Stop what you’re doing and take a deep sniff of the air around you. You smell that? That’s the stench of political correctness. It’s present everywhere; in sports, advertising and things we avoid saying to prevent “hurt feelings.” And it is really starting to get out of control.
The world of sports is cutthroat and, as such, is no place for political correctness, be it at the professional, college or high school level. Take the following story from Dallas, where coach Micah Grimes of the Covenant School recently led his girls basketball team to a 100-0 victory over Dallas Academy, a small school with classes for students with “dyslexia, dysgraphia and other learning differences.”
While the school has numerous special education classes, it also has a full sports program and touts claims that the majority of its graduates go on to college.
Apparently, crushing a team by 100 points isn’t the same accomplishment it used to be. Shortly after the game, Covenant fired Grimes and, according to USA Today, “called the ‘blowout’ shameful.” Way to go coach! Completely dominate a team and get fired for your efforts!
In a statement from Covenant administrators, “It is shameful and an embarrassment … This clearly does not reflect a Christlike and honorable approach to competition.” Apparently, Jesus doesn’t approve of blowouts and sports aren’t supposed to be played by students who give their all. Just because the other team sucked, the coach got fired. Girls from the losing school told the Dallas Morning News they brushed it off, said “Oh well,” recognized their “suckdom” and moved on.
But Grimes got the last word. In an e-mail to USA Today, Grimes wrote, “We played the game as it was meant to be played. My values and my beliefs … will not allow me to apologize for a wide-margin victory when my girls played with honor and integrity.”
This is a perfect example of the aura of political correctness we currently live in. It is absolutely unacceptable in 2009 for a coach to be fired for doing his job and coaching a team to victory.
Political correctness doesn’t end there. Burger King was under fire recently when a Mexican ambassador complained about an advertisement for the Texican Whopper. The ad shows a short Mexican wrestler wearing his country’s flag like a cape with an American cowboy standing over him. Leave it to Jorge Zermeno, Mexico’s ambassador to Spain, to ruin things for everyone.
According to Reuters, Zermeno wrote Burger King claiming the ad “denigrates the image of our country and uses improperly Mexico’s national flag,” and “offends Mexicans and Mexico.”
This ad cannot possibly be this offensive, can it? A simple Internet search will show you the “offensive” material and likely cause you to shake your head and sigh at the ridiculous nature of the claims that the ad is “denigrating” Mexico’s image. This is just another example of PC overtaking our world.
Political correctness is unhealthy for a marketplace that fosters the free exchange of ideas and opinions. Why are we so offended by things that are so inoffensive? People need to lighten up and roll with the punches.
Gerry Wachovsky is a graduate student and a columnist for the Daily Forty-Niner.