well not to get off on a tangent, but to clarify -
ken as a gay icon - heck, everyone knows that. ken might not like it, but it's a fact. he's embraced by certain gay circles as "their" doll. sorta like liza minelli. poking fun at ken because he's gay doesn't hurt his feelings, and to tell you the truth the gay community would probably say "you got that right!" when you call ken gay. of course gays might not like non-gays poking fun at ken - "only WE can poke fun at ken as gay!" so for that i apologize. when it goes over the line and just becomes a hate bashin thing - well that's something else. if anyone thinks the "ken as gay" is getting out of hand just tell a mod.
saying something is stupid, like an idea, by referring to it as "gay" - now that's something else too. to be PC is to not call such things "gay." an old threat used by ignorant mothers to threaten their stupid children used to be "you better stop that or i'll smack the color right out of you" - and yes it was a racist reference, not something to do with flushed cheeks or anything.
finally, if you find cripple, homosexual, etc humor funny, that's your bag of tea. and to say it's ok or not ok, that's your opinion. but to assume it's ok for everyone and just spread the humor around in a public board where it could offend the folks you are making fun of creates an oppresive community. of course it depends on the community. when i hear margaret cho belting out asian jokes i laugh, but sorta get pissed cause "our jokes" are being heard by non-asians. now when a white guy cracks asian jokes, i just get pissed.
just as a side note, i know we have alot of asians here. asian bashing would be in bad taste, even when referred to through barbies. i dont think any barbie is an "asian icon." my sister is still pissed at our folks for getting her an "oriental barbie" - even in junior high she knew oriental was for food and rugs, not people lol. so in other words, when talking about gays, just think about the context before you comment. and yes, i still think ken has a nice gay ass, not that there's anything wrong with that