The Air Force fears that words like boy, girl, colonial and blacklist might offend people, according to an email sent to Airmen at Joint Base San Antonio. An outraged Airman sent me a copy of the email as evidence the military is still infected with Obama-era political correctness. The email included an attachment that listed a number of words and phrases that might be construed as offensive. Now, to be fair there were some legitimately offensive and racially charged words and phrases on the list. But also included on the list were the words boy and girl. The email was written by a senior Air Force leader and was sent to an untold number of personnel at Lackland Air Force Base. Airmen were advised to study a list of words and phrases that “may be construed offensive.” Here’s a partial list of the dubious words and phrases deemed troublesome by the Air Force:

• Boy

• Girl

• You People

• Colonial

• Blacklist

• Blackmail

• Blackball

• Sounds Greek to me

• Blondes have more fun

• Too many chiefs, not enough Indians

“Please be cognizant that such conduct is 100 percent zero tolerance in or outside of the work climate,” the email read. “Let’s capitalize on our richly diverse climate, and help others seek assistance if they are struggling with compliance.” Based on my interpretation of the email, it’s pretty clear that Airmen have been advised not to use those words in any sort of context — on or off base. So I reached out to the public affairs office at Lackland to find out why they had a problem with the words boy and girl. Was it true that the Air Force had banned those words?

“The Air Force has no list of prohibited terms,” a public affairs spokesperson told me. “It was sent out by an individual simply reminding Airmen to be respectful to others.” Apparently, the words “100 percent zero tolerance” don’t have the same meaning in Air Force vernacular. This is a case of the Air Force getting caught red-handed trying to advance a politically correct agenda. And now that I’ve got a copy of the evidence, it is attempting to whitewash the situation. It’s time for Defense Secretary James Mattis to root out political correctness in the Armed Forces. We must never again allow the greatest fighting force on the planet to be used as a social engineering petri dish.

The Airmen I know are brave men and women who are devoted to their calling to protect our great nation. I sincerely doubt they give two hoots about political correctness. That being said, there could be one or two folks in the military who contracted microaggressions that were triggered by someone uttering the words “boy” or “girl.” Perhaps those individuals might consider seeking treatment for their affliction inside a designated safe space at a nearby public university instead of Joint Base San Antonio.