Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

[Moonraker]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

Pakistan is an acronym

Punjab
Afghania
Kashmir
Sindh
Balochistan

Of the former countries that make it up. Afghania is a collective term for various former small countries bordering on Afghanistan. It was originally called Pakstan then the I was later added to make it easier to pronounce.

I thought it was Pathan Afghanistan, Kashmir, India.

[Richard1978]

I know this comment is five years old, but good grief.

For a start "WOG" doesn't stand for "Western Oriental Gentlemen", that's a backronym that's been created to try and make something that's been used as a slur sound polite. It most likely comes from "gollywog", a toy with emphasised stereotype black features made to amuse white children. Not that hard to understand why black people don't want to be called that, I wouldn't have thought.

As for the other word, ask yourself, have you ever heard a white person address a Pakistani using that word in a positive way? Or even be sure that the person they're addressing is Pakistani?

Political correctness isn't great but it exists because of people who refuse to educate themselves on matters like this or show basic courtesy towards those not the same as them.

Very true, some people will bend over backwards to pretend they aren't a bigot!

[LilacLobster]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

Don't get me started on political correctness lol

Let's take, for example, the supposedly offensive word for people of Pakistani extraction:

Brits are from Great Britain

Germans are from Germany

Spanish are from Spain

-------and so on

So why is the word for those from Pakistan offensive?

Also WOG:

Western Oriental Gentleman; so how is that offensive?

In the 90's I was on Kilroy (Jerry Springer type of show)

The subject was political correction

The BBC recorded the show but subsequently canned without broadcasting the show

Why?

The BBC deemed it as a controversial 'time bomb'

What's the betting it's not the people of the country concerned up in arms about it?

I believe it is all those 'do gooder' social workers & the like

I know this comment is five years old, but good grief.

For a start "WOG" doesn't stand for "Western Oriental Gentlemen", that's a backronym that's been created to try and make something that's been used as a slur sound polite. It most likely comes from "gollywog", a toy with emphasised stereotype black features made to amuse white children. Not that hard to understand why black people don't want to be called that, I wouldn't have thought.

As for the other word, ask yourself, have you ever heard a white person address a Pakistani using that word in a positive way? Or even be sure that the person they're addressing is Pakistani?

Political correctness isn't great but it exists because of people who refuse to educate themselves on matters like this or show basic courtesy towards those not the same as them.

[Richard1978]

It's now listed on IMDB:

I imagine it was shown once or twice before being archived away, using a lot of material that was hard to clear for more repeats or a home release.

[Buchholz]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

I don't think that people should go around being deliberately offensive, but I hate PC in all it's forms, and this whitewashing of the past.

[George 1978]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

So why is the word for those from Pakistan offensive?

Because it is often used in conjunction with an offensive word as those who abuse the word often do, and in time, the abbreviation was seen as just as offensive. I have often wondered if I had came from Pakistan and lived in Great Britain whether I would have found it offensive, but of course, I will never know whether that is the case.

[George 1978]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

It was an Asian professor who was based at Cambridge University who coined the name Pakistan back in the 1940s (I cannot remember his name), so arguably it was a British invention - I can't remember whether it was an acronym or not, but I am certain that I read it on Wikipedia. It was going to be called Pakstan (with no I in its name), but it was going to be difficult to pronounce without the I - a bit like the surname Jameson which sounded like it was spelt Jamieson, and likewise, a lot of people of that name include the I in its spelling.

[Arran]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

Pakistan is an acronym

Punjab
Afghania
Kashmir
Sindh
Balochistan

Of the former countries that make it up. Afghania is a collective term for various former small countries bordering on Afghanistan. It was originally called Pakstan then the I was later added to make it easier to pronounce.

[80sChav]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

Don't get me started on political correctness lol

Let's take, for example, the supposedly offensive word for people of Pakistani extraction:

Brits are from Great Britain

Germans are from Germany

Spanish are from Spain

-------and so on

So why is the word for those from Pakistan offensive?

