PC Gone Wild

If there was any lingering doubt in your mind about the state of the world currently in terms of "PC", political correctness, this latest issue leaves no doubt. Political correctness is reaching new extremes, extending its latest reach to new levels, namely, American sports teams.

The NCAA (National College Athletic Association) has banned the use of American Indian mascots by sports teams during the playoffs. Apparently the only reason it did not go further is that it did not have the authority. "The NCAA's executive committee decided . . . the organization did not have the authority to bar Indian mascots by individual schools, committee chairman Walter Harrison."

The reasoning behind this ban? The NCAA is concerned with mascots that are "hostile and abusive." This always seems to be the reason for taking politically correct action. If it could conceivably offend anyone on the planet, obviously it is wrong and needs to be changed.

Probably the most visible player in this game is Florida State University, with its Seminole mascot. Interestingly, groups calling for such changes, deeming such mascots as "racist", ignore the positions of the Indians themselves. The Seminole tribe in Florida passed a unanimous resolution in support of the Florida State mascot. Some, however, feel that such names are "demeaning".

Obviously, some American Indians are going to feel that the names are demeaning. But most don't. In a national poll (the only one to date), 83 percent of Indians are not offended by such mascots, even ones such as the Washington Redskins, which, in my view, is perhaps the only one that should even consider a name change. What it comes down to is that Indians are OK with such mascots in sports.

And if we are going to get rid of some Indian mascots, what about other offensive mascots? Perhaps the Minnesota Vikings is offensive to some Norse descendant. Or perhaps the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame is an offensive mascot to some Irish. So where does it end? What about the other groups who might be offended? Clearly something needs to be done to chastise the abusive behavior of these schools.

It is rather disturbing that political correctness has seeped into society to such levels as the NCAA, a sports organization. The NCAA needs to get over it, and allow the schools to keep their mascots. This latest ban is both stupid and misguided, yet another attempt to sanitize every aspect of our lives, and prevent anyone, anywhere, from being offended by any possible thing.