AOG - "/// The prime example is - "I'm not being funny but ..." which absolutely assures you that what is to follow is going to show that the individual is indeed being 24-carrat 'funny' with bells on! ///
Maybe Andy, but this kind of thing has been brought on by the age we now live in, where a person feels it necessary to excuse themselves first before they make a statement, just in case someone happens to show offence at what that person said."
That may also be so AOG, but the way to conteract it is to state your opinion, and be willing to defend it, if challeneged.
An opinion that needs to be prefaced with an apology, either for holding or expressing it, is not worth holding or expressing in my opinion - it invites people to perceive that you don't really believe what you are saying.