Is Political Correctness . . .?

Question

Is Political Correctness (especially language) turning into the new Puritanism? In the 17c, the Puritans had theatres closed down, with the recent Big Brother Bother, can you see PC sending us down the same route? Do you think PC is over the top in this country? and is it stiffling free speach, freedom of expression etc?

In a mad way, I think PC is itself racist - being unable to allude to a person race or skin colour is racist because we're bending over backwards to avoid recognising someones race/colour. Obviously I don't mean hurling insults about colour, that's racist. PC seems to apply to races of different skin colour (eg we don't consider the French racist for calling the English 'Roast Beef' but would consider it racist to call an Indian Popadom).

Answer 1

Yes, fundamentally, I think that it is a left wing inspired control mechanism. It tries to remove traditional, particularly religious based, moral values and replace them with irreligious left wing dogma. It enables the Government and its supporting acolytes, amongst other things, to control the majority population by bestowing 'rights', often supported by radical new legislation, on so called minorities, and/or victim groups. Examples might be - women, the disabled, minority ethnic groups, gays, one parent families, immigrants,and so on. These minority groupings are, essentially, a fiction, because they don't actually live in communities, eg. there is no such thing as a 'Gay Community'.

By empowering minority groups within society by a variety of different means, often in ways which contradict traditional moral and religious teaching, they invoke controls over the majority population in accordance with their totalitarian left wing PC agenda.

A good example of this, is, forcing individual Church of England ministers to marry gay couples, even though it is against the express teachings of the COE church. So, this Government has enacted legislation forcing the church to operate against its own beliefs, or risk falling foul of the law.

The Human Right's Act gives legal support to much of the new restrictions, particularly attacks on freedom of speech, including preventing us from controlling our own borders etc. The Government has willingly signed us up to this, and wants to go all the way to a Federal States of Europe.

Of course, PC is 'over the top', it is also dangerous, as any patriot will readily recognise. I personally think that the slow breakdown of our social structure/values began with feminism, and the attacks on the traditional family and the male role in society in particular. However, I don't want to search too deeply for explanations, because I will risk alienating people, save to say, women don't understand banter, and that forms the basis of a lot of misunderstanding, particularly between the sexes, and prevents us rubbing along together without getting too serious and uptight.

Answer 2

Political Correctness is a statement of the times. Whatever the times. Back in the thirties down south the word ****** was a commonplace description of a black man. It started falling out of place in the sixties. In the sixties to be gay was a happy thing but now it involves oral and anal sex for a lifestyle. Now a boy can suck on a dick with the public blessings but not on a cigarette! There was a time that you could smoke at the back of the bus, the last four seats were reserved for the pleasure, today the diesel fuel is more dangerous but you can't smoke even in the bus station garage.
P.C. is ever changing. In fifteen years it will be politically correct to be self righteous about some other thing and fighting off name calling, cigarette smokers, will be passe.
Politically correctness is just a sign of the contemporary state of the public mind.It is usually led by a group of wannabes that are looking for attention from their fellow wannabees.

Answer 3

Hi there;

Like any quick fix where humans are trying to change other humans to do what they want them to do without changing the nature of the home you will find abuse.
Example: Rappers use the "n" word constantly yet no person of any other race is allowed to use that word without being labeled racist. Is that wrong? You bet it is and on many levels too.
PC has been abused to the point that the original intention has been forgotten. Freedom to speak out has been curtailed drastically. Misinterpretations of intent has gone wild.
What I whole heartily advise people is to remember what PC stands for; POLITICALLY correct.
It is all nothing but politics.

Answer 4

You make a great point. May I counter? Political correctness should never be enforced by a government. However, government employees should play by different rules. I have turned people in who worked at the BMV for mistreating Hispanic customers. Do they have to like Latinos? No. Do they have the right to keep their job for clearly treating people of different backgrounds differently? No, again. I strongly support free speech, even for those I find despicable. But don't expect me to respect you if you continually use disrepectful language.

Answer 5

political correctness is just a nice word for censorship.I agree with your analogy to Puritanism.It is appalling that we let this happen in a country founded on free speech.Now it is free speech as long as you do not offend the wrong group of people.People should learn to suck it up and deal with the fact that there are going to be times when they are offended by something someone says.Take the whole Grey's Anatomy fiasco.How about Rosie O'Donnell??? I am by no means prejudice against homosexuals or any group that calls itself a minority but it seems people like Rosie and this guy from Grey's Anatomy need to grow some thick skin,grow up and stop being crybabies.They are like little children running to their mommy when someone calls them names.Too bad.Deal with it!!!!!

Answer 6

Yes to all of it - If you are white and British nowadays you are frightened to breathe without someone accusing you of racism. It does more to promote racial unrest in the UK than any BNP party could ever do. The sad part is, if you speak to a majority of foreigners in the UK they will be the first to say that they dont want the divide the PC people have created - the people are happy to live and let live side by side.

Answer 7

Pc has its advantages and disadvantages, what seems lacking is commonsense. PC should be a last resort where all other reason and logic are in dire depletion.

Governance and ignorance created the situation in BB- The sheer contempt of someone of a higher social standing and plain ignorance with regards to someone elses culture are a result of misguided teaching methods and a crappy curriculum whose sole focus is to teach about the religion and NOT the culture.

Answer 8

It already has, even the most innocent comment is now twisted to make sure someone is offended.
I think the worst examples of PC gone mad is the changing of the name Christmas to winter festival or similar by councils worried about offending non Christians. The irony is in these boroughs you can walk into a shop run by an ethnic group and they have Christmas decorations up.

Answer 9

I think that in some cases political correctness has gone too far, but that's not to say that racism no longer exists. I think what was said on Big Brother was racist, and that if it is stopped that is a completely different thing to shutting down theatres.

Answer 10

I don't know if PC = new puritanism. I think it is radical myself. But I think that people are too sensitive and too ready to slap a lawsuit on someone for the slightest thing.
No one has a sense of humor about themselves anymore. We all take ourselves way too seriously.