Privatisation - A Socialist Plot

I seem to remember recently being upbraided for describing the current government as slightly to the right on the political spectrum. And then, I read this piece in today's Guardian and wondered how on earth anyone could seriously suggest we are living under a socialist government:

The prime minister has defended the accreditation of in-company qualifications after it was announced that staff at McDonald's could gain the equivalent of an A-level in burger bar management.

The fast food giant, Network Rail and the airline Flybe are the first three companies to win government approval to become an exam board.

The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority has approved a pilot "basic shift manager" course, which will train staff in everything they need to run a McDonald's outlet, from marketing to human resources and customer service skills.

The budget airline Flybe will start piloting their "airline trainer programme" in the summer, which will cover everything from engineering to cabin crew training.

And so the corporate take-over of our education system continues at a fearless pace. Privatisation and socialism eh? How anyone could suggest that this country is a socialist enclave and yet keep a straight face is beyond me.

McJobs - Political Correctness Gone Mad

And they say that political correctness™ is the preserve of the loony left. The term has long been adopted by the right as a stick to beat the left with and yet they are equally as guilty of employing political correctness™ to close down debates. Take Israel for example, some sections of the right cry 'anti-Semitism' as soon as anyone dare mention the possibility that just maybe Israel has reacted disproportionately. What is this if not political correctness?? Now there emerges another example of political correctness™ courtesy of McDonalds, the British Chambers of Commerce, the British Retail Consortium and the City & Guilds, not to mention Digby Jones. Where will this madness end?

Unbelievably, the forces of conservatism are trying to re-write the English language on behalf of McDonalds. The reason? McDonalds has taken offense to the definition of a 'McJob' in the Oxford English Dictionary. Currently, the dictionary defines a McJob as"an unstimulating low-paid job with few prospects". However, McDonalds claims that:

"The current definition is extremely insulting to the 67,000 people who work for us within the UK."

"It is also insulting for everyone else who works in the wider restaurant and tourism sectors.

"It is time for us now to make a stand and get the Oxford English Dictionary to change the definition."

Probably not as insulting as not allowing your staff to join a union to push workers rights but hey, such concerns are irrelevant compared to the battle for political correctness™.

Now, there are countless words that I find 'insulting', but I would never argue that they should be removed from the dictionary. No matter how offensive the word might be, it is still a part of the English language and should be justly represented in a dictionary of the English language. Where would we stop otherwise? Remove the word 'cunt' because it is offensive? How totally absurd. They have even organised a petition to garner public support for their ridiculous campaign. They can campaign all they like, it is not multi-national corporations that decide what words should be included in the English language. The language has evolved over centuries in the most organic way possible, to allow a corporation to dictate what we can and cannot define would lead to the destruction of our very language. This political correctness™ that infects conservative forces should be confronted and exposed for the tyranny it truly is.