Has Society Become Hypersensitive?
By Denmarkguy
@Denmarkguy (1845)
United States
July 1, 2007 12:32pm CST
I believe it's a good thing that society has certain "protections" built in, to prevent people from just randomly saying and doing hurtful things to others. Principles like "equality" and "non-discrimination" helps us all live life a little more easily.
But sometimes I wonder if we have gone overboard. There's the whole issue of "political correctness," and the lengths to which laws and guidelines go to ensure that NOBODY is offended by ANYone, EVER. When does it stop just being "for our protection" and cross the line to being more like "censorship?"
Occasionally I read discussions on myLot where members are mystified because some inoccuous phrase is "banned" by the site's decency filters. A friend mine-- at work-- actually got an official reprimand for quoting Shakespeare: From Macbeth "Out, damned spot! Out, I say!" she said, to get a couple of visitors in her cubicle to leave. Someone several cubicles away reported her to the HR department for "using a racial slur" and she was written up.
Have we gone overboard? Have we-- as a society-- become hypersensitive in our need to "protect" everyone (from themselves)? Have we crossed a line from "protection" to "censorship?"
4 people like this
12 responses
@lordwarwizard (35747)
• Singapore
1 Jul 07
Robotic filters aren't infallible, dude. I once responded to a discussion and I was relating my experience of hear cats at night when you are asleep.
When they are mating or want to mate, they make very human-like sounds. The most appropriate word was s-l-u-t-t-y but that word was banned.
@Denmarkguy (1845)
• United States
1 Jul 07
Wiz, I agree that filters are not infallible. BUT... at one time, filters were limited to detecting "the 7 words you can't say on TV." Now they include 100's and 100's of normal everyday words that have been part of POLITE conversation for centuries... but because they "might" have a double meaning for a FEW people SOMEwhere, we ALL have to be protected from seeing them...
@rogue13xmen13 (14403)
• United States
2 Jul 07
I cannot stand this "hypersenitive" society that I am living in. I do not like to censor anything, and I feel that if something should be expressed or said then say or express it. Now, when it comes to race, I think people should watch it because wars have been started over race. Where I come from, if you say anything about someone or stare or look at them the wrong way because of their race, they will come at you, so I do not look or stare or say anything.
1 person likes this
@Denmarkguy (1845)
• United States
2 Jul 07
Clearly, obvious racial commentary should not be acceptable. In this case, I am more referring to "incidentals." I worry that some day I will not be able to go to the hardware store and ask for a "spade" because I need to dig a hole in my yard... because it is an "offensive term."
1 person likes this
@mimpi1911 (25464)
• India
4 Jul 07
I feel, TIME changes very rapidly and so do we. Its but wise to change with it. Irrelevant, obscene, offbeat things get accepted with time and changes. but things have not been worse than this. lately, we are into a world where speaking our mind means rude and judgemental. here, i am not talking about hate speeches. a simple refute here is taken otherwise and we just cannot accept being negated!
Yes, we have become hypersensitive, in the general sense of the term. we, kind of, are less tolerant and submissive even when situation demand those with reason. wars, racialism, hate speeches, censorship are all but its outcome.
Thank you.
1 person likes this
@Denmarkguy (1845)
• United States
4 Jul 07
Mimpi, I just worry that we reach a point where we have to "self-censor" so much that when something genuinely BAD happens to us, we will not be able to address it, because it would be "rude," because basic truth and honesty might "offend" someone, somewhere.
@Tetchie (2932)
• Australia
2 Jul 07
Oversensitive, overprotective, and we are going down the toilet. Censorship ban's your workmate from quoting Shakespeare, yet we are subject to Big Brother on TV which is massively offensive to any intelligent person. What the........! Stand above the stupidness of the human condition and watch the matinee that is 'life' and I cringe at where we are heading.
"Out, damned spot! Out, I say!" I address the spot that is the big black ink blot we are collectively creating that is doing a very good job at drowning our human spirit. The ink blot is getting bigger and bigger and bigger and soon we will not recognize what is us and what is the spot. In fact I dare feel we already are unaware of the difference.
1 person likes this
@Denmarkguy (1845)
• United States
2 Jul 07
Very well put-- I can't think of anything I'd want to add.
