GayandRight

My name is Fred and I am a gay conservative living in Ottawa. This blog supports limited government, the right of the State of Israel to live in peace and security, and tries to expose the threat to us all from cultural relativism, post-modernism, and radical Islam. I am also the founder of the Free Thinking Film Society in Ottawa (www.freethinkingfilms.com)

Friday, May 20, 2005

Another politically-incorrect term...

I think someone should publish a dictionary of politically-incorrect phrases...so, we all can know what not to say.
The British phrase "shipshape and Bristol fashion" should not be used because it is politically incorrect, a group of officials has been told.

A training firm told them the saying comes from the slave trade and described black people ready for sale, the Telegraph reported Friday.

But Bristol historian Gerry Brooke said it derived from the British city`s once excellent reputation for shipbuilding.

Brewer`s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable agrees: "The expression derives from the port of Bristol`s reputation for efficiency in the days of sail."

"I have used the term for 60 years and my family has, and there is no way it can be regarded as politically incorrect," Bristol Lord Mayor Peter Abraham said.

Fifteen district councilors from Kidderminster, Worcestershire, and some 70 council staff were warned off the phrase during a two-day "equalities and diversity" course this month.