NationStates Jolt Archive

LUV UR PL8? 2BAD4U, cleric told (http://www.thestar.com/article/280599)
School cancels play that had racist slur as original title (http://www.wtol.com/Global/story.asp?S=7412673)

Two completely unrelated stories both in today's news.

The first is about a United church cleric, Joanne Sorrill, in Toronto, who wanted to get new plates for her car, with the same personalised aspect, "REV JO". But it seems the Ministry of Transportation has its collective head up its ass because it has this twisted idea that this plate would encourage street racing. When the reverend went to change it to "REVRNDJO", the Ministry denied her that one as well because it claimed a bias towards Christianity...

The second story is about a high school near Cincinnati Ohio. A school was forced to cancel a play because it billed it under one of the titles that Agatha Christie published it under: "10 Little Indians". Funny thing is that the actual original title is "10 Little Niggers". I've also seen the title as "And Then There Were None". Too bad the people who complained didn't just ask for a title change...

So, I ask, political correctness gone too far or...? What do you think?

ITT: People blame political correctness for things that have nothing to do with political correctness, as usual.

The time warp has turned my into a prophet!

4fqf4u31hhs2sa

Sorry, I was banging my head on the keyboard for a second there. You can't make this shit up.

4fqf4u31hhs2sa

Sorry, I was banging my head on the keyboard for a second there. You can't make this shit up.

You underestimate the power of my imagination. :) I'm sure I could come up with someone worse than this. ;) Of course, reality is far more amusing than fantasy, which is why comedy makes a killing off reality now. *nods*

ITT: People blame political correctness for things that have nothing to do with political correctness, as usual.

The time warp has turned my into a prophet!

Actually, political correctness IS mentioned in the first article... of course, you'd know if you read it.

From the article:

"I am more than upset. I am enraged," says the Whitby resident, who received a letter from the ministry Monday ordering her to turn the plates in. "This is political correctness to the extreme."

Actually, political correctness IS mentioned in the first article... of course, you'd know if you read it.

From the article:

"I am more than upset. I am enraged," says the Whitby resident, who received a letter from the ministry Monday ordering her to turn the plates in. "This is political correctness to the extreme."

You know, this really doesn't do anything to challenge what he said. His statement was that people use the term "politically correct" when it doesn't apply, as a sort of boogeyman for all things bad, strange, or just plain wierd.

The fact that the woman in the article did it herself doesn't discredit the claim that people do it.

Actually, political correctness IS mentioned in the first article... of course, you'd know if you read it.

From the article:

"I am more than upset. I am enraged," says the Whitby resident, who received a letter from the ministry Monday ordering her to turn the plates in. "This is political correctness to the extreme."

Yes, and that's someone blaming something on political correctness when it, in fact, has nothing to do with political correctness. Political correctness is about trying to use language in such a way as to not imply a value judgement. It is not, contrary to popular belief, thinking/speaking/acting in the way the government wants you to, or having the government force you to speak/think/act in a certain way.

Yes, and that's someone blaming something on political correctness when it, in fact, has nothing to do with political correctness. Political correctness is about trying to use language in such a way as to not imply a value judgement. It is not, contrary to popular belief, thinking/speaking/acting in the way the government wants you to, or having the government force you to speak/think/act in a certain way.

But she can't have her plates and is being told to turn in her plates because the government is trying to curb her freedom of expression. That's the thing because of some wild allegation that it will encourage street racing at a time when we just got a piece of legislation that heavily cracks down on speeding. It also refuses allows for her express her position. This is not right given I've seen plenty of plates that express someone's profession in the past.

There is also nothing wrong with plates about one's religion. It's called 'personalised' for a reason and the government is attempting to tell Sorill that the plates would be biased, when it could just as easily let other people have their religion on a plate. There is nothing stopping the asinine fish from being put on cars or the 'Support Our Troops' decal on PUBLIC vehicles.

Yes, the province has not objected to police cars and ambulances having those decals on their vehicles yet they're saying a person can't put their title on their PERSONALISED plate.

I never said it was ok, I just said that it's nothing to do with political correctness.

