Too PC?

purselova34

purselova34

Member
Jan 15, 2006
1,985
4
#1
Do you feel we're getting too PC? I read things and hear things, and think "wow, could we be anymore pc?!" :nuts: I mean, I think we should be sensitive to others and what have you, but does anyone else think society is getting a little too carried away? For example, around the holidays last year trees were called holiday trees or some bs. Why bother? No one who doesn't celebrate Christmas in some way/form, won't use one. I doubt some group is truly offended by the term Christmas tree. What do you guys think? :confused1:
 
#2
Oh-I totally agree with you on this one! And, I live in a very, very PC neighborhood here in NY-I mean, yes, some terms are extremely offensive and should NEVER be used-but, we are getting carried away.
 
#3
An elementary school by my house is now calling Halloween "harvest time" and on Halloween day you can't wear a costume but you can dress up as what you want to be when you grow up. Where's the fun in that? I dressed up as a witch, punk rocker whatever and I turned out just fine!
 
#4
Oh yes-at the elemetary school my son goes to, there is no mention of Halloween at all-if there are any parties or anything around here, they called them harvest festivals or fall flings, etc. And, when my 19 year old went to school there-the kids were allowed to dress up for Halloween, now they are not.
 
#6
I think the problem arises from people being oversensitive. You'd think no one would be offended by Christmas trees, but you'd be surprised. I really think it's ridiculous that as a society we've come to be offended by pretty much anything and are always looking for more. Not all of us of course, but generally...
 
#7
One think I find interesting is the celebrities going on their band wagon and the difference way people react to them. When the Dixie Chicks made their comments at their concert in England about "how they were ashamed President Bush was from Texas" they got death treaths and the radios banned their music and promoting their new CD. But here you have Barbara Striesand in concert with a actor dressed up as George Bush and bashing him and it is OK. I mean if someone is paying $500.00 + for a concert ticket they now have to hear her views and she sure does love *******. Why is it OK for her to bash Bush without anyone saying anything like they did to the Dixie Chicks, I mean the TV radio stations made such a big deal out of it and all they did was say a few sentences.
Our schools here still do Halloween-which is great. I think the Christmas holiday seems to cause the most problems where in some places you can't have a tree, you can't do a menorah (spelling?), I feel the children should learn and respect the different cultural holidays.
 
#8
Some Schools Have A "No Holiday" Rule....They Celebrate The Seasons/Time Of Year. I Have Only Seen This In A Couple Pre-Schools (Not My Son's). I Think It's A Good Thing It's Out There.
 
#9
I appreciate the fact we all observe different holidays but during the "holiday" season (e.g. December) I get very un-PC. To those at work who I know celebrate Christmas I will say "Merry Christmas" to them before the break rather than "Happy Holidays." I don't care if this offends those people. To those I'm not certain of which if any holidays they celebrate I would never impose and thus would be more PC saying "have a great Holiday."

Yes, we've gotten WAY too PC.
 
#10
I live and work in one of the most PC cities in the US. To some extent, I abide by the PC rules, mostly to avoid offending anyone. I'm not the most religious person, but I still refer to "winter break" as "Christmas break," and one of my students quickly corrected my oversite. I also still refer to "spring break" as "Easter break," even though I know that would piss off administration. Of course, I can get away with being non-PC to some extent, because these same administrators believe that as an under-represented minority in the educational field (read: non-white), they must be more accomodating to me. :rolleyes:
 
#11
It's tricky not wanting to offend anybody. Sometimes the context of the sentence or the intent behind the words should be considered. Not everything that is regarded as insensitive is even remotely meant to be that way.
 
#12
It’s getting too far when you feel compelled to refer to every black person as African American. (That only would make sense if you knew they were actually born in Africa.)

That happened to someone I worked with. A manager asked her to say African American. We even asked our black manager what’s okay to say.

There was a huge controversy because there was a crèche in the town center. (It’s a predominantly Jewish town). The town center is bordered by two churches and I thought if it bothered them that much, why not put a menorah or something next to the crèche?

Anyway, there was a vote and the crèche was removed. (The big evergreen trees are still covered in Christmas lights, though.)

And with regards to the Merry Christmas thing, I’ll say Happy Holidays until Hanukkah is over. Then I’ll say Merry Christmas (because I celebrate Christmas).

When I was in eighth grade we had our winter choral concert, but we didn’t sing any Christmas songs or winter songs. (There weren’t any Christmas decorations up.) It got better in high school, though. It was tradition to sing the Halleluiah Chorus every year. The chorus sang carols and the band played a combination of classical music and carols.
 
#13
caitlin1214 said:
It’s getting too far when you feel compelled to refer to every black person as African American. (That only would make sense if you knew they were actually born in Africa.)

That happened to someone I worked with. A manager asked her to say African American. We even asked our black manager what’s okay to say.

/QUOTE]

That's so true, but I find it difficult when I don't know where a person is from or what their preferred nationality/ethnicity is. I sincerely never want to insult anyone. Here's an example: One day some friends and I were wondering what happened to a nice woman we used to see at the studio, as she never returned after having her baby. Someone else couldn't figure out who we were talking about so she asked what the lady looked like. And that's where it got sensitive. I didn't say anything, I let the others in the group do the talking, but it was clearly touchy. Should she be described as African American or Black? It seems like it would have been easier to describe her as having a certain hair color or height just in case there was an accidental, unintended slight.
Click to expand...
 
#14
I know it's hard. That's why we talked to our manager (who's black) and asked her what would be okay to say.

She said it's fine to say "black."

Her reasoning was that it's okay to call white people "white" so why should it be different for people who are black?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top
Back