"These are the days of PC and wonder (and Big Brother) - there are no exceptions, even for irony or context"
Yeah, but that's not true is it?
On Little Britain, Matt Lucas starred in a sketch where he was a driving instructor who used to be a policeman. At the end, he tells the learner:
'Now get out of here. You black b*stard.'
No one complained about that, because it was an ironic comment on police racism and, doubly, because of the context - he was saying it to a man who was white.
So, yes, there are exceptions for irony and context.