I'm not saying that people who use the phrase today necessarily know of this origin when they use the phrase "give a fig"

Even if some of us did know the origin, jheem, we are ALL hypersensitive to it now.

Now that we are all acutely aware of the obsolete meaning, are any of us less likely to use "I don't give a fig" in the future?

Pehaps, but isn't this the same thing as losing interest in Dali's oeuvre because of his smell?

It's a good thing art isn't a science.