Define political correctness

[Tahuti]

During debates, being a accused of PC'ness is a grave insult - as well as not much more than a rethorical tool that doesn't have much logical credit. But... does it actually mean anything? Is it exclusively left-wing? Are people who throw the PC monniker at others often guilty of PC'ness themselves?

For this particular thread, I decide to throw in my two cents in first: I would define political correctness as changing low-priority viewpoints to conform to a larger ideological group, to be able to advance high-priority viewpoints more easily. Thus, in my view, it is not exclusively a Left-Wing affair, and often something users of the term are guilty of themselves too.

Dicuss away...

 

[Joecoolyo]

I'm proud of being PC.

Macs suck

 

[Glassfan]

Calling someone PC is like callying something a Myth - it's a shorthand soundbite/criticism avoiding the actually strengths or weaknesses of the position.

That being said, PC was used mainly in the 1980's in America in the contempt for knee-jerk unthinking liberal opinion. Today, Political Correctness as an accusation is watered down and useless, though PC behavior is still commonplace.

I think you're correct KG, both sides are PC, because it's a universal human failing, not particularly liberal or conservative.

 

[Borachio]

I don't know how you define "political correctness" but it is one of those things that have "gone mad".

health and safety - gone mad
multiculturalism - gone mad
etc

cliches (that's the word)

 

[Bestbank Tiger]

It's basically changing words/labels/language for inane reasons. For example, have two college football rivalries (Texas-Oklahoma and Florida-Georgia) whose official names were changed. Texas-Oklahoma used to be the Red River Shootout...now it's the Red River Rivalry because some idiots decided "Shootout" encouraged gun violence. Florida-Georgia was "The World's Largest Cocktail Party". Cocktail was changed to Outdoor because some idiot fan drank himself to death. Apparently if you call it Outdoor you'll stop underage drinking and if you say Cocktail you're an ogre who wants children to die.

Politically correct idiocy happens on both sides. I heard something several years ago about a high school in Texas that had a long-standing tradition during homecoming week where students would dress as the opposite sex for one day. That got changed to "Camo Day" because some idiot parent raised a fuss and thought it would turn the males gay (even though it had been done for decades without causing that to happen.) The backlash against the Dixie Chicks is another good example or right wing political correctness.

I consider political correctness an entirely separate entity from things like not using racist and sexist slurs. The latter is just basic decency and common sense.

 

[Glassfan]

Politically correct idiocy happens on both sides.

I consider political correctness an entirely separate entity from things like not using racist and sexist slurs. The latter is just basic decency and common sense.

Amen, brother.

 

[ParadigmShifter]

OK, it's got bad swearing in it, but whatevs. Don't watch if you don't like swearing.


Link to video.

 

[Winner]

Being excessively indirect and polite in order to avoid offending a segment of society - a tactic usually employed by politicians seeking (re)election (hence the name).

PCness isn't inherently bad, in some cases I expect public officials to be politically correct - for example, I am quite OK with using "disabled" or "handicapped" for people with physical disabilities instead of "cripples". The problem is that it is often used as a strategy to avoid talking about real problems and to shut up your opponents before they can even present their arguments.

 

[Tahuti]

Being excessively indirect and polite in order to avoid offending a segment of society - a tactic usually employed by politicians seeking (re)election (hence the name).

The problem with this definition is that certain politicians actually score points by being direct and aggressive, and offend their electorate when falling within your definition of PC'ness.

 

[Winner]

The problem with this definition is that certain politicians actually score points by being direct and aggressive, and offend their electorate when falling within your definition of PC'ness.

Obviously. If you target just a small segment of the electorate which might be attracted by "political incorrectness", then it is a viable strategy. Hence why small, fringe parties usually employ it. Politicians who hope to gain support of a wide range of voters across the spectrum tend to be far more PC.

Then it also depends on how homo/heterogeneous your society is. In a very homogeneous country, being unfriendly and harsh with a despised minority can obviously score you points (just ask Adolf). At the opposite extreme is a very heterogeneous society with dozens of disparate minorities, all trained to take offence at the slightest hint of "incorrectness" in some public figure's speech.

 

[Core Imposter]

Political correctness=Murdered babies=A reigning Satan

Thats pretty much it.

Political correctness is the suppression of free speech by peer presure. Propaganda. It is exactly the same only at a less obvious level that as practiced in North Korea where children literally believe in the supernatural properties of the reigning Kim Ding Dong until and in some cases beyond adulthood.

If you repeat something often enough, omg, it must be true.

