Politically correct

The United States has become so "politically correct" that criminals have the upper hand.

Profiling is a "no-no."

Checking a non-citizen's background is a "non-no" (but it's OK to investigate a white American male).

People are "mobility impaired" - never handicapped or crippled.

I'm 5'9" and shrinking - I suppose I'm height challenged.

Now I can understand that "deaf and dumb" is offensive in this day and age, although at one time "dumb" meant "unable to speak." A person who would be considered "dumb" today was "simple" or "stupid" or "crazy" - now PC "mentally ill" or "mentally challenged."

The background of a recidivist - look it up; a judge made me search for the word when I was a young reporter - must be hidden from a jury.

"Gay" used to mean happy - and then it somehow got high jacked by homosexuals - and how come men are "gay" or "homosexual" while females are "lesbians"; they don't all come from Lesbos which, as a bit of trivia, is supposed to produce some of the best ouzo available.

I have seen "people of color" go from Negro to Black to African-American (which, given the various shadings, seems more generic); what's the PC term du jour? Seems only the pejoratives remain the same. While on the subject of color, can anyone explain the logic of some people who at once denigrate "people of color" and then risk skin cancer to acquire a "tan" that in many cases is darker than the people they look down upon.

And what is wrong with the "n" word? Granted, it is insulting, but so are "kike" and "spick" and "chink" and "wop" and a bunch more, but while people take offense when someone from the "outside" (that is, someone who is not a member of the group with the tag) uses the term, few people become enraged or refer to the word as the "k," "s," "c," or "w" word. Sort'a like telling an ethnic joke - I can tell jokes about MY people, but shame on you if YOU tell them about my people. Human nature.

Marriage used to be a sanctified union between a man and a woman. I have no problem with same sex couples having a legal status, but let's let "marriage" maintain its definition. While on the subject of marriage, what ever became of pre-marital blood tests, VDRLs? They were a requirement for all food handlers and all hoping to marry - no one complained, at least not when I was a high school-age pearl diver (dishwasher to the uninitiated) or when my wife and I were about to wed. Has venereal disease disappeared? Rhetorical question; I know STDs are more prevalent now than when I was - well - "younger."

When I was a kid, if you came down with a communicable disease - measles or smallpox as examples - you were quarantined; a big QUARANTINE sign went up on the front door. Anyone seen a quarantine sign recently? Not quite a Scarlet Letter or Mark of Cain, but attention getting.

There was a big flap over a presidential hopeful failing to put hand-over-heart when the national anthem was played. It's possible the photo was taken out of context, but next time someone plays the Star-Spangled Banner, look around and see who places hand or hat over heart and who doesn't (some of our most highly paid athletes - but since many are not US citizens, should they?). OK, it's a difficult song to sing and just between us, I'd prefer America the Beautiful, but until there's an Act of Congress to change it, I'll continue to stand and "salute" when the anthem is played or when the flag passes by in a parade - or even if I'm passing by a flag pole as the banner is raised or lowered.

Maybe I'm "sensitive" to poor flag etiquette because I lived overseas for several years and came to value the red, white, and blue more than even when I wore "Shade 84" blue.

Yohanon
Yohanon.Glenn @ gmail.com