PC becomes BS In trying so hard not to hurt anyone’s feelings, we’ve become desensitized to logic BY SHAY STEWART-BOULEY

I don’t do New Year’s resolutions. I know I’m going to break them anyway, so why waste time? But in 2005, I do wish for the country as a whole to make a resolution: Do something to cut back on the political correctness thing.

Okay, I’m sure you didn’t expect me, as a black woman in a white state who writes about diversity issues, to say that. But the fact is, political correctness has gotten so out of hand, it’s starting to resemble a form of liberal fascism to me. Inclusiveness, yes! Stupidity, no!

For example, now that everyone’s stopped watering their Christmas trees, packed up their menorahs and whatnot, let me ask a simple question: When did it become a sin to say " Merry Christmas " and a requirement to say " Happy Holidays? "

It may not seem like a big deal, but I think people who celebrate Christmas are feeling a bit left out. I know I am. At schools and during public events, there is either an effort to lump Christmas, Chanukah, and Kwanzaa into one holiday, or to honor non-Christmas holidays more than Christmas — as if Christmas needs to shut up for a few years as a form of penance.

I may be a bit predisposed on this matter, I admit. I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God. But I don’t appreciate seeing any of our diverse celebrations watered down by being melted down into one meaningless jumble. I want them all to stand out as individuals.

As a kid, I grew up in an predominantly Jewish neighborhood in Chicago. I learned about Jewish customs, I can hum Chanukah-related songs and I have even been to a Bar Mitzvah. At the same time, Jewish kids I grew up with learned about Christmas and Christian beliefs. None of us said " Happy holidays " either. If a Jewish person wished me " Happy Chanukah, " I didn’t freak out. Why is " Merry Christmas " so loaded with baggage?

I’m not alone. A couple of mothers from Scarborough found themselves attracting national attention after they demanded to have some Christmas injected into the local school’s holiday lineup. From what I have read, they never wanted to attract media attention. They simply felt that if their kids’ school was going to cover non-Christian holiday traditions, then a place at the table should be included for Christmas as well. Sounds fair to me.

Religion’s a touchy topic, I know. How about a lighter example, like race relations and the legacy of slavery?

Reading a story in the paper recently from the Associated Press newswire, I found that in a misguided attempt to champion " inclusiveness, " Little Rock, Arkansas, and other places in the good ole South are retiring tried-and-true Dixie symbols and names.

In Little Rock, they have renamed Confederate Boulevard to be Springer Boulevard. In Alabama, they have shrunk the " Heart of Dixie " on the license plates in an attempt to be less offensive. According to the article, this new Southern trend is linked to the fact that " business people and tourists don’t know what to think about slavery, elitism, and the Civil War. "

I see slavery and white elitism as part of the collective American culture and history. Like it or not, it’s part of what made this country what it is today. Damn it, I will go so far as to say I actually agree with the chief of staff for the Sons of the Confederate Veterans, who is quoted as saying, " We honor everyone else’s traditions and heritage. Why should we discriminate against Confederate heritage? "

I may not have liked what the Confederate folks stood for in the Civil War, but at the same time, the Confederacy wasn’t simply about preserving slavery. The South didn’t want the North telling it what to do anymore. Right or wrong, they made a stand and tried to secede from the United States. They didn’t try to take over the North. They just wanted to be left alone. Slavery was wrong and they were wrong to practice it and defend that practice, but to say that the word " Confederate " is too dirty to adorn a street sign is ridiculous.

But let’s bring it back to Maine again — specifically Portland. In 2004, the Maine Medical Center redesigned the hospital gowns, which, as most folks know, are famous for leaving your backside exposed to every eye in the facility. According to the hospital, the gowns were identified as a barrier to treatment because of the cultural differences and values placed on modesty in many of those immigrant cultures. So, a special gown was created for such patients.

In no way am I slamming the decision to redesign the gown. Many of us probably wish our backsides would be less air-conditioned at the hospital. But really, in a city where less than 10 percent of the population was affected, this was a big change to make. Did the hospital bend too far in trying not to hurt one group’s feelings? I don’t know, but I wonder.

This snowballing trend of inclusiveness seems to be a one-way street. We only desire to include what makes us feel good, and sometimes logic goes out the window. My Dad, who’s only in his fifties, saw Jim Crow practiced — violently — and lived to tell his kids and raise them to respect people of different beliefs. Politically correct language didn’t have anything to do with that. Straight talk did.

Political correctness has become a weapon wielded against folks rather arbitrarily defined as less-than-desirable. In other words, we use it to do exactly what we say we are fighting against. We use it to shut someone up or to lift up one group higher than another. And that, my friends, is morally incorrect.

Shay Stewart-Bouley can be reached at shaybouley@msn.com