On Political incorrectness

Politically incorrect

We are inundated these days with comments from the right attempting to gloss over what would seem to be legitimate concerns about minority rights as simply too much emphasis on being politically correct.

        Some condoned the faux war whoops of those Trump sycophants who sought to denigrate Elizabeth Warren by making fun of her claimed Indian (yes, many Indians believe" Native American" is too politically correct and prefer "Indian") heritage. Like many persons I have known, Senator Warren refers to a family tradition which goes along the lines of, "Oh yes, I'm part Indian." Heard it a lot, don't care enough to investigate, probably true in many more cases than are claimed, especially in Oklahoma, Ms. Warren's home state, where the federal government, beginning in the Jackson administration began the forced warehousing of various tribes from all over the US. But let someone complain about the faux war whoops.... just being overly politically correct. You know who doesn't think so? Indians.  

        In much the same way we hear the LGBT community derided for disliking a horde of cruel, callous and ill meant epithets hurled at them by non-LGBT persons. We hear members of various religious sects derided (mostly by members of other religious sects), for dress or behaviors which affect no one but themselves. Calling attention to these boorish behaviors is almost certain to draw the charge of "too much political correctness."

        We hear the likes of Ted Nugent, the strongest argument ever for retroactive involuntary sterilization, whining that complaints regarding his incredibly vile verbal attacks against Blacks are just so much political correctness.  We heard a President declaring that all the reaction to his mean-spirited characterizations of handicapped persons, women, and essentially anyone who disagrees with him, are just excessive political correctness.

        In truth, most complaints about political correctness come from members of societal or religious groups who have, for centuries held the majority of political power in America. The perceived loss of this control of the process of being American terrifies them.

        Some, I repeat, some, Christians hate the fact that persons of other beliefs or credos don't necessarily believe that they (Christians) should inflict or impose their beliefs on others. They characterize the legitimate complaints of those groups regarding threats and impositions as just so much political correctness, instead of what it is - demand for equal rights in a secular nation. Many of these pseudo-Christians are also white, which doubles the chance that they will use offensive and demeaning attitudes and actions, cloaked in the complaint of "Too PC."

        For centuries the vast bulk of power in America was held, and to a very great degree, still is held, by white, male, self- declared Christians. Look at the sources of the "too PC" whining. It is largely that same group, seeing political change, changes in the rights of minorities, and more recognition of constitutional equal protection for formerly marginalized members of society, who respond with the old racial, religious, sexual, and gender trigger words.  When called out for it, they simply whine, "Too PC."  Those who lobby the hardest for the right to use hate speech are in the same breath, claiming divine authority for doing so. I submit the late Pat Robertson and the Westboro Baptist Church as examples.

        While there are certainly valid examples of some on the far end of the spectrum bending over backwards to find fault in the actions of others, actually overreacting to innocent comments in some cases, the bulk of the "Too PC" sniveling comes from persons reacting badly to what they perceive as a loss of power, social status, racial and gender superiority. Their methods of combating these perceived losses, (events which for the most part actually strengthen us) has been socially institutionalized in America by many hurtful words and actions. Ted Nugent hates it that he can't call a black person a “n****r" from the stage. Pat Robertson would have loved to use the word "f****t" on the air. John McCain referred to his own wife as a "c**t" in front of a reporter. Westboro Baptist proclaims that "God Hates fags."

        Ask yourself; if a male candidate had made the same claim as Elizabeth Warren, would we even know of it today? Would an opponent deride him as "Geronimo" and make ludicrous and disrespectful attempts at war whoops?  "Too PC" or just a request for a  little respect?

        If an individual knows that their behavior or speech is hurtful, but does it anyway, we have a term for that. "Inconsiderate asshole."

        If there was a God who actually had the attributes ascribed to her by Jesus, I have to believe she would be waaaay "too PC" for the horde of social Neanderthals who bitch about equal rights and equal courtesy for all Americans.