finally, an epiphany

I have identified what it is that bothers me about the portrayal of gay people in contemporary American comedic movies and television programs. It is straight people pretending to be gay people for a straight audience; it is the emphasizing and exaggerating of stereotyped traits of gay people for the amusement of straight people. It is equivalent to the American minstrel shows of not very long ago, in which white people pretended to be outlandish caricatures of black people for the amusement of white audiences.

It will not be very long before these comedies are looked back upon with the same distaste and shame with which the old minstrel shows are currently looked back upon.