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Political Correctness

Would the world be a better place without PC?

  • Yes it would be better.

    Votes: 22 61.1%
  • No it would be worse with out it.

    Votes: 4 11.1%
  • It would be the same.

    Votes: 5 13.9%
  • Don't know/don't care.

    Votes: 5 13.9%

  • Total voters
    36

Kal'Stang

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Would the world be better off if the whole "politically correct" fad had never come to be? Explain your answer please.
 
Oooh, that's a tough one, because one needs to define "political correctness" in order to determine if we would be better off without it. It's been (imo) and slow creeping invasion into the American mindset with the purpose of inhibiting peoples' natural tendencies to make value judgements. Which components of political correctness are you referring to, if any?
 
I guess, as with anything, a good thing can be taken too far. On the whole, I think we're better off, but I think some of it has gone too far.
 
Of course the world would be better off without the Thought Police.

Duh!
 
Oooh, that's a tough one, because one needs to define "political correctness" in order to determine if we would be better off without it. It's been (imo) and slow creeping invasion into the American mindset with the purpose of inhibiting peoples' natural tendencies to make value judgements. Which components of political correctness are you referring to, if any?

[ame=http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&rlz=1T4ADBF_enUS242US242&defl=en&q=define:politically+correct&ei=Pu_pSryZKIfstgOtj-0a&sa=X&oi=glossary_definition&ct=title&ved=0CAoQkAE]Choose one.[/ame] ;) I think they all apply.
 
Okay, let's take the Wiktionary def:

politically correct (comparative more politically correct, superlative most politically correct)

Positive
politically correct
Comparative
more politically correct
Superlative
most politically correct


1.(of language) not objectionable, especially in terms of avoiding offense based on race, gender, religion, ideology or any other social grouping such as disability
[edit] Usage notesWhile "politically correct" frequently refers to a linguistic phenomenon, it is sometimes extended to cover political ideology and behavior, curriculum content, and many areas affected by law, regulation, and public pressure.

Based on that def, PC is pretty vague (ie many areas affected by law, regulation, and public pressure). It's a subject that is very open to interpretation, and cannot definitively be "good" or "bad". My own philosophy is to allow people to be who they are, pc or not, as long as they aren't causing demonstrable harm to another individual.
 
What we have now is "run away political correctness".
All of this - afraid to offend anyone business; fear of using the word "man", talking "he or she" when he sufficices.... its all so damned silly and inane..
Things are "out of balance", today.
 
Political correctness is a doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical, liberal minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous MSM, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end.
 
It depends. In China they have zero concept of political correctness. You'll see charactures of various races appearing on t.v. shows that we would consider racist in the West, but they just don't care.

I say it depends because... on one hand, having no PC values means that everything would just hang in the open. People would run their mouths and offend whoever. This could be beneficial because at least it creates dialogue between the two parties, even if it's just for one person to yell "**** you". I'm sorry, but some unPC comments are true, and by having this dialogue, it would help society sort out which ones are out of line and which ones are closer to the truth. Also, people's personal experiences get trampled on too easily. For instance, I think Chinese immigrants are the worst drivers on the road, and I'm not afraid to say it... but people get offended. I tell them too bad... and it's because in China the road rules suck.

On the other hand, if that unPC dialogue creates no change, then there's no point. In any case, I'd expect the government to be PC because it's responsible for managing a diverse range of people.

Me personally... I'm pretty moderate with how PC I am. I do believe in cultural truths, having lived in so many places and having seen so many patterns. One thing I notice about these values is that if you are not part of the culture you are offending, they will take it personally; but then, within their own groups, they will make the same jokes.

For example, in India I was at a market buying veggies for dinner, and there were three Indian men behind me joking about how I didn't know how to bargain for the lowest price. One of them said, "You don't have a nose for cheap prices like Indians!" They all started laughing, and I said, "Yeah, I guess Indians are pretty cheap." And they all went silent.

So... even around the world, if it comes from within the group, it's okay, but if it comes from an outside group, it's not okay. I find this to be more racist than anything.
 
I've met few people who directly advocate "political correctness." It seems to me that the most "politically correct" position these days is attacks on political correctness.
 
I've met few people who directly advocate "political correctness." It seems to me that the most "politically correct" position these days is attacks on political correctness.

Probably because PC has become so ingrained in a lot of people that they don't even realize that they are doing it half the time. For example: Blacks vs African-American. Or saying his/her instead of just one or the other when refering to someone whose sex you do not know.
 
Okay, let's take the Wiktionary def:



Based on that def, PC is pretty vague (ie many areas affected by law, regulation, and public pressure). It's a subject that is very open to interpretation, and cannot definitively be "good" or "bad". My own philosophy is to allow people to be who they are, pc or not, as long as they aren't causing demonstrable harm to another individual.


The "PC" movement is a form of peer induced speech control that seeks to forbid the utterance of political idea not approved by the peer group.

For example, the PC rules state that the only people allowed to use the word "nigger" are gangsters and Senator Byrd.
 
P.C Is a polite way to talk to someone and lie to their face, about the way you really feel,and make it acceptable to the main stream people.
If you have to lie to someone when you talk to them,why even bother talking to them in the first place?Maybe you're scared of a physical response to what you say to them.
 
