PC, political correctness, the dictionary defines it as:

The avoidance of forms of expression or action that are perceived to exclude, marginalize, or insult groups of people who are socially disadvantaged or discriminated against.

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This is a noble statement. It offers balm to the sensitivities of people. But I believe, that PC has become a censorship movement that shuts down debate and people’s opinions. It makes people censor themselves, the thoughts they have and their right to think what they want and to say what they think.

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This noble statement in the definition, has many times been carried to extremes where it pressures people to avoid talking about sensitive issues and proposing solutions that are different from the usual agenda.

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PC is the method of controlling and dumbing down of the people’s right to their opinions. Liberty in speech means the right to tell people what they don’t want to hear. But then, those people have the right to counter what has been said.

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Did you ever wonder why voter turnout is usually low? It’s because the electorate feel it’s pointless to bother when all the main parties occupy the center ground. There is a sameness no matter who wins. No party wants to suggest any policy that is not PC, for fear of being called, “The Nasty Party.”

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There is a creeping movement for Thought Conformism and Speech Conformism in the guise of PC. Sounds like something out of Orwell’s 1984 doesn’t it? It has become fashionable for people to be offended by almost anything they don’t believe in and to demand the perpetrator be prevented from saying it.

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PC is an open attack on Free Speech and an attempt to bypass debate. The elite by trying to drive powerful sentiments underground does NOT get rid of them! The recent political earthquakes in the UK and US have proved that!

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One of the reasons Donald Trump won the presidency is because he promised to get rid of PC. He realized that the ordinary Joe in America was sick to death of the smug elite telling him what to think. The elite by trying to force people not to speak their minds led to a revolution of the common man and their votes went to a guy who wasn’t afraid to speak his mind.

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We must realize we have been manipulated by PC through saturation and suppression. Repeating something often enough and low and behold, it becomes accepted! Our ideas and opinions have been squashed if they go against the PC message.

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So, lets get rid of this self-censor. Hyper-sensitivity cripples a person to the point that they can’t deal with the harsh realities of life. We must speak our minds and confront others in the arena of ideas. Can’t we question what is and what is not insulting, marginalizing and discriminatory?

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The worst aspect of PC is its success in stifling opposing beliefs. The basic tendency of PC is to censor yourself from saying something in opposition to PC. PC wages war against Freedom of Speech. It gives itself a sense of moral superiority over any opposition. It gives a sense of shame and guilt to opposing beliefs. This then, becomes internalized so people censor themselves from saying things that that they strongly believe in. Don’t feel guilty for something you’re not responsible for: if you are not responsible for it, you can’t be guilty. Don’t feel emotional discomfort over voicing your opinions. We need debate. It has been closed down by the dominance of the moralistic ideology of PC.

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Remember what Voltaire said: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”

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We have to communicate our ideas and opinions, and to do that we have to engage with people. Calling them “racist” doesn’t defeat an argument and It won’t help change their mind. Only debate, out of the realm of PC, might do that.

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The 1^st Amendment to the US Constitution was established to help promote free speech, a free exchange of ideas, and to provide a form of redress to citizens against their government, with this restriction:

The government prohibits the use of speech used to incite violence and lawlessness.

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So in conclusion, we must motivate ourselves and others to overcome the barrier to speak our minds. If enough people stop being isolated and shed the fear of PC, we will put down PC for good!

Also published on Medium.