But she can't have her plates and is being told to turn in her plates because the government is trying to curb her freedom of expression. That's the thing because of some wild allegation that it will encourage street racing at a time when we just got a piece of legislation that heavily cracks down on speeding. It also refuses allows for her express her position. This is not right given I've seen plenty of plates that express someone's profession in the past.

Nobody has the right to a vanity plate. Vehicle registration is mandated by the government, they can place for the most part whatever restrictions they want. A license plate is an official government registration.

There is also nothing wrong with plates about one's religion. It's called 'personalised' for a reason and the government is attempting to tell Sorill that the plates would be biased, when it could just as easily let other people have their religion on a plate. There is nothing stopping the asinine fish from being put on cars or the 'Support Our Troops' decal on PUBLIC vehicles.

Yes, the province has not objected to police cars and ambulances having those decals on their vehicles yet they're saying a person can't put their title on their PERSONALISED plate.

Different beaurocracies, different regulations...*shrug* It does seem hypocritical yes, however.

And that's the thing. I don't think anyone is arguing that it's not stupid, that it's not unwise, that it's not just plain dumb. I don't think anybody here has tried to defend their actions as wise, or well thought out. I think we all agree it's pretty silly.

But being pretty silly doesn't mean it has anything to do with being "PC". What you've done is largely the same as

"this man just murdered his three children, it's political correctness gone too far!"

"what does this have to do with being PC?"

"oh so you think it's ok to murder children???"

ITT: People blame political correctness for things that have nothing to do with political correctness, as usual.

The time warp has turned my into a prophet!

So, what is to blame? The play thing seems to be all about political correctness, just because someone can't handle that a play has the word "******" in it, they can't do a play? If thats not PC BS I don't know what is. Also, I would assume that the license plate thing is an extension on the idea of PC which is basically to never insult someone. And the Ministry of Transportation seems to think that someone having a plate that says that they're a reverend will somehow insult atheists/whoever, I don't see how it could reasonably be thought to impinge on the separation of church and state, as was claimed, apparently by the ministry.

Also, I would assume that the license plate thing is an extension on the idea of PC which is basically to never insult someone.

And herein we have the problem.

If thats not PC BS I don't know what is.

No, you quite clearly don't.

Then it would seem the government is guilty of false advertising, if it says that the plates can be personalised then place restrictions on it. Something that is against Canadian law (one of many illegal business practices).

'Personalised' doesn't really imply that there are no restrictions.

LUV UR PL8? 2BAD4U, cleric told (http://www.thestar.com/article/280599)
School cancels play that had racist slur as original title (http://www.wtol.com/Global/story.asp?S=7412673)

Two completely unrelated stories both in today's news.

The first is about a United church cleric, Joanne Sorrill, in Toronto, who wanted to get new plates for her car, with the same personalised aspect, "REV JO". But it seems the Ministry of Transportation has its collective head up its ass because it has this twisted idea that this plate would encourage street racing. When the reverend went to change it to "REVRNDJO", the Ministry denied her that one as well because it claimed a bias towards Christianity...

This is just another case of a secular government that takes itself too seriously. If you define PC as a term used to describe language, ideas, policies, or behavior seen as seeking to minimize offense to racial, cultural, or other identity groups, I suppose this could qualify as a PC action.

The question that needs to be answered about this vanity plate is "Who does it offend?". At first glance, no one. The act by the MoT seems to be a preemptive one that is calculated to avoid offense.

The second story is about a high school near Cincinnati Ohio. A school was forced to cancel a play because it billed it under one of the titles that Agatha Christie published it under: "10 Little Indians". Funny thing is that the actual original title is "10 Little Niggers". I've also seen the title as "And Then There Were None". Too bad the people who complained didn't just ask for a title change...

So, I ask, political correctness gone too far or...? What do you think?
The second case is probably also a little episode of PC, but here it has a party that has claimed some offense. The problem is that the supposed victim is claims to be offended by a title that hasn't been used in nearly 70 years. We need to put a filter on these spurious 'victims' that only seem to pop up when there's some financial interest involved. This is exactly the case with the 'victim' in the Ten Little Indians case. Gary Hines (http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071128/ENT/711280342), head of the local NAACP, also runs a diversity training business. Can anyone say "shakedown"?