P.C Is a polite way to talk to someone and lie to their face, about the way you really feel,and make it acceptable to the main stream people.
If you have to lie to someone when you talk to them,why even bother talking to them in the first place?Maybe you're scared of a physical response to what you say to them.

No, it's not.
It's a way of putting the person first, and their race/ ethnicity/ disability/ sexual orientation/ gender second.
The hope has always been that if we as a society consciously changed our speech patterns to be more inclusive, our thinking would follow.
This hope has, to some extent, been realized.
 
There's not much I despise more than PC thought police bull****.
 
No, it's not.
It's a way of putting the person first, and their race/ ethnicity/ disability/ sexual orientation/ gender second.
The hope has always been that if we as a society consciously changed our speech patterns to be more inclusive, our thinking would follow.
This hope has, to some extent, been realized.

And here I always think of people as individuals; something that includes their race, gender, hair color, language spoken, job, etc. Otherwise, they'd just be another faceless ghost in a crowd. Perfectly meaningless.

I prefer my way of thinking and seeing actual individuals to boxing everyone up as merely faceless humans.
 
No, it's not.
It's a way of putting the person first, and their race/ ethnicity/ disability/ sexual orientation/ gender second.
The hope has always been that if we as a society consciously changed our speech patterns to be more inclusive, our thinking would follow.
This hope has, to some extent, been realized.

No, it's a form of thought control, imposing peer group sanctions on those who violate the tabu concepts and words.

What PC really is.

The purpose of Newspeak was not only to provide a medium of expression for the world-view and mental habits proper to the devotees of Ingsoc, but to make all other modes of thought impossible. It was intended that when Newspeak had been adopted once and for all and Oldspeak forgotten, a heretical thought—that is, a thought diverging from the principles of Ingsoc—should be literally unthinkable, at least so far as thought is dependent on words.

or...

"The purpose of PC is not only to provide a medium of expression for the world-view and mental habits proper to the devotees of socialism, but to make all other modes of thought impossible. It is intended that when PC has been adopted once and for all and Oldspeak forgotten, a heretical thought—that is, a thought diverging from the principles of Ingsoc—should be literally unthinkable, at least so far as thought is dependent on words."

If the PCer can think the word "freedom", he can't demand it.
 
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No, it's not.
It's a way of putting the person first, and their race/ ethnicity/ disability/ sexual orientation/ gender second.
The hope has always been that if we as a society consciously changed our speech patterns to be more inclusive, our thinking would follow.
This hope has, to some extent, been realized.

When I talk to someone,I'm talking to them,I'm not going to white wash what I'm saying to them,how else will people know how someone else really feels.
But then again I have respect for my fellow man.
Where I work I'm a supervisor,I get to evaluate people at the end of jobs or during jobs depending on how they perform at work.
I evaluate them on their job,work abilities,how they perform.
All that other stuff you throw in their doesn't matter,because you are judging that person and nothing else.
If more people did things that way,maybe we all could be better people.
 
I actually think that political correctness has done a lot of harm to race relations in the U.S. It makes interacting with someone of a different race somewhat uncomfortable and awkward, because you're afraid you might say or even think the wrong thing. Ironically, that which was intended to bring races together has probably played a role in keeping them apart.

I think there is a spectrum ranging from racism to PC, and over the last 50 years we as a culture jumped from the former end to the latter... but to truly achieve racial integration we'd need to be at the center of that spectrum.
 
Ironically, that which was intended to bring races together has probably played a role in keeping them apart.

Actually, I'm not so sure that it was ever intended to bring races together. There may have been a few individuals who had good intentions, but the actions of many people in powerful positions wouldn't have much bargaining power if we all got along with each other. Just think of all the politicians who wouldn't have a platform to sell if they couldn't portray one group as victims and the other group as a-holes. I think that the civil rights movement was needed and necessary to break some barriers, but instead of just letting people learn how to get along and actually get to know each other, politicians took it up as an eternal stick to whip up support for themselves.
 
I detest political correctness, it's a means to control freedom of speech by being terrified that anything that comes out of your mouth might just offend someone. Too bad. There's no right not to be offended. Get over it.
 
The world would be a better place with constitutionally guaranteed and executive branch protected free speech. I don't remember being nice being a requirement of being a U.S. citizen.

Having government officials trying to restrain free speech is a violation of their oath and should be grounds for recall or impeachment. I think we have some work to do!
 
Sometimes the next logical step is required in order for a mentality to be sufficiently evaluated.

That being said, most anti-political correct people are politically correct wimps, waiting for the moment to declare themselves anti-pc when very few stand to be offended at their coming statements.
 
Sometimes the next logical step is required in order for a mentality to be sufficiently evaluated.

That being said, most anti-political correct people are politically correct wimps, waiting for the moment to declare themselves anti-pc when very few stand to be offended at their coming statements.

"Are politically correct whimps"? Care to explain that?
 
PC is destroying this country. It is part of the problem. It obfuscates the truth of situations and people.

It is a direct attack on free speech, period.

It is a lie in disguise and needs to be eradicated.
 
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