blackboard?whiteboard?

[loulou80]

anyone out there thing it's ridiculous that we cannot say blackboard but can say whiteboard?can't sing baa baa black sheep?happy holidays and not happy christmas?this world has gone into political correctness overload! freedom of speech,thats a joke! i should be able to speak my mind without fear that people will get offended! madness absolute madness!

[WaldoMcFroog]

Shhh, Bernardo - don't you know they're all terribly oppressed?

[gary baldy]

Dont know what your point is scotsman - sorry.
Your reaction to the xmas light thing just proves my point in my opinion.

[Word Butcher]

foreign visitors

whiff of a PC story

cost cutting exercise

proletariate

[madein1978]

I quite agree, so stupid and illogical! 20 years ago the word Blackboard was allowed, so why not now? To be perfectly frank I'm getting totally p*ssed off with politicians and foreign nationals shall we say, tell me what I can and cannot say and what words I can and can't use. Two fingers to the lot of them, I will use whatever words suit me and if someone doesn't like it they can lump it! Other people do and say things that I find offensive, and they don't care so why should I?

[madein1978]

I don't think Gary Baldy is joking when he (or she) says that Political Correctness is some big joke to wind people up and take the p*ss, because some of the things I've seen that are PC are just about the most stupid, ridiculous, illogical, nonsensical rubbish I've ever came across and somehow people take it seriously. I've thought that for a wee while now, you read something like Walsall District Council has banned Christmas (don't care whether they did or they didn't just using it to convey my point, for the pedantic ones out there!) and you think, what? It's not April 1st, this has to be some sort of silly joke or something, but to ones horror it isn't! Another part of Political Correctness is it bans things in the name of foreign incumbants of this country, It is quite irresponsible when you think about it, it is tantamount to racial incitement, because it makes one so angry that I'm banned from doing or saying something because of people from a foreign land not liking something that we do and have done for a long time, then you discover its boll*cks and untrue! I have to say though, I'd never heard of Political Correctness before 1997, and I think it will mysteriously disappear sometime between late this year and 2010 if you catch my drift!

[loulou80]

hear hear!

[brachiopod]

When have 'foreign nationals' told you what you can or cannot say, and what words you can and can't use, madein?

[madein1978]

You're kidding, right? I'm afraid I'm one of these terribly old fashioned souls that believes in calling a spade a spade! Not so long ago I was told the word 'Coloured' was totally unPC and racist, I may be wrong but that was being told I can't use that particular word. How about being told to call oneself British is racist and shouldn't be used? I have been told also that I was being outrageously unPC for using the word cripple, apparently the phrase is physically disabled or restricted ability person. Before you say it, this isn't Express cobblers, this has been said to my face and on here! Do you wish me to continue? I could fill the screen!

[gary baldy]

Do we wish you to continue?
NO!

[hal]

For goodness sake the word black (in any form or context!) has not been banned. You lot are all getting worked up about nothing. Start using your brains.

[hal]

madein1978 - you don't care if they did or didn't ban Christmas, you are just making a point? So what is the point? It hasn't been banned so you have no point to make. And many black people believe that being called coloured is patronising and offensive, so I would never use the word, but there is no law against it.

[madein1978]

Is that a fact, I believe some councils did, I didn't care whether that particular council did or didn't ban christmas, because people like you normally pick me up on such niggly little things! I care if they ban Christmas, this is a Christian country, agree with that or not I don't particularly care, and as such Christmas is a christian festival but most people celebrate it, and have done for centuries. I've got jewish friends, they don't celebrate christmas and have no truck with anyone else celebrating it, so why should the councils or the muslims? Oops. I'm off again with my horrible racist bile again aren't I!

[WaldoMcFroog]

The problem Madein1978, is that you make the statements about Muslims banning Christmas but there's simply never any proof. There are a few councils which have made the decision to refer to 'Christmas Lights' etc, but not once, not ever, not nowhere, not no how has that decision been taken by Muslims. Yet you continue to bang on about them in connection with this thread. In fact, if there's any thread about Muslims you can be guaranteed to pop your head up and make some negative comments about them, regardless of whether there's any actual relevance (you know - those niggly little things we call 'Facts'...)

Can you really not see why some people think you're some sort of obsessive racist?

[jump79]

But why do you think its the muslims though who are backing the councils in banning Christmas? Its just the councils trying to act PC, not any particular religious group supporting it.

[jump79]

Sorry, cross posted there, that post was directed at madein1978

[Oneeyedvic]

Madein1978 "Two fingers to the lot of them, I will use whatever words suit me and if someone doesn't like it they can lump it"

Totally agree withyou on this one - Madein1978 - you are a t**t, a t*****, an a*******, a w****r, a h***y, and your mother is a ******, your sister ****** and blah blah blah.

"...for using the word cripple, apparently the phrase is physically disabled or restricted ability person." - yes, you may also be suprised to learn that the term spastic (and there used to be a Spastic society) is also unpc or (as we like to call it) insulting. So to is f@ggot, n199er, and c00n, all terms which were used in the 70s quite openly.

What a crazy world we live in!

[Whickerman]

lou lou - stop being so ridiculous. Grow up for god's sake.

[Supernick]

This is my greatest bug-bear in life, and it's my mission to rid the world of the belief that there is such a thing as a 'PC Brigade".

We'll start with the blackboard story. Can anyone point us to any news story online that confirms this has happened anywhere ever? At school people used 'chalkboard' occasionally, but just in the same way that people might say 'garbage' instead of 'rubbish'. It wasn't down to being PC, just exercising the fantastic English vocabulary.

The reason why people would be up in arms about not being able to say 'blackboard', is that it's a completely ludicrous idea. EVERYONE knows that. I believe that if you asked 1000 people on the street, not 1 would say that they supported it. So who are you fighting against? An invisible army of your own creation, or at best 1 misguided councillor who's been to a seminar on being more muticultural and has decided to prove to his bosses that he's doing something about it.

In summary, PC is nothing to be worried about, it's like being scared of monsters under your bed. It only exists because you give creedence to it with your reaction.

[sp1814]

You said it Nick. As long as people believe these stories, they can get away with statements such as 'I will call a spade a spade' defending their 'freedom of speech' which is really the freedom to be as offensive as they like.

PC exists within the realms of the right wing media, who have an agenda to push forward.

The worst recent example is the 'baa baa black sheep' story. Absolutely proven beyond a shadow of a doubt to be completely made up.

[sp1814]

Just in case you don't believe me:

PACT has established that children at the two Family Centres mentioned in the press sing a variety of descriptive words in the nursery rhyme to turn the song into an action rhyme. They sing 'happy', 'sad', 'bouncing', 'hopping', 'pink', 'blue', 'black' and 'white' sheep etc. and they also exchange 'boy' and 'girl' at the end of the rhyme. This encourages the children to extend their vocabulary and use up some energy.


PACT does not have a policy to change the words of nursery rhymes to conform to notions of political correctness but we are mindful of the use of language and the changes of usage which make some rhymes more acceptable than others, that said 'black sheep' are not words that we find difficult!

PACT is an organisation that values diversity and above all encourages children to enjoy themselves and have fun!

7th March 2006