Our friend the Count Randaccio-Lodi informs us that this business of "politically correct" communication has begun to affect the Italian language too. The Italian word for such talk is sinistrese, indicating its origin on the political left.

"Certain words are replaced by others giving a bad thing a nice sounding appearance (like gay for sodomite or progressive for communist). Trouble is that this game never ends since sooner or later the meaning catches up with the sound and a new word must be issued."

I know this curious affliction still afflicts the English-speaking world, despite its obvious foolishness, but I had not thought it had gone abroad just yet. We do not hear of it in German or French, but I suppose the time will come. 
   
Jeff Cooper
From Jeff Cooper's Commentaries
Vol. 4, No. 16
December 1996
[This is not something that originated in the U.S.  It's possible it has been around since humans had words.  I do know that I guy I know who came from Russia in the mid-'90s talked about his grandfather living under Stalin and they used the exact same phrase, "political correct speech", during that time.  I really don't have problem with it general as long as it doesn't end up being a crime of some sort, which it has in this country, to use the derogatory version.--Joe]