You would think that, as the card-carrying town liberal, I would be all about political correctness, and as a general proposition, I suppose I do prefer civil speech to inflammatory rhetoric demeaning any individual or minority group.

However, there are limits beyond which the socially responsible becomes the patently absurd.

Derek Daly is an Irish-born former Indy 500 driver and current racing analyst.

According to press accounts, in the early 1980s, shortly after immigrating from Ireland, in the course of an interview, Daly, now 65 years old, made reference to being the “n—– in the woodpile.” As he now explains, the thought he was trying to convey was that, as the newest addition to his racing team, and a foreigner to boot, he would “shoulder the blame and become the scapegoat” should anything go wrong for the team. Unfortunately, to express himself, he used a phrase that, while not uncommon almost 40 years ago, was unfortunate then, and is even more reprehensible today.

There is, however, no evidence the newly transplanted Irishman had any malicious or race-baiting intent. As he is now quoted as saying, “After moving to the United States, I quickly learned what a derogatory term it was. …When I was first informed of this, I was mortified at the offense I might have caused people. I have therefore never used the word since. I made this mistake once, but never again.

Daly’s exculpatory explanation rings true.

Different countries have different colloquial expressions. At the time, the phrase in question was in common usage in Ireland, Britain, and Australia, as well as in the good old U.S. of A. When Daly used the phrase, there is no evidence he understood, or intended, a racial slur, although Americans, even at the time, could construe it as such.

I am sensitive to colloquialisms being misunderstood. My dad was totally prim and proper. An off-color phrase or word would never pass his lips. Nevertheless, while we were traveling with my folks, he once asked the missus when she would like to have him knock her up.

In colloquial Scots vernacular, the phrase to “knock someone up” simply meant “When would you like me to wake you up in the morning?” Suffice it to say, being “knocked up” in America has a somewhat different meaning!

Obviously, we cut my dad some slack on this one. I think in any rational universe, Mr. Daly should also be cut some slack for his unwitting use of a racially charged phrase almost 40 years ago.

But the world of extreme political correctness, “rational” is not necessarily part of the lexicon.

When Bob Lamey, voice of the Colts for over 30 years, recently repeated the story, he was allowed to fall on his sword and retire. As for Derek Daly, when the story hit the street, the local Indianpolis TV station for whom Daly provided racing analysis immediately severed all ties with him.

The Colts and the TV station can proclaim their political correctness bona fides, but I think their reaction is an over-reaction of the first order that gives ammunition to those who prefer to be politically incorrect.

I suppose a political correctness zealot could take the position that, since Mr. Daily admitted to using the phrase, he deserves to be socially pilloried despite the circumstances surrounding an incident immediately regretted, for which apologies were made, that occurred the better part of 40 years ago.

But there is more.

Derek Daly has a son, Conor. Conor, who has Type One diabetes, is also a race driver, trying to work his way up through the various racing circuits, hoping to make it to the big show. One of his sponsors was Eli Lilly, the pharmaceutical giant based in Indianapolis that describes itself as “a leader in diabetes care for over 90 years.”

When the story of Derek Daly’s alleged transgression broke, Lilly withdrew its sponsorship of Conor Daly’s car.

A Lilly spokesman rationalized the company’s action: “Our sponsorship in Saturday’s race is intended to raise awareness of treatment options and resources for people living with diabetes. Unfortunately, the comments that surfaced this week by Derek Daily distract from this focus, so we have made the decision that Eli Lilly will no longer run the No. 6 at Road America this weekend.”

Now folks, and be prepared for use of an expletive, Conor Daly didn’t do a damn thing to merit Lilly’s action. The sin, if it was a sin, was that of the father, not the son.

Whichever public relations flack sold the Eli Lilly decision makers on this strategy should be fired, as in, yesterday. If the sponsor was worried about distracting from the message of its drugs, its withdrawal of sponsorship made the withdrawal the big story, not the diabetes drugs and treatment Lilly wished to peddle.

This unseemly rush to take action, any action, in pursuit of political correctness is absurd. I repeat, it only gives ammunition to those who revel in incivility.

We are in an era where we are only a tweet away from further alienating segments of our population one from the other because of an inflammatory or intemperate post. Taking political correctness to irrational extremes does no good, and much harm. Perhaps a rational sensitivity to political correctness would spread some healing oil on increasingly troubled waters.