May 18, 2007
Political
Correctness is Always Having to Say You're
Sorry.
Vol. 2 Issue9
Political correctness
(PC) is nothing new. It was developed at the
Institute for Social Research in Frankfurt,
Germany, which was founded in 1923 and came
to be known as the "Frankfurt School." It
was a group of thinkers who pulled together
to find a solution to the biggest problem
facing the implementers of Communism in
Russia.
The problem? Why wasn't communism spreading?
Their answer: Because Western Civilization
was in its way. What was the problem with
Western Civilization? Its belief was in the
individual, that an individual could develop
valid ideas. At the root of communism was
the theory that all valid ideas come from
the effect of the social group of the
masses. The individual is worthless.
In addition, they believed that the only way
for communism to advance was to help (or
force, if necessary) Western Civilization to
destroy itself. How do you do that? You
undermine its foundation by chipping away at
the rights of those annoying western
individuals.
One way to do that is to change their speech
and thought patterns by spreading the idea
that vocalizing your beliefs is
disrespectful to others and must be avoided
to make up for past inequities and
injustices. And, call it something that
sounds positive: "Political Correctness."
Inspired by the brand new communist
technique, Mao, in the 1930's, wrote an
article on the "correct" handling of
contradictions among the people called
"Sensitivity training" – sound familiar?
Speech codes were then born and so was the
ACLU.
Things seemed to quiet down for a number of
years until Political Correctness erupted
again in the 1980's. It was a spontaneous
declaration that particular ideas,
expressions and behavior, which were then
legal, should be forbidden by law, and
people who transgressed should be punished.
It started with a few voices, but grew in
popularity until it became written and
unwritten law within society. Some who
became publicly declared as being not
politically correct became the object of
persecution by some in the masses, if not
prosecuted by the state.
So where has that taken us over the years?
Political Correctness has gone mad. It is
literally out of control. It has made me
think twice before I speak extemporaneously
in public; which I do quite often. I feel
that before I say or write anything, I need
a battery of lawyers and a representative
from the ACLU to review my remarks prior to
me presenting them. Even then, someone will
find something I say or write objectionable.
When civilizations decline, they become
increasingly troubled with form over
substance, generally with respect to
language. Let us examine the evolvement of
Politically Correct terms over the years.
For example, during WW I when a solider
became depressed on the battlefield we
called it shell shock--a simple term, two
one-syllable words, clear and descriptive.
Later, after WW II ended, we called it
combat fatigue. It meant the same thing, and
there were still just two words. Today the
two words have doubled, and the original
pair of words has expanded to four. It even
has its own acronym, PTSD--post traumatic
stress disorder. It still means the same
thing, and it still hurts as much or as
little, but it is more in harmony with
current sterile sensibilities.
Punishing your child has become "take a time
out." You cannot say a person is fat
anymore, they are "horizontally challenged."
Lazy students in school are now considered
"motivationally deficient." Failing students
are "temporarily academic deficient." Does
it all mean the same thing. "A rose by any
other name is still a rose."
Let us examine what has recently occurred in
the name of Political Correctness.
-
In New York City, Muslim taxi drivers may
elect not to pick up passengers who are
carrying alcoholic beverages. So if you are
dressed to the nines (wearing a tuxedo and
your date is in an evening gown) and you are
carrying a bottle of Dom Perignon, do not
bother to hail a taxi.
-
It has become Politically Incorrect to call
terrorists what they are, Terrorists. They,
according to Reuters News Service should be
called "freedom fighters." Whose freedom
were they fighting for on 9/11?
-
In children’s organized sports, such as
soccer or little league baseball, the
fifteenth place team in a fourteen-team
league gets trophies. Why are we rewarding
losers? We are creating a generation of
losers with the current view that children
are all winners. We are failing our kids by
refusing to teach them how to lose.
The Reverend Al Sharpton, the country's
biggest hypocrite, now wants to go after all
the radio Shock Jocks if they step over the
line.
My suggestion to the Reverend is, if you
actually care about anything other than
getting your name in the news for fighting
imaginary racism, you should look into the
problem of why there is a double standard in
the Black community.
Political correctness is no longer a plea
for equality. Instead, it has become a tool
for the greedy to gain more money, more
influence, and more power. Our courts
constantly condone this farce.
The declared rationale of the ACLU is to
prevent people from being offended; to
require everyone to avoid using words or
behavior that may upset homosexuals, women,
non-whites, the disabled, the stupid, fat
people, bald, the ugly and illegal aliens.
This reveals not only its irrationality but
also its motivation. The set of values that
were detested were those held by the
previous generation who knew that "sticks
and stones could break my bones…" you know
the rest. Is it an act of adolescent
rebellion by the new generation or is
Political Correctness merely the resentment
of spoiled children directed against their
parent's values?
Political correctness is the practice of
censoring viewpoints disparaging to the
liberal agenda or embarrassing to powerful
people. It is tearing down the fibers of
this great democracy. Maybe it just took the
"Frankfurt School" a little longer than it
thought it needed to spread its message.
In all fairness to the Reverend Al Sharpton,
I must admit that maybe he is right. Maybe
the word "Ho" is a racial slur and should
never be used in any context.
Therefore, here is my question to you
Reverend Al. This Christmas when a Black
female child climbs upon Santa's lap in the
local mall and he utters those three words
he has been saying for centuries, "Ho, Ho,
Ho," will you insist that all the malls in
America be closed?
And, that is my opinion.
Michael Solomon
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