sharke
craigb
BobF
All that is req'd is some common sense and decency for both speakers and listeners.
Unfortunately, by definition, "common sense" doesn't really exist any more. When I was growing up you KNEW what was the right thing to do (whether you did it or not was a totally separate issue! LOL). Now, there are so few ethics, morals and family values, that most of the younger generations don't have a clue what "common sense" means. I feel we've definitely lost something important.
As for my opinion about so-called "Political Correctness," I consider it a big part of the problem. Kids are currently being raised in artificial pampered worlds where all they are learning is that they're supposed to be put on a pedestal, they're ALL the best and everything should be given to them without them having to put out much effort. When everyone is treated as a winner without having to work through challenges and failures, they are completely unprepared for "real" life and you end up with events like the latest school shooting that happened down the road from me (about four hours south).
Interestingly, it just occurred to me that what is happening to young people now is very similar to how current music is produced! Back in the day, making music required a lot of effort to understand theory, learn one or more instruments and suffer through ear training - all before trying to figure out how to save performances for future listening. Also, music had a dynamic to it that's completely lost now. You had enough headroom to have peaks and valleys which made the music far more interesting and fulfilling to experience. Now, just like in the rest of the younger generation's lives, music has become too easy to make (with mediocre results) and the final products are then squashed until there's no life left in them... Sad.
I've often said that the problem with young people now is that they have everything the wrong way around. Instead of being taught that self esteem is a product of success, they're raised to believe that success is a product of self esteem. So you have all of these insufferably inflated egos with nothing of any substance to back it up. You can see this in the televised auditions of any TV talent show when these horrible brats swagger into the room, inform everyone that they're going to be the next Whitney Houston, and proceed to make a sound resembling a syphilitic hyena choking on a Slinky. And when they're told "no," they launch into a hysterical tirade in which the judges are informed that their ears can't possibly be working right because their parents, teachers, friends and relatives have all told them that they have the voice of an angel and are destined to be famous.
Good points. The only thing I might add is that we've become a society that masks our true feelings and thoughts. It might sting when you hear something derogatory about yourself or someone you love, but you at least have the benefit of knowing where the originator(s) stand(s) - they are NOT your friend(s).
Also, the notion that getting people to say (and repeat) what you want them to say, or to not say what you don't want them to say, will somehow eventually change those people's thinking ... well, that reeks of attempted mass brainwashing to me. What happens when hatred is pushed down deep?
Let's say for the sake of argument that I am a major bigoted AH toward [pick your group]. Is it better that those from that group know I'm a bigoted AH, or is it better they get to pretend that my type of ignorance doesn't really exist?
I'm not saying that bigots are correct. I'm saying that it's better to know where these folks are.