What do Tenerife Forum members think about Political Correctness?

[katy k]

Do the police in the U.K. pay more attention to the rights of offenders rather than those of the victims?

[Cazten]

Excellent Katy, that's our topic for next Wednesday's face to face I guess?

Hope the forum members give us as much input this week as they did for the NHS one

Over to you guys then

Let's have your comments please

[welshsprout]

I had a car written off by thieves (broke all the windows, slashed the tyres, broke the mirrors, slashed the seats etc etc) outside my garage back in the UK so I contacted the police only to be asked. "SO? what do you want us to do about it?"

I know that it is not exactly the topic but it is related!

The apathy of the British police to victims of crime is apalling

[cinnamon]

unfortunately i can´t comment a lot on this topic since i have never lived/been in the UK( well, 5 day for a wedding doesn´t really count to make up one´s mind), but i have found out a similar attitude in germany years ago. my purse once got stolen out of a locker in a public library and all they commented was " why did you lock your bag in the locker in the first place?" i mean hello....that´s what the lockers are there for.....
...funnily enough the treatment you get as a victim here on tenerife by the police is something else...i can only speak out of own experience that as the victim you are treated so "well", the police here tries to move earth and mountains just to make you feel secure and comfortable, especially as a woman.
it doesn´t matter what nationality you are while being on the island, as a resident, tourist, whether you speak spanish or not...

[Daverock]

There are two examples that spring to mind for me regarding political correctness.

Once in Glasgow we were waiting to cross the road and I said something to Paul about the green man. (Pedestrian crossing lights) This woman who had heard me said " Surely you mean the green person" I can't repeat my reply.

The second was here in Tenerife at a shopping centre. I held the door open for the woman behind me as I would have done for anyone. She called me a sexist pig. Her opinion on that must have changed pretty rapidly after my verbal attack on her which in my opinion was well warranted.

I have to admit to hating all this PC rubbish. People are far too sensitive and often on behalf of others. Being gay myself I don't get offended by gay jokes or names. I do get hacked off though by people who seem to get offended on my behalf. I think the term for them is dogooders. They should be legislated against.


I know this is slightly off topic but I just wanted to chip in as these are my experiences of PC.

[torrenter]

The thread and title is confusing me. Is it about political correctness or UK police policy?

If the latter, I believe the only reason the police are so careful of criminal's rights is to secure a safe conviction, without it being challenged by canny defence lawyers.

I don't think that victim's rights are anyhing to do with the police or penal system, which are designed to bring criminals to justice, but rather the province of social services - a service which unfortunately many people deride these days

[Daverock]

Originally Posted by torrenter

I believe the only reason the police are so careful of criminal's rights is to secure a safe conviction, without it being challenged by canny defence lawyers.

And therein lies the crux of the problem.I know a few policeman personally and they are just as horrified as the rest of us at what happens when cases get to court.

[Melders]

Originally Posted by katy k

Do the police in the U.K. pay more attention to the rights of offenders rather than those of the victims?

I'm no lover of the police , but, in reply to the question:

They have to, well the plod on the street has to when ordered to by their superiors.... who in turn are mostly University graduates that are jobsworths interested in getting up the next step on their career ladder.

If anyone really wants to know whats going on in the police just read any of the blogs set up by ex or serving officers.

The rot starts at the top and seeps down, and most of our tax financed public services are rotten to the core.
The cause of most of the social problems we have today can be traced back to and placed at the feet of self serving and spineless professional politicians who run scared of and won't face up to lawyers.

Our being able to vote in our Chief Constables and Judges would go a long way into putting common sense back into our legal system.

[robby1234]

well to me political correctness is an oxymoron.

how can a whiteman be racist by calling a blackman a blackman when the said blackman uses the same term to describe themselfs i.e. the black brotherhood or my black sisters.

calling the greenman the greenman is actually correct as the little symbol has no hair ergo he is a little bald man.

what about the word manpower this can´t be p.c. but you never hear a complaint about this or the company called manpower being forced to change it´s name.

if you are a tramp you are monetary challenged and a person of no abode but this does not help them feed themself and keep themselfs warm maybe political correctness is a sneaky way of hiding the problems of our society under the proverbial rug.

i am a folliacally challenged nutrient defficient gravity encumber´d opticaly challenged member of the genius homosapien yes i am a little skinny specy bald guy and very proud of it thank you.

stop being politicaly correct and start being humanly supportive of each other.

as for the police i can not fault them there job is to catch criminals not look after the victims if they spent more time not looking after the victims they would catch more criminals. less criminals less victims.

it is your duty as an upstanding member of your community to assist the police yet do you actually do it or do you say"bloody pigs go catch some real criminals" if you are commiting a crime you are a criminal and a real one at that. but if you were not commiting a crime the police would be out looking for another criminal.

so if YOU do not speed and drink drive if YOU don´t fiddle your tax if YOU don´t smash the windows in the local bus stop and if YOU don´t carry knifes and other weapons then the police would be even better at catching the REAL criminals.

nuff said thank you.

[Daverock]

Well said Robby. A lot of common sense in that post.