The Battle of Trafalgar as seen from HMS Victory

In English history, the Battle of Trafalgar is considered to be that nation’s greatest triumph. Not only did Admiral Nelson’s destruction of the Franco-Spainish fleet ensure that Napoleon’s plan to invade the British Isles would be frustrated, the battle set the stage for British supremacy on the seas for the next century.

In one glorious afternoon, the combination of British high technology ship construction and rigging along with the indomitable spirit of the British sailor beat the combined might of the French and Spainish fleets. It’s considered the most important sea battle in history.

This June, the Portsmouth ship yard will host dignataries from around the world to mark the 200th anniversary of that titanic contest. Plans are that a re-enactment of the battle will cap the festivities using high tech pyro-technics and lasers.

This should be a truly awesome sight and a marvelous show except for one tiny little detail; the PC police have struck with a vengance:

Organisers of a re-enactment to mark the bicentenary of the battle next month have decided it should be between “a Red Fleet and a Blue Fleet” not British and French/Spanish forces.

Otherwise they fear visiting dignitaries, particularly the French, would be embarrassed at seeing their side routed.

(HT: Sir George)

That’s right. In order not to upset the French, the combatants who took part in the battle will remain nameless. Even the name of the battle is to be expunged from the historical record for the day:

Even the official literature has been toned down. It describes the re-enactment not as the battle of Trafalgar but simply as “an early 19th-century sea battle”.

Frankly, I don’t see what the French should be so upset about. After all, they haven’t won a war since the middle ages. The fact that a couple of times in the 20th century they ended up on the winning side of a conflict is purely an accident. You couldn’t say that the French won WWII since the Petain government did everything they could to defeat the allies including actively opposing our landings in North Africa. And as far as WWI was concerned, by the time the war was over the French were almost ready to surrender anyway. Only the intervention of the United States in 1918 saved the French from a humiliating defeat.

But, deferring to French sensibilities (or insensibilities as the case may be) seems to be the thing to do in Europe these days. And maybe the Brits have the right idea. Maybe we should try something similar here.

Imagine the next time the Battle of the Little Bighorn is re-enacted. We wouldn’t have the US Army. We wouldn’t have Lakota warriors. We could have “shirts” and skins.” And we wouldn’t call it a battle between cultures or a conflict by Native Amerians to preserve their way of life. We could say it was “a disagreement over water rights” or “a misunderstanding about the intentions of the indigineous peoples of the prarie.”

Political correctness has become the bane of Western civilization. It has penetrated our schools, our art, our culture, our workplace, our government, and even our churches. Anyone who believes that this kind of doublespeak is harmless or is actually beneficial needs to take a second look.

The Canadians have “Language Police” who pursue and prosecute people for not obeying the law regarding bi-lingual signage. In America, any hint of religious expression in a public place will result in the ACLU slapping a lawsuit against you faster than you can say “bigot.” And the legions of leftists who police public thought on the airwaves are ready at a moment’s notice with the whiny, self-serving press release about all sorts of PC transgressions from incorrect language to improper thoughts.

Is there any hope that society will rise up and rid itself of this disease? Not as long as we continue to coddle the practioners of political correctness. If we were to simply ignore these social tyrants, there’s a chance they might simply give up and go home.

Yeah sure.