an introduction to "great friends" and a job at a rug shop in Perth for a trial two-week period.