1 person likes this
@Denmarkguy (1845)
• United States
1 Jul 07
Things do often go in cycles... it may even be that people will get SO fed up sith being careful that there'll be a swing back towards VERY "free" speech. Who knows?
@loralee (542)
• United States
2 Jul 07
And if we use machines to do all this tracking and correcting, maybe there will be too much data to sift through that it just won't matter anymore. It will become systematically meaningless, unapplicable nonsense to be tossed aside like a completely worn-out pair of worthless shoes.
@canjo13317 (396)
• United States
3 Jul 07
we most definitely have gone too far with being politically correct. up to and including fighting the war in iraq. we are trying to be so careful not to offend anyone while fighting the war. war is just that, war. people need to relax a little and not take things so personally, unless of course it is given that way. great topic+
1 person likes this
@Denmarkguy (1845)
• United States
4 Jul 07
Yes, sometimes it seems we use political correctly not just to "not offend" but to outright "hide" things by not calling them what they are. Like a war.
@kitchenwitchoftupper (2290)
• United States
2 Jul 07
You make a wonderful poing and you make it quite eloquently. It is also something that I ponder but at the risk of going backwards I fear that we must deal with what we have created. ~Donna
1 person likes this
@diannebcrs (1549)
• Philippines
2 Jul 07
i think that people go overboard sometimes. it's great that you have filters to avoid people who have all the intentions to be offensive or discriminatory. but it should look into the context, and not just into the words put in. for instance, it was really overkill what they did to the girl just for putting that in, i mean she obviously did not have any intention of offending anyone.
@Denmarkguy (1845)
• United States
2 Jul 07
Yes!
You hit on one of the key issues here... do things make sense, IN CONTEXT.
@RobinJ (2501)
• Canada
2 Jul 07
We can think anything we want, but to say it is a whole different matter. Your friend who quoted Shakespeare was wrong , All she had to do was ask the people to leave. or call security. There is no need to treat others as less than our selves. There is a lady that rides around on the bus. I am not sure if she is ignorant or mentally challenged, but she feels it is perfectly alright to speak her mind, the only problem is this woman has an enormous mouth and a pea size brain giving it directions. She made a remark about me one day and I called her on it and she got huffy and said I am entitled to say what I think, I answered her by asking her to think before she spoke. any how she didn't get it, but now when she she sees me she does keep her uninformed yap shut, at least until I get off the bus. I have found that for the most part people that judge others and speak out loud, and very insecure and immature, and by talking and putting down others they believe they are taking the focus off their own flaws.
1 person likes this
@Denmarkguy (1845)
• United States
2 Jul 07
Robin, thanks for your comment. Just to fill in a couple of blanks, my friend was talking to a couple of co-workers... and the discussion was not about work, but basic "water cooler talk" about theater. The Shakespeare quote was definitely IN "context" of their conversation, and completely inocuous. I disagree that my friend was wrong, in this situation.
Your lady on the bus brings to mind how inconsistent our culture usually is. Everybody wants the "freedom" to say whatever THEY want, but want to legislate and control OTHER people's freedom to say THEIR piece. Whether it's insecurity or ignorance... most people seem fear driven, and thus obsessed with "controlling" everything, and everyone.
1 person likes this
@braided (698)
• Canada
4 Jul 07
Yes we have ... or yes they have cause I sure havent ... and i wont conform to this ludicracy ... they have all gone anal ... theres no room for joking anymore about anything it seems ... it will change again but it will probably go to extremes as they usually do ... you know how they do ... no one thinks for themselves anymore nor did they ever ..too many are followers ...... when this world and the people in it decide to think for themselves and realize its about respect giving and receiving respect ... a healthy respect ... and that life is about balance not extremes maybe things will lighten up but there is always a few who get their feathers ruffled for the little sh**t .... and make it bad for all of us ... they dont know how to roll with the punches or with the flow of letting one be who they are .... its all based on that control issue ... mmmmm
@stanzi2007 (602)
• United States
26 Nov 07
dear d.guy...do you ever listen to talkradio at night...Dr. Savage is somebody you should check out on his talkshow at night called the SAVAGE NATION...he frequently discusses this..most all the time..lol,lol...he even wrote a book called Liberalism is a Mental Disease...lol...stanzi