Nobody has the right to a vanity plate. Vehicle registration is mandated by the government, they can place for the most part whatever restrictions they want. A license plate is an official government registration.

Then it would seem the government is guilty of false advertising, if it says that the plates can be personalised then place restrictions on it. Something that is against Canadian law (one of many illegal business practices).

Then it would seem the government is guilty of false advertising, if it says that the plates can be personalised then place restrictions on it. Something that is against Canadian law (one of many illegal business practices).

It doesn't say it can be personalized, then places restrictions on it. It says it can be personalized...with some restrictions.

I'm quite sure when one goes to fill out the form for your vanity plate they give you a nice sheet that explains it all. It's not false advertising if you don't take the time to read the fine print.

So, what is to blame? The play thing seems to be all about political correctness, just because someone can't handle that a play has the word "******" in it, they can't do a play? If thats not PC BS I don't know what is. Also, I would assume that the license plate thing is an extension on the idea of PC which is basically to never insult someone. And the Ministry of Transportation seems to think that someone having a plate that says that they're a reverend will somehow insult atheists/whoever, I don't see how it could reasonably be thought to impinge on the separation of church and state, as was claimed, apparently by the ministry.

Actually, the play title in the article is: "Ten Little Indians". The original title used by Agatha Christie in 1939 was "Ten Little Niggers". The title has been changed in recent history to "And Then There Were None". But there was never any use of the word "******".

There is also a wide definition of what is "offensive" and it seems to almost be up to the person who sees the application because there are numerous plates that show someone's profession. Reverend is one of the least offensive things I can see in this.

Actually, the play title in the article is: "Ten Little Indians". The original title used by Agatha Christie in 1939 was "Ten Little Niggers". The title has been changed in recent history to "And Then There Were None". But there was never any use of the word "******".
Yeah, that whole thing with the play is just some dumbass being over sensitive. Seriously, try to stop a play because the book its based on used to have the word 'niggers' in it? That's just looking for something to get outraged about.

There is also a wide definition of what is "offensive" and it seems to almost be up to the person who sees the application because there are numerous plates that show someone's profession. Reverend is one of the least offensive things I can see in this.

Except they didn't refuse because it would offend someone, they refused because they think it'll encourage dangerous driving.

I never said it was ok, I just said that it's nothing to do with political correctness.

If the reason it was done was for fear of offending a sect of people, then I would say that there do seem to be aspects of PCism there.

Anything that cracks down on the rights of the religious is ok in my books.

Except they didn't refuse because it would offend someone, they refused because they think it'll encourage dangerous driving.

And there is plenty of that without a plate saying "Rev Jo". In fact, they don't need incentive to act like assholes.

Well the connotation of "political correctness" in the general public leans towards not offending somebody, group, or interest.

I think it can be taken way to far and often is. Trying not to offend someone when you express an opinion, is the equivalent of trying to walk on egg shells without breaking them. A side from that I think people getting offend every now and then is good simply because it keeps them from becoming mindless drones and encourages people to have their own opinions and to actually do something with those opinions.

If the reason it was done was for fear of offending a sect of people, then I would say that there do seem to be aspects of PCism there.
Except it wasn't. It was done because some tool is looking for something to be outraged about, and because the ministry for transportation are idiots.
Anything that cracks down on the rights of the religious is ok in my books.
Go away.
And there is plenty of that without a plate saying "Rev Jo". In fact, they don't need incentive to act like assholes.

No, they certainly don't.

This kind of thing makes me so annoyed. You have to think, what sort of person would sit down in a meeting and say "well we cant have that, that would be awful" (or something similarly ridiculous). In fact, my old primary school (elementry school if you're American) isn't allowed to put on a nativity play anymore, or anything to do with christmas ie trees or lights etc. It all just makes me wanna scream.

Except it wasn't. It was done because some tool is looking for something to be outraged about, and because the ministry for transportation are idiots.

Huh? I'm talking about the people at the license plate umm place, what was the given reason that they said no to the plate.

Huh? I'm talking about the people at the license plate umm place, what was the given reason that they said no to the plate.

that would be the latter part of my post. They think it will encourage dangerous driving. And they won't let her have REVRNDJO because they don't want to be seen endorsing a religion. Which is also bullshit, because letting someone identify themselves as 'X Religion' is not the same as endorsing that religion.

