July 2008 Archives

A museum has reversed its decision to cover up its Egyptian mummies in response to public opinion.

Manchester Museum covered up three unwrapped mummies on display, sparking accusations of political correctness, two months ago.

The cover-up was part of a consultation on how the mummies will be displayed when the museum's ancient Egypt gallery is redeveloped.

Nick Merriman, museum director, now says one of the mummies will be left partially unwrapped in its original display state, while another will be partially covered, leaving its head, hands and feet exposed.

The decision to reveal more of the mummies came following a meeting of the Museum's Human Remains Panel.

A museum spokeswoman said further onsultation will run for 12 months and a number of different display methods will be tried.

Not often that we can bring you news of victory.

But at last the clowns at the European Commission have voted to scrap the nonsense laws that dictate the exact shape, colour and size of our vegetables.

Our cucumbers will once more be curvy, our carrots rough and bananas bendier.

Worried by the credit crunch, high price of food and unnecessary wastage, EC bosses are set to reform the loopy legislation.

In case you forgot, here's one they made earlier:

"The thickness of the transverse section of the banana between the lateral faces and the middle, perpendicular to the longitudinal axis must be a minimum of 27mm ..."

Bananas!

I see they're planning to repeal the old laws that prohibit lunatics and idiots standing for parliament.

The law describes lunatics as people "only capable of periods of lucidity" and idiots as those "incapable of gaining reason".

Well, those laws have done a fat lot of good, then.

Seems to me that Parliament is filled with the very people the legislation sought to ban.

The use of the word "chav" shows a deep hatred of the working class and should be stamped out, according to a politically correct think-tank.

Tom Hampson, editorial director of the Fabian Society, says that the word is "sneering and patronising" but more and more widely used.

He has called on broadcasters to take class discrimination seriously, and compares 'chav' to terms of abuse such as "faggot" and "pikey".

In an article to be published in the Fabian Review, Mr Hampson says: "Some uses of some words fall below the threshold of acceptability and some are definitely above it.

"'Chav' is way above that threshold.

"It is deeply offensive to a largely voiceless group and - especially when used in normal middle-class conversation or on national TV - it betrays a deep and revealing level of class hatred."

He continues: "It is sneering and patronising and - perhaps most dangerous - it is distancing, turning the 'chav' into the kind of feral beast that exists only in tabloid headlines."

So that's that then, innit?

Gay gamers are pink with rage after Microsoft banned camp nicknames from its Xbox multiplayer service.

Censors have told users of its Xbox LIVE subscription service that names or tags with the word "gay" in them are no longer allowed, in case they cause offence.

The ban also covers straight people with the word "gay" in their surname.

Software engineer Richard Gaywood, 30, was told his name broke rules concerning "sexual innuendo" and was ordered to choose another tag.

Police sniffer dogs will soon have to wear bootees when searching the homes of Muslims, so as not to cause offence.

The Association of Chief Police Officers is drawing up politically-correct pooch guidelines because of increasing religious sensitivities.

It means that the specially trained sniffer dogs must boot up before searching for drugs and explosives.

Last week Tayside Police had to apologise after a Muslim councillor objected to a crime prevention poster featuring a German shepherd puppy.

In Islamic law although dogs are not regarded as impure, their saliva is.