Political correctness

[Stu the Pirate]

These terms are quite subjective, I think. Each one can have a very different meaning or effect. I find some terms stupid like insisting upon "firefighter" over "fireman" or "police officer" over "policeman". In my opinion the suffix "man" is just an archaic term for the job, not specifically derogatory to females in that line of work. On the other hand I can see how it would grate to be a female in the police force and having a constant reminder that you were once deemed too weak to do the job.

"Retard" has heavily negative connotations and is an offensive word on a par with most racial slurs in my opinion. I have a sister with Downs Syndrome so obviously I'm a little sensitive to the issue and pick up on the negative connotation more, but it may not be as offensive to someone who doesn't have that connection, if you catch my drift. To someone with no connection to anyone with such disabilities "retard" may still be the original medical term, and have no connotation for them. This can lead to the term being used benignly but offence being taken anyway.

So to answer the question I think political correctness is needed to a certain extent for polite discourse, but not to the extent that it actually infringes on free speech, as has happened in some examples endlessly cited by the Daily Mail or Fox News. I can think of very few cases where political correctness has objectively gone mad, but from someone else's point of view it very well may appear that way. Personally, I don't think so.

 

[NeutralDrow]

"Political correctness" is an overblown phenomenon, mostly bandied about by the right to avoid talking about actual issues. It's otherwise totally insignificant.

???????


But then we have political correctness which is a tool to keep everybody level and nice to each other, that people all people even the rich, aren't allowed to stand out because it could be hurtful to the lower people. It's a tool really of the left.

You miss my point. I'm saying complaints about PC are far louder and more prevalent than its actual use. It's use by the left is barely enough to qualify for a joke (specifically, a George Carlin routine), much less a tool. PC opponents, on the other hand, use it as a boogeyman scare tactic, or a straw man argument to draw attention away from whatever the supposed "political correctness" was trying to address.

You don't have to make the tool to be its primary user.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

The story's fake.

....Wha- ....Really? Son of a-

.....Well serves me right for not reading past the first few posts before replying... >_<

 

[Parallel Streaks]

I actually believe in Political Correctness, or at least the morals it hopes to promote. These morals are "don't be a dick". While I agree that it sometimes gets out of hand (Baa baa rainbow sheep, seriously?), I think what it tries to do is honorable, which is stop prejudice, or at least stop prejudice from bubbling to the surface of society. For instance, I would never call someone from the Middle-East "paki", as it's all together an offensive, ignorant, ugly and pretty inaccurate term.

It, like everything in life, can only be taken to a certain point without becoming ridiculous, but that's more my problem with people who get too offended too easily rather than my non-existant problem with un-prejudiced name-calling.

 

[DesiPrinceX09]

Well I was born In Africa and then moved here in 2003, so I am technically an African American (unlike 90% of the black folks that live here) and boy does it piss people off when I say but it doesn't make it any less true; gotta love political correctness.

 

[gorfias]

Lots of school examples, where harmless things that are normal with life are determined to be oh'so harmful to a child growing up in the world:... (radical egalitarianism failing to reward exellence or expose failings)..

That is one type of harm.

I've heard stories of good professors finding their careers in jeopardy for incocuos statements. Lawrence Summers himself was the shortest term Harvard Pres. who asked ASKED if there MIGHT be differences between boys amd girls that might explain differences in math and science achievment. Among other "sins", this got him the boot.

I recall George H.W. Bush, worst President of my adult life, found a powerful statement that stuck with people. "Read my lips, no new taxes". He was taken to task for insulting the deaf. BS, people were just trying to supress a politically potent message.

PC is hardly the harmless kerfuffle Movie Bob makes it out to be. It creates a real infringement on free speech, thought and the search for truth.

 

[0thello]

Whoops looks like I stepped into a topic on stormfront. Oh wait this is the escapistmagazine forum... really?! I couldn't tell.