English_books / Adv_eng

A BACKLASH against years of political correctness is emerging in America, sparked by a case last month when a six-year-old boy was judged guilty of sexual harassment for stealing a kiss in the school corridor.

After more than two decades during which often wellintentioned efforts to eradicate discrimination in a host of fields — from sexism to racism, ageism to "homophobia" — have often ended up ensnaring the innocent in a legal morass, Americans are beginning to question the political correctness "industry".

Affirmative action programmes giving preference to people of AfroCaribbean and Hispanic descent, sometimes over better-qualified whites and Asians, are being challenged in the courts.

So-called civil rights infringements which, for example, led to a court ruling making it illegal for a security guard in a New York school to remove a 15-year-old's loaded 9mm

over whether the pendulum has swung too far.

Then there are the dafter lawsuits such as the $1 million claim by a

retired 82-year-old doctor who says a health board denied her a job on the grounds of age.

Increasingly, TV programmes, including Seinfeld, the top-rated comedy, poke fun at the absurdities of PC. In one recent episode, Jerry Seinfeld, who is Jewish, offended an Apache girl he was trying to date by buying a wooden, cigar store Indian. He also unwittingly enraged a Chinese postman by asking him if he knew the whereabouts of a local Cantonese restaurant.

Meanwhile, advertisers are still being reminded that the lobbyists are alive, well and not about to disappear. When TWA advertised cheap flights to holiday destinations in Hawaii and Florida, it made the mistake of using a model holding down a billowing skirt a la Marilyn Monroe and suggested that people should fly to the sun to get rid of those "pasty white thighs".

The airline was bombarded with complaints that the ads were sexist, racist and morally offensive — but bookings went up by 50 per cent.

The case of Johnathan Prevette, whose stolen kiss led to his spending a day in isolation at his school in North Carolina caused

many Americans to pause for thought.

Meg Greenfield, Newsweek columnist, said: "This creation of one-size-fits-all rulings and prohibitions not only creates preposterous incidents of this kind but also frees responsible authorities from dealing in the normal, human, community way, with the odd kid who is truly disturbed and needs to be singled out for attention."

Another problem of PC inveigling its way into law and the instruments of government is that it provides loopholes. Since the US Supreme Court upheld prison inmates' rights to practise their religious beliefs in a fitting way, jail governors have faced lawsuits from prisoners claiming they are being denied everything from cakes to drugs, all ostensibly essential for their religious observances.

Even apparently non-con- troversial attempts to curb indecency can hit problems. When a mayor in Vermont proposed banning nude dancing at two clubs, an organisation advocating breastfeeding said it would infringe a mother's right to suckle her baby.

1 They might tell me but . ..

They might have told me but . . .

They may have told me but . . .

They may tell me but . ..

3Уои mustn't tell her that ...

Уои needn't tell her that . . .

4I should have trusted him but . . I shouldn't have trusted him but I needn't have trusted him but .

5She can't have lunch because .. .

She couldn't have lunch because

6He may not have seen her, so . . .

He may not be seeing her, so . . .

He may not see her, so . . .

Уои don't have to tell her that ...

Уои oughtn't to tell her that . . .

I had to trust him but . ..

I didn't have to trust him but . . .

She can't be having lunch because . . .

She can't have had lunch because ...

He can't have seen her, so . . .

He can't be seeing her, so . ..

He can't see her, so . . .

1We'll probably have lunch soon. Maybe we'll have lunch soon. We'll possibly have lunch soon.

2You must be joking. You have to tell a joke.

3Can you speak English?

Do you know how to speak English?

4You'd better tell him sooner or later. You ought to tell him sooner or later.

5You needn't tell him yet.

You don't have to tell him yet.

6It wasn't a good idea to tell her. I shouldn't have told her.

7You might have told me.

I'm not sure whether you told me.

8You probably won't take too long. You shouldn't take too long.

We might as well have lunch soon. We might well have lunch soon. We've got nothing better to do,

so let's have lunch soon.

You've got to tell a joke. You can't be serious.

I'd like you to speak English. Can you speak English, please?

You have to tell him sooner or later. You've got to tell him sooner or later.

You can't tell him yet. You mustn't tell him yet.

I didn't have to tell her.

It wasn't necessary to tell her.

You may have told me. You should have told me.

I advise you not to take too long. It shouldn't take you too long.

You have to dress smartly.

You can't. . .

You don't have to . . .

You shouldn't. . .

Most of the country will have another dry, warm day with long sunny spells, but there is the risk of one or two showers, perhaps heavy, later in the afternoon and evening.

Everyone must, in principle, have a visa to visit Japan. However, to help tourism, bilateral agreements with some countries mean you don't need a visa if you are from western Europe, the UK or most English-speaking countries, with the notable exceptions of the USA, Australia and South Africa.

AVOID LISTENING WITH YOUR HEADPHONES AT SO LOUD A VOLUME

THAT EXTENDED PLAY MIGHT AFFECT YOUR HEARING. AS YOUR

HEADPHONES ARE OF OPEN-AIR DESIGN, SOUNDS GO OUT THROUGH

THE HEADPHONES. REMEMBER NOT TO DISTURB THOSE CLOSE TO YOU.

It's a dream come true when compared with

making the journey by road. You don't have to contend with traffic jams, motorway hold-ups or the uncertainties of driving to the airport. You won't have to bother about parking either.

5The dose may be taken three or four times daily at intervals of not less than four hours. Do not exceed the stated dose. If symptoms persist, consult your doctor.

One grey November morning I was running near the edge of a lake. On the path ahead of me an old man shuffled along slowly, using a cane. As I ran by I called out, 'Good morning!' He returned my greeting and then called after me rather unexpectedly, 'What do you gain by running?' I shouted back: 'It makes me feel good!'