rat

I think the main problem lies not in the fact that any particular subject is "sensitive" but rather in what is generally deemed the "small man's complaint." The smaller someone is (proverbially, not in physical size necessarily) and the more incosequential their position in society is, the more they feel the need and burning desire to be heard, accepted and understood. That's what most people consider "interest groups"--the groups that are very small but have big voices in various areas of national and local policy-making here in the States and in companies.

Yea, I sound like some hyper-conservative against the proper "minority rights" of certain groups. But let me put things in perspective. I grew up with a grandfather on my mother's side that used every foul term there is in the english language and "goddamnit jesus christ" was probably the cleanest phrase to leave his mouth any given day. Profanity and its meaning has been ingrained in me since I was roughly five. On my father's side, I have a grandfather that is one of the most racially and religiously bigotted men that still walks the streets of America. The nicest term for a black person I've ever heard come out of his mouth was "darkie." That's been in my environment since I was old enough to speak and understand the english language.

I have two of the most politically uncorrect men there are as my grandfathers, and they shaped the way I thought as a young child, an adolescent and as the young man I am today. It is because of influences like theirs that have opened my eyes and mind to look beyond the words and look at the meaning behind them. For one grandfather, it was long years of habitual profanity that altered his conception of what was "acceptable" language to make one's point, nothing more. He bore no malice towards my grandmother when he'd say "Christ Mary, pass the goddamn potatoes" However, my other grandfather had had bigotry so ingrained in his mentality from a young age, that even now, at the age of 83, 40 years after the major civil rights movements in America, he still cannot bring himself to consider minorities human beings themselves. And by denying their humanity, he has removed all traces of humanity in himself. One of my grandfathers I still love and respect. The other I have the deepest of shame and disappointment for being of the same bloodline.

Now, the same holds true in my views of racial jokes, religious jokes, and other forms of non-politicially correct jokes. If you're telling the joke for nothing more than the reaction (laughter or groans) received, that's one thing with me. But if you're telling it because you really do think you're superior to the butt of the joke, then the joke is on you. And the problem for most people concerning non-PC behavior is their inability to discern the intent behind someone's words, even with visual and auditory cues and body language on top of everything else. And it is the inability of people to laugh at themselves that causes such great concern about the contents of jokes in the workplace and public. The first lesson I ever learned that separated me from my childhood was the ability to not take myself seriously. Self-derisive and self-deprecating humor are two signs of legitimate self-worth. Because if you're laughing at yourself, then everyone else is actually laughing with you when they say they are, rather than laughing at you while you squirm under their scrutiny. Be the bigger man, tell a joke about yourself before you do about someone else. And the next time you hear a joke, take it at face value, and don't judge the teller by the content of the joke unless the intent is to hurt someone deliberately.

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