I agree with what you state here 100% Twocky mate. It was great you was on Killroy - when I tried to skive a day off School, I always loved Robert's show after I'd had sucseess after GM-TV/BBBC Breakfast etc

I admit at times I liked Steptoe and Son, but people talk about Alf Garnett being filth (which though we never thought too much of at the time) - Steptoe and Son was in the main pure rancid with no reedeming aspects on either the Son or Dad's part and I am not suprised 9though not in relation to how the OP mentions) that in other aspects it was deemed as it was, though on occasion it had a the occasional laugh, where as yeah Alf Garnet was a rasict bigot and more, but he belonged to that era as many men did with their extreme views (not as it justifies it), but I did see things in Garnet where yeah he was nasty (that Re;, on my Grandad and my Mum's Cousions Dad's part, but minus Garnet's predujices he belonged to that generation that thought nothing any better), but at least he had features where he'd try and make it up with Rita then blow a fuse - where as in all my time of watching Steptoe and son I never saw that once

80sChav

[Chameleon Factor]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

Hi

Was watching an old Steptoe video recently, where Albert was watching the British Empre BBC TV series. It was made in 1972 (I was 13), and I remember it vividly. It was lavish for the time and narrated by the late, great Robert Hardy. Unfortunately, not only does it not seem to be available on DVD, download etc etc, it has apparently been completely airbrushed out of history. It doesn't even feature on the Internet Movie/Film database!!

I've searched high and low, even exploring the dark net but no joy. I've emailed BBC, History Magazine etc but no response. It beggars belief really. If anything, it was critical of the impact of empire, and should not be offensive in the least.

Has anyone else seen this, no anything about the airbrushing?

(I was ready for the stock responses re lack of storage, deleted etc. I wasn't ready for the denial and complete airbrushing)

Thanks

What makes you think the series was "airbrushed out of history" due to "political correctness"?

[zabadak]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

Because of my complexion, I was called the N word quite a bit when living in Devon.

Not that it matters but I am Caucasian.

Thing is, at our school, there were some black kids - not many, granted, but a few - so it bewildered me why these knuckle-draggers would call me that name but not them!

[George 1978]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

I used to have a website that was ignored by UK search engines, and it was even displayed on a links page with an American flag which annoyed the hell out of me. When I first went online nearly 20 years ago I was concerned that there was very little difference to tell apart something British from something American and so I felt that as the United States was the bigger country, anything British would be incognito online by comparison.

As a British person I would feel so offended and outraged if someone had called me a Yank, in an identical way to the Indian - Pakistan abbreviation situation. Pommie I don't mind - Yank, I do mind.

[zabadak]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

The term "Paki" is used aggressively and, therefore, offensively by racists. It is racist by association. Don't use it!

[Mulletino]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

I had an Indian mate at school, he got very annoyed when people called him a "Pakistani" and the abbreviated version.

Here in Australia, the term Asians is used to describe those from China, Japan, Korea etc instead of India and Pakistan. The Greeks here also refer to themselves as Wogs and it isn't a derogitory term, which of course causes issues when they use the term online not realising that elsewhere it means something completely different.

[George 1978]

Re: Political correctness to a ludicrous degree

Because we are the new state of the US. Most people either use American terms and spelling, instead of the native British English.

Yes, I am aware of all that - one major thing that a programme such as Sesame Street (which was seen in most parts of Britain in the 1970s and 1980s) was the fact that in addition to the obvious differences in culture between the two countries, the fact of the matter was that it did make people aware about the differences between American and British English, a good 15 years prior to the Internet.

I grew up watching Sesame Street (the same version as seen over there), and yes, I was "bilingual" without even knowing it, pronouncing the last letter of the alphabet both zed and zee. When I was asked by a speech therapist back in the early 1980s to recite my alphabet, I made the mistake of saying zee. She wasn't very pleased. I was even confused as to whether "colour" or "flavour" had a U in them or not.