But being pretty silly doesn't mean it has anything to do with being "PC". What you've done is largely the same as

"this man just murdered his three children, it's political correctness gone too far!"

"what does this have to do with being PC?"

"oh so you think it's ok to murder children???"[/QUOTE]

It is political correctness BS.
not using expressions or actions that are seen to insult or upset groups of people according to particular characteristics
www.beingheard.org.uk/content/default.asp

using terms more acceptable and less hurtful than more direct or outdated language (eg "mentally challenged" instead of "mentally retarded").
appsci.queensu.ca/courses/engineeringcommunications/resources/Glossary.php

avoidance of expressions or actions that can be perceived to exclude or marginalize or insult people who are socially disadvantaged or discriminated against
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

Political correctness (often abbreviated to PC) is a term used to describe language or behavior which is intended, or said to be intended, to provide a minimum of offense, particularly to racial, cultural, or other identity groups. ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political correctness

I never said it was ok, I just said that it's nothing to do with political correctness.

It's about someone trying to control another person's freedom of expression. It doesn't matter if the person or persons attempting this control are government functionaries or people on the street, it's still an attempt at suppressing freedom of speech and expression - that is what "political correctness" is.

It's about someone trying to control another person's freedom of expression. It doesn't matter if the person or persons attempting this control are government functionaries or people on the street, it's still an attempt at suppressing freedom of speech and expression - that is what "political correctness" is.

It's a bloody strange saying anyway, almost an oxymoron.

Political correctness?

No, not at all. Political correctness is meant to be self enforced. You do it yourself because you don't want people to think you're making value judgements when you aren't. It is NOT government mandated or required in any way, shape or form, no matter how many Daily Mail readers swear blind that it is.

Yet, strangely enough, government agencies, like the one in the OP, buy into it with niggardly, petty little regulations - out of fear of not being politically correct.

It's about someone trying to control another person's freedom of expression. It doesn't matter if the person or persons attempting this control are government functionaries or people on the street, it's still an attempt at suppressing freedom of speech and expression - that is what "political correctness" is.

No, not at all. Political correctness is meant to be self enforced. You do it yourself because you don't want people to think you're making value judgements when you aren't. It is NOT government mandated or required in any way, shape or form, no matter how many Daily Mail readers swear blind that it is.

o.o I thought the idea that they "encourage dangerous driving" was based on the idea that "REV" would've been mistaken for "rev up the car behind me" or something like that?

Wow I thought this was the story the novel "And Then There Were None" was based on. That book was...twisted.

o.o I thought the idea that they "encourage dangerous driving" was based on the idea that "REV" would've been mistaken for "rev up the car behind me" or something like that?

I had to spend 20 minutes explaining what it mean to my dad. He really didn't get it until after I explained some modern slang, and even then thought it was silly. I think the vast majority of people will either not get it or won't find the need to act it.

PCism has gone too far, but from what I can tell it's mostly the bigots bitching about it. Whenever I hear somebody say "This may not be PC, but..." or "I'm not a racist, but..." it's invariably followed by something completely racist, sexist, homophobic, or otherwise bigoted.

PCism has gone too far, but from what I can tell it's mostly the bigots bitching about it. Whenever I hear somebody say "This may not be PC, but..." or "I'm not a racist, but..." it's invariably followed by something completely racist, sexist, homophobic, or otherwise bigoted.

I am not quite sure if you are talking about personal computers, or "political correctness", since both could be easily applied.
Those damn Mac users and their racist, sexist, homophobic, and OS bigoted ideals.

Those damn Mac users and their racist, sexist, homophobic, and OS bigoted ideals.

Couldn't agree more.

'PC' is just a bogeyman creation by elitists to justify their bigotry.

LUV UR PL8? 2BAD4U, cleric told (http://www.thestar.com/article/280599)
School cancels play that had racist slur as original title (http://www.wtol.com/Global/story.asp?S=7412673)

Two completely unrelated stories both in today's news.

