One of my pet peeves is the term "political correctness," a destructive, right-wing phrase that has been absorbed even by many of us in the center (that's what we Dean supporters are compared to this radical administration, baby). I often see the term used in the New York Times without any sense of objective distance -- i.e., without putting it in quotes. It is a label loaded with bias, frequently applied with a broad brush to anything progressives stand for.

Have there been some silly attempts to change the language? Sure. The word "womyn," I have to say, makes those of us for gender equity sound ridiculous. But really, how many people have ever used the term "womyn"? Or "vertically-challenged" to descibe a short person? The only place I've heard many "politically correct" terms is in jokes about political correctness.

Oh, and that Civil Rights movement sure was politically correct. Thank goodness for those independent, free-thinking, un-politically-correct dudes in white sheets.

Anyway, getting to this week's cartoon, I find the NEW political correctness to be far more pernicious. Molly Ivins has mentioned it lately in a couple of her columns; the regressives' attempt to rename private accounts "personal accounts" is the most egregious recent example. Using excessively-polite language is one thing, but using language to dupe people into supporting policies contrary to their own self-interest is another beast altogether.

The cartoon references Time's 2004 "Person of the Year" issue; I have to add, if Time had any integrity at all, they would have picked Eliot Spitzer instead.