Friday, August 29, 2008



'Man on the street' is offensive to women

Or so says a document put out by Chichester District Council, West Sussex, in England:
"The document claims the popular saying is based on the assumption that the world is male and makes the views or work of women invisible. It suggests that town hall officers should use "general public" a positive and less offensive alternative. The guide also kills off the phrase "manning the switchboard" and suggests "staffing" or "running the switchboard" instead

The council said that the document, which is distributed to all staff and council members, is not a rulebook but a guide to help staff and members find the correct words. A spokesman said: "We introduced the guide because as community leaders we must be aware of what modern society requires of the public sector. This includes the sensitivity of various individuals and groups, and current thinking in society in general.

Source

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

a wo-man is still a kind of "man" or hu-man

Anonymous said...

They should start their own program. Maybe call it C*** on the curb.

Anonymous said...

They can’t use running the switchboard, because that is discriminatory against the Handicapped!

Perhaps rolling the switchboard, but that would be discriminatory against those that can walk.

Maybe personing the switchboard, even though that means that Robots couldn’t do it anymore then.


Mobius

Anonymous said...

I find it funny that the article refers to a "spokesman" and not a "spokesperson".

Rocks

Anonymous said...

"officers should use general public a positive and less offensive alternative"

LESS OFFENSIVE!!!!!! How in the hell can "General Public" be offensive? OMG they have finally gone off the deep end. They are all nuts. I am surprised they are not suggesting we go back to the moon to replace the plaque that says:
“MEN FROM THE PLANET EARTH FIRST SET FOOT UPON THE MOON JULY 1969, A.D. WE CAME IN PEACE FOR ALL MANKIND”
Bet that just drives those idiots out of their trees.

Anonymous said...

What can I say - this is just so stupid it warrants no discussion. Although,. the 'spokesman' part is priceless!

Anonymous said...

God created Adam and we had 'man'.
Then God created Eve and we have 'woman'. We've had 'wo(e)' eversince.

Anonymous said...

o mesos anthropos
man in the street
andras
man
arsenikos
male
thilykos
female
(greek-english dictionary)
man is the english word for the species ( SPECIES 2000 website )

superman the student architect

Anonymous said...

"as community leaders we must be aware of what modern society requires of the public sector"
What I require from the public sector is to speak in plain and easy to understand English. Confounding the language with this ridiculous pc-babble is not what I require of the public sector.

Anonymous said...

"They should start their own program. Maybe call it C*** on the curb."

Is C*** male or female gender?

Anonymous said...

What do they call the place where a WOMAN pilot sits whilst flying an airplane?

Anonymous said...

The part of the plane where women that are pilots sit, is now called the Box Office!

Mobius

Anonymous said...

Women's views are not invisible, they're irrelevant!

More proof that Britain is a dying nation.

Anonymous said...

Just more women who refuse to accept the Biblical order of things. It has absolutely nothing to do with capabilities, experience, intelligence, strength, or any other trait. It's all about understanding God-given roles and embracing those roles in a Godly way.

Anonymous said...

Why should women or anybody accept the "Biblical order of things" that came from the culture of the ancient Hebrews that Paul of Tarsus perpetuated in his version of "Christianity" (and lives on in Islam's take on the same early Hebrew mindset)!