The first is about a United church cleric, Joanne Sorrill, in Toronto, who wanted to get new plates for her car, with the same personalised aspect, "REV JO". But it seems the Ministry of Transportation has its collective head up its ass because it has this twisted idea that this plate would encourage street racing. When the reverend went to change it to "REVRNDJO", the Ministry denied her that one as well because it claimed a bias towards Christianity...

The second story is about a high school near Cincinnati Ohio. A school was forced to cancel a play because it billed it under one of the titles that Agatha Christie published it under: "10 Little Indians". Funny thing is that the actual original title is "10 Little Niggers". I've also seen the title as "And Then There Were None". Too bad the people who complained didn't just ask for a title change...

So, I ask, political correctness gone too far or...? What do you think?

Yes, it is PCness gone too far. But then again, the phrase "PCness gone too far" is just a tad redundant. :p

Yet, strangely enough, government agencies, like the one in the OP, buy into it with niggardly, petty little regulations - out of fear of not being politically correct.

[fake hysteria]Yikes! Don't say "niggardly"; it looks too much like a certain racial slur that also begins with "n"![/fake hysteria]

Wrong. Political correctness is an actual set of standards and values enforced by the news media and by hypersensitive "minority" groups by giving people bad press for violating those standards and values.

Minority groups can't be bigoted elitists?

Hrm...

No, not at all. Political correctness is meant to be self enforced.

Maybe it's MEANT to be SELF-enforced, but it's not; it's enforced by the news media and easily-offended, hypersensitive "minority" groups.

It is NOT government mandated or required in any way, shape or form, no matter how many Daily Mail readers swear blind that it is.

It may not be GOVERNMENT mandated, but it IS news media mandated, because nobody wants to be given "bad press" for using "racial slurs" or otherwise offending absurdly hypersensitive "minority" groups.

'PC' is just a bogeyman creation by elitists to justify their bigotry.

Wrong. Political correctness is an actual set of standards and values enforced by the news media and by hypersensitive "minority" groups by giving people bad press for violating those standards and values. It is the news media's way of speech and thought control, and of destroying the First Amendment.

Wrong. Political correctness is an actual set of standards and values enforced by the news media and by hypersensitive "minority" groups by giving people bad press for violating those standards and values. It is the news media's way of speech and thought control, and of destroying the First Amendment.

Prove it.

Prove it.

prove your claim first since you made it first.

prove your claim first since you made it first.
Actually no, you're the one claiming PC exists in the first place, my position is objective in that I see no evidence that it does exist.

Actually no, you're the one claiming PC exists in the first place, my position is objective in that I see no evidence that it does exist.

(Quoting Eureka but addressing Hoyteca)

To put this in slightly more layman's terms it means he's invoking Burden of Proof.

You may be familiar with it but essentially it's impossible to prove a negative since you'd have to find every simple example that ever has and ever will exist and disprove something wheras you only have to find one example where the positive can be proven.

What this means, is that the burden of proof falls on the one making the positive claim. In this case that would be you since you're arguing that PC exists and is the problem. But let's take that one step at a time and prove it's existence first.

Also with my own claim, what I meant proper is that invoking 'political correctness' does not void whatever opinion you have, nor does it make you're opinion immune to criticism because you claim anyone who criticizes it is 'politically correct'.

Maybe it's MEANT to be SELF-enforced, but it's not; it's enforced by the news media and easily-offended, hypersensitive "minority" groups.
The media and minority groups have no power to force me to speak in a certain way. How are they going to enforce anything?



It may not be GOVERNMENT mandated, but it IS news media mandated, because nobody wants to be given "bad press" for using "racial slurs" or otherwise offending absurdly hypersensitive "minority" groups.

The media doesn't want to lose money by pissing off its viewers? OMG this is a huge shock! I may just have a heart attack!

Also, what are you randomly using "s?

http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/280807

And how nice, there are letters to the editor on this.

Shall we take a gander?

Like my colleague, Rev. Joanne Sorrill, I am a minister in the United Church of Canada. I also have a personalized licence plate and have had one since my wife gave it to me for Christmas in 1990. My plate also begins with the letters "REV." In fact, my plate is more controversial in some ways than Sorrill's.

