Is "senior moment" now politically incorrect?

[jberryhill]

5. Life is full of risks

No one goes to jail for making a bad impression, and I doubt there is anyone who has never inadvertently offended someone.

One general rule concerning the social risk of potentially-offensive colloquialisms is whether you are in the company of complete strangers, whose sensitivities you would not know, or among friends who would forgive you for an inadvertent faux pas even if the expression was one they do not prefer.

Emotional intelligence is hard to quantify, and one frequently hears the complaints of persons with a determined lack of social skills concerning the workplace rules about "unwanted sexual advances" - well how do you know? Of course, if one is unable to gauge various contextual and social cues, which ability one may not have for various reasons, then it is probably safest to refrain from taking that risk in any event.

The "self referential" exception to potentially offensive expressions is a tricky one too. Dave Chappelle engaged in a lot of humor which some people found to be funny, and other people found to be offensive, regardless of the fact that he is an African American. YMMV.

Should you offend someone with this phrase, then just send me a PM and I will offer you my forgiveness and moral absolution upon receipt of $5 via paypal for each incident, if that will make you feel better. Otherwise, you might just offend someone, somewhere, sometime, and you'll have to live with the eternal shame of it.