Here's a thought. Political Correctness is a disease only suffered by the White race. Is China PC? Japan? Are the black African countries PC (think Mugabe)? How about the muslims? The jews? All the aforementioned can make any statements about Whites and no-one complains - in fact the leftists (especially White ones) trip over each other to agree and say what valid points are being made against the evil Whites. Only race traitors could act this way. Ever since 1945 with the invention of White Guilt and the gradual re-writing of history, it has become fashionable to denigrate White history and achievements while elevating the "achievements" of non-Whites. Does no-one else see this?

Political correctness destroyed Pauline Hanson. Whatever one's opinion of her, most objective pundits would agree in hindsight that the politically correct hysteria whipped up against Ms. Hanson made her message seem as if it were the voice of Satan.

Since the rise and fall of Hanson/One Nation, immigration and multiculturalism have become taboo subjects in Australia. The notion that such existential issues are too politically incorrect to be publicly debated has made a mockery of democracy.

"Our immigration policy is increasingly based on an appeal to international [politically correct] precepts that our neighbours sensibly refuse to practice. We are surrendering much of our own independence to a phantom opinion that floats vaguely in the air and rarely exists on this earth. We should think very carefully about the perils of converting Australia into a giant multicultural laboratory for the assumed benefit of the peoples of the world." - Geoffrey Blainey, All for Australia

http://www.immigrationwatchcanada.org/index.php?module=pagemaster&PAGE_user_op=view_page&PAGE_id=1667

I think PC is probably a way of saying no matter how long the history or how long since, Anglo's are not racist scum that feel a dominance over all other peoples. Alomost a way of acknowledging the wrongs of history (as the Muslim are doing and will have to do in the far future to justify a section of their communities , whole countries that espouse treating everyone else as less than human, real Muslim's are paying for the actions of a deadly few in comparrison to the whole world population of Islam followers) It does seem though that white people cop it as being racist when there are prime examples elsewhere. And no it is not reverse-racism, that implies that only white people can be racist and everyone else is just reversing it.

Being PC has probably strained many relationships where before when my mate said hey 'skip' and i said hey 'leb', it meant nothing, now I wouldn't dare unless they said it first! Not out of a have to be 'PC' thing so much as what others may react like. It's weird but whilst the politicians have created is more divisive than the way people handled it before.

What has PC done for us? It has at least given minority goups of race and religion and sexuality more acceptance and publicity. I'm not saying that in a bad way, it is a good thing that what govnm's have not recognised policy wise they at least have helped publicity wise. But are the party's really for minorities or are they just a tool to get elected? If we are engineered to think that being PC is racist or prejudice, etc then we would not want to be that way, so speak the speak but match it with policy, (ie: rights for same-sex couples as de-facto's not just life partners and the ability to become married, which in itself hold not just legal bindings but social one's also. It is still slightly frowned upon to 'live-in-sin' (male-female) now, so why slow the process down by ecluding marriage?)

What's wrong with saying, "Hey Leb", "Hey Wog" etc? The Equal Opportunities Commision doesn't view the word "Pomm" as racist, neither does the media. So, to keep all things equal, no other terms, except really offensive ones, can be racist either. To claim otherwise proves the existence of "reverse racism".

Oligarch: "Political correctness destroyed Pauline Hanson. Whatever one's opinion of her, most objective pundits would agree in hindsight that the politically correct hysteria whipped up against Ms. Hanson made her message seem as if it were the voice of Satan."

I suppose it would be politically incorrect to disagree by saying that what destroyed Pauline Hanson and her band of boofheaded followers was the fact that she is an ignorant, racist cow who was an embarrassment to the nation?

Or would it instead be better regarded as impolite - like, for example calling someone a 'Leb', 'Wog', or 'Pom'?

I think many people confuse "PC" with what used to be common courtesy. It seems to me that the rise of 'political correctness' coincided with the decline of good manners in this country. Unfortunately, it seems that now we have little of either.

Yes, CJ, the decline of good manners in this country is an important part of the issue. Not many people in the past would refer to someone as "an ignorant, racist cow who was an embarrassment to the nation" just because he disagreed with her views.

As for it being regarded as impolite to use the words 'Leb', 'Wog', or 'Pom', I think that you'll find that this doesn't apply to labels for Whites. The label "Pomm", is used all the time here, especially by the media. It's almost compulsory. Maybe it's due to our post-colonial inferiority complex, but we use the term daily. You would never hear a sports reporter saying that we had beat the Pakis/darkies/wogs/ragheads at some sport or other.