My plate reads "REV F10." The F10 refers to the "save a file" key in the original WordPerfect 5.1 computer program. My licence plate can (as one possibility) be read "REV Save," which was what I told the Ministry of Transportation it meant when I applied for the plate. It was not considered controversial and was deemed acceptable then. So what has changed?

I have found the plate to be a conversation starter and a way of promoting laugher and good humour. No one has ever taken offence with it, if they have even noticed it. I fail to see how my plate can be construed to promote street racing. The letters "REV" are a legitimate honorific I was given when I was ordained in 1979. Perhaps they should be removed from our church sign board, which faces a provincial highway, and our church website.

I have not yet received a letter ordering me to turn in my plate. I renewed my licence sticker last June without any fuss. If the ministry plans to remove any plate with the letters "REV" from the roads, it will have a goodly number to dispose of. I have seen "REV PTR," "REV LTH" and a number of other combinations on the roads.

I find this action by the ministry completely unimaginative, inappropriate, inconsistent and the product of bureaucratic minds with too little to do. Surely it can do better and more effective work than chasing a few pastors with what it deems to be politically incorrect licence plates.

Promotion of religion? No. It's my title, and I choose to use it.

Rev. David Shearman,
Owen Sound, Ont.

There are others who use "REV"+ another 3 or 4 letter combo after it. How interesting this is. So, when will the province start to recall these, or will it not because it's being woefully inconsistent in the matter?

And yes, I do not feel any more offended than someone displays "rev" on their plate than "doc". It's just a title.

The transportation ministry's refusal to allow Rev. Joanne Sorrill to renew her licence plate because it either promotes speeding or identifies her as someone with a religious background just beggars belief.

Does the government seriously believe that the public is so unintelligent and easily influenced that we will take up road racing or be offended by someone displaying their legitimate profession on their licence plate? If it is as easy as that to influence public attitudes, I strongly advise the Ministry of Health to place anti-smoking messages on all licence plates and there won't be a smoker left in the province.

We have tremendous diversity of religion and culture in Ontario, and we should be celebrating that diversity, not suppressing it. What is more troubling to me than a minister's personal licence plate is the fact that people actually spend their working day developing these policies, and my tax dollars are paying for this nonsense.

Sheila Robson, Whitby

You're so right. The province does think we're a pack of morons with the laws that they pass attempting to make this into some kind of nanny state.

How right this person is about diversity.

While I sympathize with Rev. Joanne Sorrill, I would be more concerned with the possible interpretation of "REV" as "revolution" – as in "overthrow the bums." Given the number of acronyms in today's world, I would suspect that a noticeable percentage of randomly assigned licence plate numbers mean something to someone.

As a distraction from traffic jams, I decided to look for possibilities. Within minutes I came across a well-known acronym for a sexual act. The licence plate was on a school bus.

Clive Holloway, Toronto

Revolution as in the proletariat rising up? Oh dear... we can't let people start thinking for themselves now. Oh no, so many different meanings. Well, I guess that happens when you're too lazy to make your own words and you borrow from other languages.

And I think I can guess what the acronym is, but of course, no one will complain because it looks like a randomly generated plate. :rolleyes:

The transportation ministry is quite right that the word "reverend" could be interpreted religiously. Now about that word "ministry."

Tom Warney, Newmarket

Huh, I never thought about it like it that way...

How nice is it to see that I'm part of the majority of sane assholes from Toronto.

I had to spend 20 minutes explaining what it mean to my dad. He really didn't get it until after I explained some modern slang, and even then thought it was silly. I think the vast majority of people will either not get it or won't find the need to act it.
Get what?

Yes, and that's someone blaming something on political correctness when it, in fact, has nothing to do with political correctness. Political correctness is about trying to use language in such a way as to not imply a value judgement. It is not, contrary to popular belief, thinking/speaking/acting in the way the government wants you to, or having the government force you to speak/think/act in a certain way.
such as Police Person instead of Police Man or Police Woman? Airline Attendant instead of Steward or Stewardress? Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome instead of Shell Shock? that kind of value Judgement?

I remember the Washington Redskins (NFL Team) had legal action taken to them because someone found the term 'Redskins' to be offensive.

perhaps someone found the word 'Indian' to be the same in Reference to the play?

