There are people who live and breathe political correctness, and there are those who despise it. Every now and again the people that live and breathe political correctness come across something that the common sense answer is not politically correct. How much that happens depends on how politically correct a person is and how willing they are to do the right thing. The problem is the right thing is the wrong thing.
Example 1) You work in an office environment and there is one person in your office who is very sensitive. They fall apart at the least little bit of trauma. Political correctness says everyone needs to walk on eggshells when around that sensitive person. The problem is while everyone is busy walking on egg shells, productivity drops because everyone is more concerned about the egg shells and not doing their job. If they accidently upset that sensitive person, the person that broke an egg shell is called into the office and warned to be more careful or risk getting fired.
Common sense says if there is a person that is too sensitive to work in an office environment and falls apart with the slightest motion of the boat, management should give the option to seek help from a counselor or therapist, or find a new job because obviously that over sensitive person lacks the minimum durability to function in that work environment. Other people should not have to endure excessive stress because of an oversensitive coworker.
Example 2) You’re a politically correct person and it seems your entire purpose in life is to insure everyone is happy. But you have discovered a conflict that requires you to take a side. However by doing so you will at the very least upset one person, and more than one if there are several positions in the conflict. This leaves the only option being not to take sides. However the flaw in that is everyone is upset with you because you did not side with anyone. So it becomes a catch 22 where no matter what you do you end up hurting someone thus breaking the solemn rule of being politically correct.
Common sense says to speak your mind as you may actually introduce a new position that everyone can live with. If someone is upset, then suggest they work on their coping skills.
Example 3) Someone says something that is clearly not politically correct but has the sound of common sense. (Example: Donald Trump ban Muslims from entering the USA until a handle on domestic terrorism can be figured out.) In your mind you know that makes common sense. After all you have seen many similar examples so what was said has a basis rooted in proven fact. You yourself may have banned your child from going out for one reason or another. A country may be banned from international sports for allowing organized doping. So in this case the ban clearly encourages self-policing as do nearly all bans. You have seen on more than one occasion a CEO of a company lay off hundreds if not thousands of employees because of a downturn. Once again that layoff is not politically correct but common sense.
However because it is not politically correct, you must attack the person for daring to say something that was not politically correct. This is despite common sense telling you what was said makes common sense and will achieve a desired result.
Example 4) You encounter a person who has just arrived from a country where political correctness does not exist. The things that person does set off all kinds of alarm bells that signal you have just been automatically deputized and are now an active member of the politically correct police. Your mission now is to stop that person from doing common sense things by attempting to embarrass them or threaten them into submission. That also includes that person very possibly telling you to go and stick it where the sun never shines because to them you would sound a bit like an idiot for suggesting something that was counter to common sense.
There are seemingly countless examples of common sense behavior not being politically correct. So if this is the case, political correctness is actually counterproductive as well as counter to common sense. But that once again places you in that catch 22 situation as no matter what choice you side on being politically correct or using common sense, you are bound to hurt someone either directly or indirectly along the way.
