“People need to be careful with their choice of words nowadays, and also retrospectively,” a reader says. “The reported resignation of a Boeing executive has been welcomed after he was found to have ‘opposed women in combat 33 years ago’. And Scrabble players’ associations are considering some 228 ‘slur’ words which may have to be disallowed including ‘wrinklies’ which can offend older people. ‘Colonial’ has already been expunged – what about the Queen Victoria building in Sydney, named after the great coloniser?”

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