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SP, as you well know, I don’t ‘do’ politically correct ‘offence’, and I’ve already said I am well aware of the history, so your sarcasm is misplaced. I am simply incredulous at the ever increasing, and decreasing, elasticity of our language. For example, I was under the impression that it’s considered correct to refer to indigenous peoples as ‘Native American’, ‘Native Australian’, ‘etc., but the word ‘Native’ has now been deemed inappropriate by this university. Similarly, at one time we were taught that it was very rude to refer to black people as black. Coloured was the preferred term, but now, even though 'The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People' in the USA is still very much in evidence, ‘coloured’ is deemed offensive, so we are obliged to say ‘black’. The whole thing strikes me as utter nonsense. As the introductory voice-over in the old US television comedy, ‘Soap’, would have it - “Confused? You will be!”
Incidentally, your post at 12:13 should be addressed to Steg. I can’t recall anyone claiming that everyone in Europe rubbed along together in a happy-go-lucky manner, but I think he’s under the impression that Australia was some sort of Utopia before the wicked British happened upon it.