A little about Political Correctness

When I was a kid, I used to play dodge ball. When I first started playing, I wasn’t very good, so I got hit – a lot; and it usually hurt – a lot! But I enjoyed it, I learned from it, and eventually I got better at it. Now kids aren’t supposed to play dodge ball because they can get hurt from it.

I used to play baseball and Red Rover too. I was a small kid, so I sucked at both of them and was often one of the last kids picked. Occasionally I was the last kid picked. But I still had fun playing with my friends. I never got as good at baseball as I did with dodge ball, but I did get better as I practiced. Eventually I was one of the middle kids picked. Sometimes my team won, sometimes we lost. You can still play ball at school these days, but I guess they don’t allow scorekeeping until you’re a little older… something about not wanting to make the losing team feel like losers.

Am I the only one who thinks that Political Correctness has gone waaaaaayyyyy off the deep end, and did so a looooonnnnnngggg time ago? Come on! This PC crap has gotten so bad, that you can’t have a conversation with anyone without worrying about who you’re pissing off and how their fragile little psyche will recover. What’s up with that?!? When did we get to the point that we began to worry more about what everyone else thinks than we cherished our freedom of speech? When did we get to the point that it’s more important to worry about how someone may interpret how you say something, rather than exchanging thoughts and ideas, promoting critical thinking or encouraging free expression? How is it that society finds it less acceptable to offend someone than to express truth, promote thought, or exchange ideas?

Is it possible to have a conversation and still be mindful of another’s sensitivities? Ummmm, yeah. And I agree with the premise that social interactions call for some modicum of sensitivity and interpersonal awareness. But when you get to the point that it takes five minutes of “smoothing over” to convey what could be said in 30 seconds, that’s just nuts!

Let’s go back to dodge ball and baseball for a second. How does it benefit kids to ban a sport because someone might get hurt? How does it benefit kids to forbid scorekeeping in a competitive sport? It doesn’t! Not only does it “not benefit” the kids, it is detrimental! Why? Because in the game of life there are winners and there are losers. In the real world, we all keep score. How does it help kids to shield them from this harsh reality when they’re young? It doesn’t. It hurts them, because by shielding them from the reality of our competitive society, kids don’t get the opportunity to learn the skills necessary to succeed and excel. They’re not equipped to deal with criticism, they haven’t had an opportunity to learn perseverance, and they haven’t been taught that the world really can be a cruel place. If they haven’t learned these lessons, how can we expect our children to succeed in life?

Let’s think about this from another angle. Who wants to be politically correct? Aren’t politicians among the most despised people on the planet? Aren’t politicians known for smiling in your presence, shaking your hand, and then sinking a dagger in your back as soon as it’s turned? Aren’t politicians renowned for their ability to screw over the common man in the pursuit of their own interests? Aren’t politicians considered contemptible for their inability to level with people, with straight talk and straight answers? How is it that our society detests these traits in our elected officials, yet strives for these same qualities in our own social relationships?

I say enough’s enough! Screw the bleeding-hearts and their overblown sensitivities. Tell an insensitive joke. Forget about protecting our children’s fragile psyches for a moment and let them keep score in a baseball game. Throw caution to the wind, and let them play dodge ball. It may sting a bit, but they’ll be better adults when they’ve learned that in our society, there are winners and losers. It may hurt their pride occasionally to lose, but it will teach them to persevere if they wish to succeed. If you really love your kids, throw the idea of political correctness out the window, and let them lose. Let them hear tasteless jokes. Hell, tease them yourself from time to time (just let them know that you’re teasing and remind them that you love them). They’ll be better off for it in the long run.