Oh and some interesting links...
http://www.users.bigpond.com/smartboard/pc.htm
http://www.academia.org/lectures/lind1.html
http://www.languagemonitor.com/wst_page20.html

I never said it was ok, I just said that it's nothing to do with political correctness. maybe not, but the 'it supports christianity' reason sounds like the Gov is using your definition of PC as an excuse.

Nobody has the right to a vanity plate. Vehicle registration is mandated by the government, they can place for the most part whatever restrictions they want. A license plate is an official government registration. true, but funny that she used the plate "Rev Jo" for 20 years before they said no.

No, not at all. Political correctness is meant to be self enforced. You do it yourself because you don't want people to think you're making value judgements when you aren't. It is NOT government mandated or required in any way, shape or form, no matter how many Daily Mail readers swear blind that it is. alot of things are supposed to be self enforced. to bad it's not. :(

Get what?

The connotation for "REV JO".

Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome instead of Shell Shock?

Wait, so using more accurate terms in psychology is bad now? Am I the only one who finds that incredibly inane?

Wait, so using more accurate terms in psychology is bad now? Am I the only one who finds that incredibly inane?

Never said it was bad.

such as Police Person instead of Police Man or Police Woman? Airline Attendant instead of Steward or Stewardress? Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome instead of Shell Shock? that kind of value Judgement?

"Police officer" is a more useful term than "policeman," seeing as the gender of the officer really ought to be irrelevant. Ditto for "flight attendant" rather than "stewardess" and so forth. PTSD is a much more accurate term than "shell shock," seeing as there's lots of people (like myself) who suffer from PTSD who have never been under fire. That has nothing to do with political correctness and everything to do with common sense.

I remember the Washington Redskins (NFL Team) had legal action taken to them because someone found the term 'Redskins' to be offensive.

...possibly because it is pretty horribly offensive? That's not really any better than having a team named the "Washington Darkies." I've been pretty disgusted for years at the franchise's refusal to change their name to something less obviously racially charged.

Never said it was bad.

You called it PC. You implied in your post that PC is bad. Ergo, you implied that the term was bad.

"Police officer" is a more useful term than "policeman," seeing as the gender of the officer really ought to be irrelevant. Ditto for "flight attendant" rather than "stewardess" and so forth. PTSD is a much more accurate term than "shell shock," seeing as there's lots of people (like myself) who suffer from PTSD who have never been under fire. That has nothing to do with political correctness and everything to do with common sense. I can see the preference for Police Officer. but is that the same as saying one cannot use Police Woman or Police man?
(I've had conversations with people who say [occupation][gender] should never be used.)

I included PTSD and Shell shock more out of George Carlins rant about PC. :p

In the first world war, that condition was called shell shock. Simple, honest, direct language. Two syllables, shell shock. Almost sounds like the guns themselves. That was seventy years ago. Then a whole generation went by and the second world war came along and very same combat condition was called battle fatigue. Four syllables now. Takes a little longer to say. Doesn't seem to hurt as much. Fatigue is a nicer word than shock. Shell shock! Battle fatigue. Then we had the war in Korea, 1950. Madison avenue was riding high by that time, and the very same combat condition was called operational exhaustion. Hey, were up to eight syllables now! And the humanity has been squeezed completely out of the phrase. It's totally sterile now. Operational exhaustion. Sounds like something that might happen to your car. Then of course, came the war in Viet Nam, which has only been over for about sixteen or seventeen years, and thanks to the lies and deceits surrounding that war, I guess it's no surprise that the very same condition was called post-traumatic stress disorder. Still eight syllables, but we've added a hyphen! And the pain is completely buried under jargon. Post-traumatic stress disorder. I'll bet you if we'd of still been calling it shell shock, some of those Viet Nam veterans might have gotten the attention they needed at the time. I'll betcha. I'll betcha.


...possibly because it is pretty horribly offensive? That's not really any better than having a team named the "Washington Darkies." I've been pretty disgusted for years at the franchise's refusal to change their name to something less obviously racially charged.so do you agree with the banning of the play because the original title used a racial slur?

what if the NAACP fought for and succeeded in the to removal of the book Huckleberry Finn from all school libraries because of the same reason?

and is that reason any better than someone saying "because it's against my religion"?