Ripping a baby out of its mother's womb IS A ROUTINE MEDICAL PROCEDURE AND STANDARD WOMEN'S HEALTH CARE. WHAT IS WITH THIS WAR ON WOMEN!

Polictical correctness is what the SS guards used to convince themselves the Jews and Gypsies weren't really people.

Political correctness is what America's children will use in the future to convince themselves to terminate the lives of the unproductive elderly to help pay on the deficit so that every citizen can exercise their rights to have a hot tub in their governmented paid for home.

Political correctness led to the Jonestown Massacre.

Political correctness is the known associate of denial and a former passenger on the ocean liner Titanic, and a ship of the line from the time of the Spanish Armada, and a feature of the early twenty one tens, in America, before that country was made bankrupt and destroyed in a nuclear malstrom. Justly destroyed.

 

[Tahuti]

Then it also depends on how homo/heterogeneous your society is. In a very homogeneous country, being unfriendly and harsh with a despised minority can obviously score you points (just ask Adolf). At the opposite extreme is a very heterogeneous society with dozens of disparate minorities, all trained to take offence at the slightest hint of "incorrectness" in some public figure's speech.

Homogenity vs. Heterogenity debates are usually pretty irrelevant. Cultural and religious minorities are obviously most easy to target, but once these are out of the picture, it is pretty easy imagine and target groups within an ethnic or religious group itself, once that becomes advantageous to politicians.

Just imagine what will happen once Muslims are out of the picture: Politicians will exagerrate the cultural differences within their own ethnic group, similar to the rivalry between Northern and Southern Italians.

 

[Bestbank Tiger]

I am quite OK with using "disabled" or "handicapped" for people with physical disabilities instead of "cripples".

I can definitely support that. Calling people "cripples" is morbid and downright depressing. Unless you're Ken Kesey and you have a character you refer to as a "crippled spoonmaker". In that context, you need a particular word for the literary effect you're trying to convey. Kind of like how the n-word is generally considered unacceptable, but that doesn't mean you should go back and change Huck Finn.

 

[Leoreth]

Most of the time, it's pure actionism that subscribes to the "language shapes thought" theory, employed by people who are more interested in treating symptoms than causes.

 

[Borachio]

Being excessively correct - for example, I am quite OK with using "disabled" or "handicapped" for people with physical disabilities instead of "cripples". The problem is that it is often used as a strategy to avoid talking about real problems and to shut up your opponents before they can even present their arguments.

Now you're just being disabledist! Us alternatively abled people would rather you call us crips, "crips". Thank you.

 

[Traitorfish]

Political correctness is the suppression of free speech by peer presure. Propaganda. It is exactly the same only at a less obvious level that as practiced in North Korea where children literally believe in the supernatural properties of the reigning Kim Ding Dong until and in some cases beyond adulthood.

Would it be an example of political correctness if I pointed out that this is kinda racist?

OK, it's got bad swearing in it, but whatevs. Don't watch if you don't like swearing.


Link to video.

+100 points

 

[Winner]

Most of the time, it's pure actionism that subscribes to the "language shapes thought" theory, employed by people who are more interested in treating symptoms than causes.

But language does shape thinking.

As for the causes, I've addressed that already - in my opinion, PCness becomes a problem when it is employed to inhibit serious public discussion about certain topics. People sometimes think that since we have freedom of speech and whatnot here in the West, we're immune to the self-destructive processes that have affected past societies.

Example: overpopulation caused by unchecked population explosion in the third world is a serious problem that could potentially lead to a worldwide collapse. Unfortunately, it is politically incorrect here in the West to publicly debate coercive measures that would address the problem. Anybody who dared to mention something like that in a high-profile public debate would be shouted down and excluded from the discussion pretty much forever. Therefore we collectively choose to ignore the problem and don't talk about it. Out of sight, out of mind.

The same thing is true in many other cases - problematic behaviour of minorities is the most prominent. This type of self-censorship which we call "political correctness" is potentially very dangerous.

 

[Traitorfish]

Isn't part of the reason that nobody is talking about the "unchecked population explosion in the third world" because nobody but neo-Malthusian cranks, i.e. nobody who actually works in the relevant fields thinks that it's going to be much of a problem?

 

[Winner]

Isn't part of the reason that nobody is talking about the "unchecked population explosion in the third world" because nobody but neo-Malthusian cranks, i.e. nobody who actually works in the relevant fields thinks that it's going to be much of a problem?

Thanks for providing a nice demonstration of the "debating strategy" I was talking about.

 

[Borachio]

Efficient debating strategies. Discuss