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Certain words make talking easier to understand

Gomendosi

Well-Known Member
V.I.P Member
Why can I not comprehend the position of a person based on their reply if it lacks certain descriptors like "Yes", "No", "Do", "Don't", "Can", "Can't".
This was written by me in another thread, and it pertains to a burning question I have, which is this:

Is the world now so hell bent on political correctness and equality, and against so many things like racism and anti-religious sentiment and sexist vocabulary, that now everybody is watching what they say to such an extent where getting a straight forward answer is like a politician telling the truth IE; not likely to happen.

I have begun to see lately that I have a tendency to narrow people down on things, they almost always will speak or answer so ambiguously that I have to wheedle and cajole and question to pinpoint their meaning and that actually irritates those people sometimes, then I come off looking like an antagonist more often than not.
Have we lost the ability to be direct and open about what we think on subjects, due in part to the worlds changing view of the way we speak about different societal cliques.
I mean that I wonder if people become self-censured more so if talk is about another's personal feelings and/ or so-called "hot"/ "taboo" topics.



In a similar vein, I often feel my threads die because people misinterpret my wording as sarcastic or obfuscatory or even confrontational, though really I just have to ask when I don't understand something, maybe I should have been a reporter Ha-Ha, but it really can often seem like I ignore feeling in trying to get at the crux of the matter...

But I am beginning to drift off topic now so I shall close and await responses (which I invariably will not understand LOL)
 
Ummm, I think people censure themselves when you talk to them in person...but on the internet it's a different story.
Crazy ire-filled speech all over the internet. Maybe because it's so easy to hide behind a title of "Anonymous". :ninja2:
 
The appropriateness of "political correctness" can vary with the context; and I also see no reason why it should inhibit open, meaningful discussion. As I see it, when it comes to social issues, we DO have to think about what we say and the particular language that we use and wonder which "traditional" societal AND personal influences may be coloring one's judgement when it comes to treatment and perception of various groups of people. These issues can be complicated and subtle and require thought and debate and the trying-out of ideas and seeing what ahppens. And the "open, meaningful discussion" may well be about whether such political correctness is useful or just unnecessarily extreme--because sometimes people DO take it too far, to the extent of closed-mindedness. All this does mean, though, that nobody on any side should be getting their panties in a bunch when people politely make points in regards to what the other said, and likewise that making blanket statements without first giving consideration to others' ideas is not really a good way to go about such dialogue.

I have said this before elsewhere, and it perhaps bears repeating, that I think nobody should be faulted for asking honest questions.
 
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Political correctness can be offensive when a person is deliberately using politically correct language to disguise their bigoted opinions or to soften an insult to another. This is the same person who often prefaces something insulting with, "No offense, BUT _______________."

Sometimes, people whose opinions are stated in vague, circumnavigating complexities are doing so because they may not even be certain what their opinion is! With some complex, multi-layered issues, I might think one thing initially, then gain new knowledge and re-examine my opinion in light of this knew knowledge. Sometimes, I'll hear another person's opinion & think," I never thought of it that way before." Then, I wind up re-considering. At that point, when my brain is chewing on all the permutations of an issue, if someone were to ask me for an opinion, I really wouldn't have one to share! Rather than coming up with some vague obfuscation, I am comfortable saying that I haven't truly thought the matter through enough to proffer a cogent opinion.

Another thing with political correctness is that, for the first time in recorded Western history, white Anglo-Saxon middle class men have to watch what they say. Prior to the 90s or so, everyone else was fodder for stereotyping and off-colour jokes or absurd reductionist categorizing. The 'in' group was un-touchable: no stereotypes about them abounded BUT they could say whatever they wanted to about anyone else (including their own women). Misogyny, homophobia, racism, classism, religious intolerance & every form of spoken bigotry passed with little to no challenge. The playing field is becoming more level in that, nowadays, not only do minorities have to tip-toe as to not cause offense, everyone has to.

A gay guy in the workplace has meaningful recourse against homophobic co-workers or a homophobic boss. Wealthy hotel owner Leona Helmsley was brought down, in part, by a gay doorman (who was minding his business & doing his job) whom she decided to harass. Mayor Felner sexually harassed one to many women and when one found the courage to go public, 18 others soon came out. Incidents went back many years &, because he was in a position of power & authority, even these educated & professional women felt that they had no choice but to put up with him slobbering on them, touching them & making grotesquely inappropriate remarks & requests.

It goes beyond the mere language hygiene that some call political correctness: it is a matter of human rights, equality & dignity.
 

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