Everybody has problems. This is just the truth of the matter; as human beings there is at least one flaw that each and every one of us has. No one is perfect. I'll be the first one to say that I definitely have (at least) my fair share of problems and defects. Due to this collective imperfection our society becomes flawed. Now let’s take a step back from that idea for a little while, but we'll come back to it later.
Here on planet Earth and specifically the United States of America, there are a lot of different types of people. First I want to make it very clear that being different (whether it is from the majority of the population, your next door neighbors, etc.) is not a bad thing. Different people can come from a multitude of various lifestyles, religions, cultures, other countries etc., and all of these people have something to learn from each other which has the possibility of enriching the lives of both/all parties involved.
Now coming back to this idea of our imperfect and flawed society, one of the major reasons this happens is because important ideas and values get lost in communication. Similar to how no-one is a perfect individual, no one is a perfect communicator, therefore thoughts will inevitably get lost going from one person to the next. Now add into the mix the fact that the same words and actions can communicate ten different ideas to ten different people, and each one could very possibly have a different reaction to each idea. This is perfectly fine. People are entitled to believe in what they want to believe in. The conflict comes in when people believe that their way of life or family, whether that family is blood-related or not, is being attacked by that person's opinion. This is where this idea of political correctness comes in.
I believe that the core of political correctness means to be culturally aware of those around you so unnecessary conflict can be avoided. To be culturally aware of someone's background and way of life means knowing what is most important to them, as an individual and as a part of a smaller and larger community, so they don't feel like they're being persecuted simply for living that way of life. Due to our inherently flawed society, we have worked up this idea of "political correctness" so without even trying we have worked up this idea that everything has to constantly fit right within its neat little box and no other meaning or implication of any kind can ever be applied to it. Anything rarely falls perfectly into place because that isn't how life works due to our own mistakes and miscommunications with others.
We as a people also need to remember that life isn't usually black and white (yes there are times when it is exactly that but they happen significantly less than people think they do) but is somewhere between the two. Jokes seem to be in this gray area. Jokes usually play on stereotypes and clichés, which are traditionally inaccurate and/or close-minded, are used in a false and sarcastic sense for dramatic effect; however, in recent years people have gotten stuck on this idea that jokes (like those mentioned above) are poisonous to us and have blocked them out completely. Please don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that all humanity has become so close-minded that they aren't able to understand a simple joke.
One voice (regardless of everything, even language) has the ability to change the world. So if we as a people stop complaining about political correctness and take a moment or two to learn about each other and how we live our lives we might actual get somewhere. As imperfect beings we will always mess up and annoy other people. The most important part is to remember this to never use it as a way to shirk responsibilities off but as a valuable chance to better ourselves to make those around us feel better.
