Political correctness gone mad

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manolo
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Political correctness gone mad

Post by manolo »

Folks,

My wife and I walked through a pedestrian underpass in the town last week. I was surprised to see some graffiti on the wall. It was a girl's name and then '..is a Jew'. I found it most upsetting to see this kind of stuff in our town and a person's name included.

My wife agreed and when we got home she phoned the local council.

Today we were back in town and walked through the same underpass. The council had painted over the wall and obscured the graffiti. It was gone.

Alex.
Mr. Perfect
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Mr. Perfect »

I see where you went wrong.

What you are describing is not political correctness. Political correctness is what happened to Bill Clinton the other day, where he reported well known facts about crime against black people, and he was attacked for simply passing along facts, and offered a typical Clinton non-apology. Political correctness is when basic facts can't even be transmitted because of someone's political agenda.

Another example (among so many) would be that "African Americans" frequently use the words "black" and "ni**r" to describe themselves, but only some whites in certain circumstances can use those words. Other whites in other circumstances cannot use those words, and we have plenty of cases where white people (and others) who don't understand those rules have their lives destroyed by the media for no particular reason. For example, in "rap music" the "N word" is used ubiquitously, and young white fans often begin using the word, without realizing they don't have permission.

Hope this helps.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by noddy »

only a ginger can call another ginger, ginger.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Mr. Perfect »

Unless you are a nonginger given special sanction, but then be very careful of the bylaws.
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Nonc Hilaire
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Nonc Hilaire »

Mr. Perfect wrote:Unless you are a nonginger given special sanction, but then be very careful of the bylaws.
There is often a sarcastic or teasing inference when epithets are used self referentially. The problem is many people are too dense to realize it is not the word itself that is the problem.

Self-deprecating humor is insulting if pointed at anyone but the self.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by noddy »

yep and friends, family and colleagues etc have much more scope for lavender stirring or other non polite forms of language than random strangers.

the rules arent that complicated i think, anglo cultures got plenty of that going on aswell - who can call you cnut and get away with it :)
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Nonc Hilaire »

Sometimes it's hard. 'Cracker' is a perjorative term for white people in some parts of the US, but in Florida a Cracker is a native born Floridian and us Crackers are pretty proud of being called that.

Especially the people born in Tampa, because otherwise people tend to call them Tampons.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Mr. Perfect »

But what you guys are describing is political correctness, which is different than the OP.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Simple Minded »

Nonc Hilaire wrote:
Mr. Perfect wrote:Unless you are a nonginger given special sanction, but then be very careful of the bylaws.
There is often a sarcastic or teasing inference when epithets are used self referentially. The problem is many people are too dense to realize it is not the word itself that is the problem.

Self-deprecating humor is insulting if pointed at anyone but the self.
I would guess that for many any form of attention hurts less than being ignored. hello? testing one, two, three.....
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Simple Minded »

Nonc Hilaire wrote:Sometimes it's hard. 'Cracker' is a perjorative term for white people in some parts of the US, but in Florida a Cracker is a native born Floridian and us Crackers are pretty proud of being called that.

Especially the people born in Tampa, because otherwise people tend to call them Tampons.
I've noted that people from Baltimore generally don't being called Baltimorons either.....
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by noddy »

Simple Minded wrote:
Nonc Hilaire wrote:Sometimes it's hard. 'Cracker' is a perjorative term for white people in some parts of the US, but in Florida a Cracker is a native born Floridian and us Crackers are pretty proud of being called that.

Especially the people born in Tampa, because otherwise people tend to call them Tampons.
I've noted that people from Baltimore generally don't being called Baltimorons either.....
:D

reminds me of the old joke.

a kingdom is ruled by a king
an empire is ruled by an emperor
therefor a country is..
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by YMix »

Count? 8-)
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by noddy »

there is always one.

some jokes only work verbally :)
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by YMix »

Next time go with the cunning array of stunts. ;)
“There are a lot of killers. We’ve got a lot of killers. What, do you think our country’s so innocent? Take a look at what we’ve done, too.” - Donald J. Trump, President of the USA
The Kushner sh*t is greasy - Stevie B.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by noddy »

you have always been a cunning linguist.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Simple Minded »

YMix wrote:Next time go with the cunning array of stunts. ;)
I have never doubted that you are a fart smeller. :)
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Nonc Hilaire »

Are people in Belgium Belch, or are they Phlegmish?
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by manolo »

Mr. Perfect wrote:I see where you went wrong.
Mr P,

The graffiti was removed.

