Are we as a society abandoning politeness for politically correctness? Is there anything wrong with that? What is the difference? Is there a difference?

First let’s explore the definitions of each word:

po·lite /p?'la?t/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[puh-lahyt] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation

–adjective, -lit·er, -lit·est.

[Origin: 1400–50; late ME < L politus, ptp. of polire to polish ]

—Related forms

po·lite·ly, adverb

po·lite·ness, noun

—Synonyms 1. well-bred, gracious. See civil. 2. urbane, polished, poised, courtly, cultivated.

—Antonyms 1, 2. rude.

American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source

Well being polite seems to be a little more of a broad stroke, while PC generally deals with prior injustices. This brings up another thought...is giving special attention to a subject such as race, class, gender, etc not discrimination. Discrimination is often given a negative implication, however if you give particular attention based on one category you would be discriminatory. This is another issue that I find ironic. The Affirmative Action, NAACP, GLAD, etc seem to keep the divisions emplace through special programs and agendas. Do these organizations truly want unity? With unity the very organization would be unnecessary and those in power would not longer have power....but that is another subject for another day.

Back to the Blog at hand. There was a time when things were done or avoided to help others. You didn't call names or slander because you knew it was not right to do that and it would hurt the other person. Now we hold our tongues to avoid being labeled an -ist (racist, sexist, etc) and being protested against. We have lost the care for others and now focus on ourselves. Instead of trying to help others maintain respect we try and protect ourselves from misinterpretations, lawsuits, and brandings.

This may seem well and good, the means as important as the end. Being polite is opening a door for a lady, PC would have you walk in and try as hard as you can to not give nay special regard so that you don’t seem like a sexist that believes a woman cannot open her own door.

It was polite to not stare at a person form another culture who dresses different. Now you are trying to avoid being labeled as a profiler.

A polite person would not use slurs in public, would not discriminate, and would treat each person as they should be because it was the right thing to do and their mother had taught them better.

A Politically Correct person would avoid those things as well and either resent having to do it or be smug about it. Can you really boast about being politically correct? I mean if you go on about how you didn’t call that black guy a so and so, or that you treated that elderly woman just as you would another person....isn’t the fact that you recognize the discriminatory factors discriminatory?

Also politeness is extended to anyone. Politically correct ness seems to only apply to anyone in a minority. You can talk all you want about WASPs (White Anglo-Saxon Protestants) especially if they are male and conservatives in general. You can blame all your problems on them, call them names, stereotype...that’s acceptable under the close watch of political correctness.

I don't guess being polite is secular progressive enough. Where will our society end up if we do not strive to be right, but merely try to avoid being wrong. Avoid using statistics - numbers stereotype. Avoid logic - logic often creates profiles. Avoid common sense - you might offend those without it. Avoid equality - That’s not the true end goal.