Make sure you are politically correct

Only yesterday the issue of being “PC” came up on the comments left on my last blog.

Let me make this clear, I am the last person who would intentionally look to cause trouble by saying something to offend someone however in today’s society the politically correct police are everywhere just waiting to pounce if you should mistakenly or inadvertently say the slightest thing that could be deemed offensive.

Surely the whole concept of being PC is now out of control?

Even if you refer to the person who delivers the mail as a postman you can be in trouble.

As it happens, a man does deliver my mail so my use of the word postman is correct. If a lady did the job then I would refer to them as a post lady.

Sadly the generic term “post person” has entered the language for us to use to avoid calling a lady a postman by mistake.

Only the other day I was reading an article on the web site of a national news paper (see link below) about a Council who put up signs on pedestrian crossings saying “Only cross with green figure” rather than saying “with green man”.

Recently the pedestrian crossings in Wycombe were renewed and they still have a figure of a man on them (see picture accompanying this blog).

According to some the use of a man on our new pedestrian crossings is not PC so surely the powers that be should spring into action and put up notices on all the new crossings in Wycombe?

Over the years the national press has reported stories about the madness of political correctness indeed one was about a school who renamed the nursery rhyme “Baa baa black sheep” to “Baa baa rainbow sheep”.

This renaming of the well know nursery rhyme was widely reported. In actual fact the story was a hoax however due to some of the daft things brought in under the guise of PC people believed it.

Back in the 1970's being PC was unheard of but nowadays the concept has spawned a whole new culture with some employers creating special jobs such as Equality Officers and Diversity Leaders just to make sure their organisations comply with the rules of being PC.

Don't get me wrong, I am all for people being equal and for encouraging diversity but now people are living in fear of saying something wrong and they are actually being pulled up if they step out of line just once.

Even in some of our schools the children are being taught to behave in a PC manner rather than using words and phrases spoken by the general population.

I fear the whole concept is getting out of control and its costing the employers millions having to employ people to make sure they comply with the undefined rules of being PC.

As far as I am concerned I shall stick to the old terms, my mail is delivered by a postman, the milk is delivered by the milkman and schoolchildren have their meals served by a dinner lady.

What do you think?

*Don't forget to read my regular column in this Friday's edition of the printed version of the Bucks Free Press!

*”Green figure' replaces 'green man' on pedestrian signs” : http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/road-safety/8984298/Green-figure-replaces-green-man-on-pedestrian-signs.html

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