Alex.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Mr. Perfect »

That wasn't where you went wrong. Where you went wrong was covered in the rest of the thread.
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manolo
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by manolo »

Mr. Perfect wrote:That wasn't where you went wrong. Where you went wrong was covered in the rest of the thread.
Mr P,

Of course I am aware that some conservatives have worked hard to spin the term 'politically correct' into an insult and conflate it with their perception of 'wrong'. They have been quite successful in this, hence my thread title.

My view is that 'politically correct' remains the executive branch of normative ethics. Hence, my wife was correct to inform the council and the council were correct to remove the graffiti. In your terms, and by our own ethical standards, we and the council were 'right'.

Alex.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by noddy »

i think political correctness is a legal layer above and beyond politness.

its a way for passive aggressive folks to bash people up with the legal systems.

if it doesnt involve the legal system and is just humans squabbling, then thats cultural difference and to be expected in a multi cultural environment.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by Simple Minded »

noddy wrote:i think political correctness is a legal layer above and beyond politness.

its a way for passive aggressive folks to bash people up with the legal systems.

if it doesnt involve the legal system and is just humans squabbling, then thats cultural difference and to be expected in a multi cultural environment.
well said.

In the US, outside taking legal action, PC is simply an attempt to shut up those one disagrees with. The tactic is to call them racists, Nazi's, misogynists, etc. or simply shout them down, and hopefully the PC tactician will convince the speaker that the audience is too idiotic to hear anything but a repeat of their own words, and the speaker will give up and go away.

One less voice from one who opposes the current fad. Mission accomplished.

On the personal/individual level, it looks to me like a method of establishing self-made boundaries. Keep them outside the legal/political system of wielding power, and it is simply freedom of association. Which works for everyone.

Remember the good ole days when safe cyberspace was called imagination/denial/ignorance/prejudice? :P

billion dollar idea?, write an app that only allows transmitting but not receiving?


http://brobible.com/college/article/mic ... mencement/
noddy
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by noddy »

Simple Minded wrote:
In the US, outside taking legal action, PC is simply an attempt to shut up those one disagrees with. The tactic is to call them racists, Nazi's, misogynists, etc. or simply shout them down, and hopefully the PC tactician will convince the speaker that the audience is too idiotic to hear anything but a repeat of their own words, and the speaker will give up and go away.

One less voice from one who opposes the current fad. Mission accomplished.
if you let someone shut you down so easily its not the fault of society.

i do understand peer pressure is painful but the only real issue for me is when you actually get punishment from the legal system, getting grief from some durian uni students is tedious but is a part of life.

losing your job because your manager is a weak willed durian is of course the ugly middly ground between those two situations, thats just sad but perhaps for the best.
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by NapLajoieonSteroids »

noddy wrote:
Simple Minded wrote:
In the US, outside taking legal action, PC is simply an attempt to shut up those one disagrees with. The tactic is to call them racists, Nazi's, misogynists, etc. or simply shout them down, and hopefully the PC tactician will convince the speaker that the audience is too idiotic to hear anything but a repeat of their own words, and the speaker will give up and go away.

One less voice from one who opposes the current fad. Mission accomplished.
if you let someone shut you down so easily its not the fault of society.

i do understand peer pressure is painful but the only real issue for me is when you actually get punishment from the legal system, getting grief from some durian uni students is tedious but is a part of life.

losing your job because your manager is a weak willed durian is of course the ugly middly ground between those two situations, thats just sad but perhaps for the best.
With enough bong-water, those uni students will sprout to eventually become the legal system. :)

I don't know why the OP was shocked to find antisemitism in Britain. The place is rife with it; what is more shocking is that the perp had enough blood in his alcohol stream to write coherently.

Besides, by this time, that sort of graffito must be a veritable tradition:

Image

from one jack to another...passed down like father christmas and hogmanay...
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Re: Political correctness gone mad

Post by NapLajoieonSteroids »

Political Correctness is a swindle. The mark is lead into arguments about free speech and a number of them "rebel" by embracing some sort of verbal exhibitionism as a means to stick it to the man. Of course, over a period of time, that sort of protest becomes unintelligible because you need to have some sort of correspondence to the world around you and associates who see the world as you do....

...which, as the graft goes down, becomes impossible. Because while the mark is busy policing or protesting their words, a self-described vanguard (as often the case) is dismantling the ability to freely form associations with others. That's the prize a the end, not to curtail what someone says, but have the ability to tell others which relations are in bounds and which are out.

And as language relies on groups, you have effectively handed everything to self-appointed judges. But now you can say fu@k sh!t p!ss all the live long day. :)
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