You called it PC. You implied in your post that PC is bad. Ergo, you implied that the term was bad.

no I didn't, I was focusing on his definition of PC.

I didn't say it was either bad nor good. if YOU saw an implied stance that I was against it. Then I apologize for that misconception.

I can see the preference for Police Officer. but is that the same as saying one cannot use Police Woman or Police man?
(I've had conversations with people who say [occupation][gender] should never be used.)

I included PTSD and Shell shock more out of George Carlins rant about PC. :p

I don't know about "should never be used," but I personally choose not to use pointlessly gendered terms. I don't take offense when someone uses a gendered term to describe me - I just think it's stupid, seeing as it implies some sort of important difference between, say, a "poet" and a "poetess," and I am unaware of any such difference.



so do you agree with the banning of the play because the original title used a racial slur?

Of course not. I do agree that changing the title of the play was a sensible move, though, seeing as the original title was quite offensive and added nothing to the story. Political correctness isn't about banning things willy-nilly, or certainly shouldn't be - it's simply about taking reasonable measures not to be unnecessarily offensive. I think it's pathetic that a major sports team still uses a racial slur for their name, seeing as that is egregiously offensive and takes exceedingly minimal effort to fix.

what if the NAACP fought for and succeeded in the to removal of the book Huckleberry Finn from all school libraries because of the same reason?

Then they'd be stupid. Banning books is universally stupid, in my opinion.

Of course not. I do agree that changing the title of the play was a sensible move, though, seeing as the original title was quite offensive and added nothing to the story. Political correctness isn't about banning things willy-nilly, or certainly shouldn't be - it's simply about taking reasonable measures not to be unnecessarily offensive. I think it's pathetic that a major sports team still uses a racial slur for their name, seeing as that is egregiously offensive and takes exceedingly minimal effort to fix.While I never said PC was about banning things, it seems that the media tries to make it such. however how far is 'Reasonable'? While I agree that racial slurs should never be used (although some slurs actually started out as harmess words) when should something be banned because it's offensive and should we start to fear certain 'words'?

as for 'Redskins' being racist. according to wiki
Many make the case in defense that their (The Redskins) name is intended to honor the bravery and dignity of Native Americans and that, regardless of past usage, the word "redskins" today refers to the football team. The activists argue that no matter what the intent is, the term has always been a negative and racist word. [4]. Notwithstanding the complaints of the activists, a 2002 poll commissioned by Sports Illustrated found that 75% of those Native Americans surveyed had no objection to the Redskins name.

so if a minority of a minority finds something offensive, should everyone else bow to their wishes?

should the phrase "You do not have a constitutional right to not be offended" be appropriate here? (even tho the licence plate thing is Canadian.)

Then they'd be stupid. Banning books is universally stupid, in my opinion. glad we agree then. banning a play because the original (and no longer used) title held an offensive word is also stupid.

Political correctness is quite an evil under the sun...

Political correctness is quite an evil under the sun...

Like religion, PC is a tool of good that has been perverted and overused by the forces of evil and stupid to further their evil and stupid goals.

The connotation for "REV JO".
What connotation? :confused:

I spent three years working at the County Auditor's office where I used to live. It's an agency of the Department of Licensing (and also the Public Records repository and Elections division) and as such handled licensing vehicles (and vessels, pets, marriages, businesses, "adult entertainters", public events, and more).

While we didn't have authority or even control over personalized plates, we handed out applications, and explained them. Often, customers would run their ideas past us, because we obviously knew what was likely to get bounced back as no good.

I remember that the plate 3M TA3 was bounced, and I couldn't figure out why until someone wrote it down and showed it to me in a mirror.

Licensing officials aren't out to curtail anyone's freedom of expression, and often, the rank and file of that agency have nothing whatsoever to do with such policies. Obvious disqualifying things: defamatory speech (____ SUX), acknowledged "dirty" words according to the community standards ideal (f**k, s**t, c**t, and so forth), sexually suggestive words/numbers (69, BLOW ME, T-BAGGR, etc.), racial/ethnic slurs, and some others. The idea isn't that the state wants to censor, it's that the state doesn't wish to be seen as endorsing vulgarity according to current community standards.