[Colonel Flagg]

It reminds me of the instance when Mike Wallace (of 60 minutes fame) was caught making a joke about African Americans eating Fried Chicken and Watermelon (Remember Fuzzy Zoeller? Well, he wasn't the first). Wallace was in-between takes, unaware the cameras were rolling, and before you know it the joke is out of his mouth and on tape. Now, being an investigative journalist, you'd have THOUGHT he would know better; he didn't and the deed was done. Admittedly this was in the age before YouTube, and it didn't get the airplay something like this "Faggot" joke will probably get, but still there was a hue and a cry for public humiliation and retribution, not short of firing his kiester from the show. The humiliation and the apology was immediate; the firing was not (obviously).

The point? Most people will accept a moment of weakness as just that - a moment of weakness. If he apologizes quickly and sincerely, maybe has lunch with a GLBT group and discuss their concerns about this kind of behavior and what can be done, this will all be water under the bridge.