PC wisdom

Cocooned on the sub-tropical island of Corfu, Greece, political correctness as my motherland - England (Gordon Bennett, am I allowed to say 'England') would have it, does seem a tad too civilized to me on the whole.

Some people sincerely believe that certain groups or minorities have earned a poor reputation over the years, so what's the point of trying to stifle polite expression of these viewpoints?

Could not schools educate the kids to recognize opinion, prejudice, cynicism, hatred even, for what they are rather than than the government trying to supress the symptoms of these things as seen in language? After all, the feelings are still there and my point is that we are more informed by what we hear or read than by what we don't.

At home, in the bars and coffee shops people are freely expressing their feelings about immigrants, Muslim schools, etc. OK they are lying, exaggerating, drunk, but other people are not following their words with rapt attention.

But neither are they reading the best newspapers in the world that are afraid to call a spade a spade. Minorities of all descriptions should get all the support they deserve, and a bit more perhaps. But if they are 'offended' by things they read, better to ask why than lobby the politicians to hide what people are saying behind their back anyway. Well, that's only me going on; but what do you say