More PC Talk is Simply BS to Me

All this talk about how “anchor babies” and “illegal aliens” are pejorative terms reminds me of an even bigger problem, which is that political correctness seems to be getting worse and the movement is clearly unhinged. 

I don’t care what your political affiliation or ethnic background is; any whining about this language being offensive strikes me as ridiculous. These words are legal terms with no offense intended. The only real problem is that they were borne of legalese or government jargon, which is confusing and cumbersome for the average citizen. 

One PC alternative would be to say “babies born to undocumented immigrants.” That would take care of both terms. I think this description is perfectly fine, but as a writer and U.S. citizen, I just don’t like the Thought Police trying to manage our word choices.

Let’s get real. This is the United States of America where freedom of expression is so vital to our daily lives that the founding fathers had the foresight to list it first among amendments to the nation’s constitution. 

What’s great about speaking your mind is that you don’t have to fear walking on eggshells. You also don’t need to be concerned about telling an off-color joke. But in the 21st century, you can’t even do that. 

Kelly Osbourne, the outspoken daughter of pop-culture icons Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne, who also are known for their loose lips, recently was hammered for jesting on an episode of “The View” that if Donald Trump’s immigration plan were implemented, then there wouldn’t be anyone left to clean his toilets. 

One of her co-hosts, Rosie Perez, couldn’t help but point out how offensive her joke was within seconds of it rolling off Kelly’s tongue. Then Kelly had to backtrack and say it wasn’t intended in that way. 

The real crimes here are that the joke wasn’t all that funny and it’s almost shocking that “The View” is still on the air after a revolving door of co-hosts who tend to get booted, ironically enough, for usually making politically incorrect observations. 

Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar had their own brush with PC infamy on “The View” in 2010 when they stormed off the set in response to something guest Bill O’Reilly from the Fox News Network talked about the role of Muslims in the 9/11 attacks. Their spirited confrontation would foreshadow a raging debate over the next five years about President Barack Obama’s refusal to use the “Islamic extremist” label when describing perpetrators in the frightening war on terrorism. 

When viewed in their totality, I think there’s a fine line between all these words being used as factual descriptions and disapproving judgments. Sure, many people may find them offensive, and they’re entitled to those feelings or beliefs. But let’s stop castigating and banishing people for their words, as offensive as some may find them, and instead focus on their actions or inactions. Let’s also start joking and laughing again without worrying about losing friends or damaging our careers or reputations.