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Anti-Confusion

DISSENT:

By Beth L. Pinsker

The problem with Political Correctness in all its pro, anti and anti-anti variations is that as the debate, as it exists now, is not an intellectual discourse. The confusion with the names of these groups should be enough to signal that this is not a debate substantially about issues--at least that's not what everyone talks about. Somewhere along the line, the ideas of PC, if there ever were any, got lost. Nobody talks about the literary canon anymore, or about Eurocentric ideas.

Now there are only labels and anti-labels and pro-anti-labels. What they have in common is that they announce themselves to the media and define themselves by the stance they take for or against another group. The media loves them because these groups, by the basis of their formation, are perfect sound bytes. There generally is no substance to the discourse, and there won't be until people start talking about the issues again, not just the labels.

The anti-anti-PC group is not what we have been waiting for to open up the discourse on Political Correctness.

What they are entering is not discourse at all.

It's hype.

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