Jittery UK police ban word 'blacklist' for being racist

In the U.K., where one racial incident can spark riots capable of razing entire neighborhoods, it's easy to understand why watching your language is important, but is the word "blacklist" really a racial slur? It is according to top brass at Scotland Yard. The word, along with "whitelist," has been blackballed in the police's IT department in a case of political correctness perhaps gone too far. A Scotland Yard spokesman explains that the ban "reflects a more appropriate use of language in a professional, policing environment." OK, but we can think of lots of words that are far more offensive in a country where creative cursing is something of a national pastime.