When did being "gay" become an insult?

I don’t know, but it’s really stupid, when you consider there are so many other adjectives available for use. When I hear people say it, they get a lecture from me. I may not get them to stop, but I want them to at least think about what they’re saying and that it might be offensive to others.

especially since not so long ago, gay used to mean “happy”

And ‘own.’ I don’t understand why became so popular.
‘Bob ‘owns.’...wtf

I can’t answer your original question, but I wanted to mention that I think “gay” is already evolving past this. The most common usage I hear (outside of homosexual) is positive: e.g., “I’m so gay for this band!”

@clair I can’t prove this, but I’ve always thought “own” came into use from gamers saying “I own you” when they beat people at a game. If somebody was good at a game, people would then say “WhatEvil owns!”, of if you beat somebody at a game, simply “Owned”.

@WhatEvil Hm.. Interesting.

@MissAnthrope – i completely agree. i walk around at school and hear people saying that’s so gay….it really bugs me. it also bugs me how whenever i tell someone that’s not cool to say, they give me wierd looks. good for you for giving people lectures. they need them.

Technically, didn’t homosexuals steal this term from meaning ‘happy?’