I have some sympathy for the idea of political correctness. At its heart lies a message of kindness to your fellow man (or woman). Be nice to each other or else people will frown and you'll find it slightly embarrassing. It has, of course, become de rigueur to take the piss out of political correctness as it is usually uttered with its standard suffix: 'gone mad'. Even this in itself might be considered not politically correct, after all it could be offensive to those who really have gone mad (I mean, those who are suffering some from a mental illness).

These faintly amusing jokes can go on for ever, and they frequently do. Still, many people's daily lives are blighted by a little too much political correctness, and many of us automatically correct for it as a matter of course. Still there's good news, there's one last bastion of our mental lives still holding up against the onslaught of PCness: our dreams.

Research from the University of Mannheim reports we are still resolutely non-PC in the things that we tend to dream about. Men like to dream about other men, violence, sex, cars and weapons while women dream about food, clothing and personal appearance.

Enjoy it while you can though because it's probably only a matter of time before some sort of smart drug is introduced to ensure an equal opportunities policy while you sleep.

Making Habits, Breaking Habits

In his new book, Jeremy Dean--psychologist and author of PsyBlog--looks at how habits work, why they are so hard to change, and how to break bad old cycles and develop new healthy, creative, happy habits.

→ "Making Habits, Breaking Habits", is available now on Amazon.

Reviews
The Bookseller, “Editor’s Pick,” 10/12/12 “Sensible and very readable…By far the most useful of this month’s New You offerings.”

Kirkus Reviews, 1/1/13 “Making changes does take longer than we may expect—no 30-day, 30-pounds-lighter quick fix—but by following the guidelines laid out by Dean, readers have a decent chance at establishing fulfilling, new patterns.”

Publishers Weekly, 12/10/12 “An accessible and informative guide for readers to take control of their lives.”

→ You can dip into the first chapter, or check it out on Amazon.com.