RE: UKNM: Brainstorming - PC's Next Victim

[Cara Courage]

you talk of correcting genuine linguistic ills, such as 'queer' - where

would that leave queercompany and all those that have no problem with the

word?


-----Original Message-----

From: Silas Denyer [

silas [dot] denyerturns [dot] net (mailto:silas [dot] denyerturns [dot] net)

]

Sent: 11 January 2001 19:53

To:

uk-netmarketingchinwag [dot] com

Subject: Re: UKNM: Brainstorming - PC's Next Victim



Hmm...


From: "Geoff Inns" <

geoff [dot] innsquestico [dot] co [dot] uk

>

Sent: Wednesday, January 10, 2001 5:19 AM

Subject: RE: UKNM: Brainstorming - PC's Next Victim


> You are treading on ground so dangerous I really don't want to go into it

> for fear of the emotions it might provoke, and for which this forum is not

> the place, so this will be my only posting on the subject. The more aware

we

> are of the effect of our language and behaviour on others the better

> communicators we will all become. If you rile at the fact that someone

shows

> offence at something you say, even though you mean no offence, I would not

> recommend anger as the best way to deal with it. Political Correctness is

a

> term left over from the days when Haringey council banned black bin liners

> and blackboards - PC was a knee jerk reaction to the fact that the

previous

> two decades were basically not very pleasant if you were female, an ethnic

> minority, homosexual, an immigrant or poor. progress has been made and

> people are learning that to all live together a certain awareness and

> consideration must proliferate. We've all grown up now.


The major difference here, IMHO, is that moderating language which is rooted

in ignorance, loathing, prejudice, etc. is to be generally applauded for all

the reasons you point out. However, by your own definition, singling out

"brainstorming" is PC in the extreme. The term has never, up until now it

seems, been linked with Cerebral Palsy, and the whole issue seems to have

been manufactured to suit somebody's need for power, influence or general

malfeasance. This particular issue is precisely the sort of thing we should

rail against before we are all dragged down by it.


Dragging this back OT a little, hopefully the internet presents precisely

the type of forum within which misguided meddling like this will be exposed

and sent packing, yet where genuine attempts to correct linguistic ills

("queer", say, rather than "blackboard") are likely to be supported and

gather momentum: everyone (ok, everyone with access) has a voice, untarred

by physical characteristics (such as being female) that others find

difficult to take seriously. That is, of course, unless you all believe in a

white, middle-class, right-wing internet conspiracy....


Discuss


Silas Denyer

Director, Turns Ltd

e.

silas [dot] denyerturns [dot] net

t. 07956 661902



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