Carol Thatcher

Hello,

No doubt I'll pick up tomorrow's paper to read that Fern Britton has taken to erecting burning crosses in Brixton but is now sorry for any offence caused. But can we just give the outrage a rest please? It's getting tedious.



Mind you I must admit to being baffled by racists and their desire to foist their repellent opinions on the assembled company. It happens on the bus from time to time, they sit down and start banging on about 'pakis'. I very politely advise them that I'm not racist and that I find their views offensive and don't wish to listen to them and they either start complaining that they're being censored or backtrack.



At least these are folk who can barely read a sentence or it has to be said stand up straight but what on earth was Carol Thatcher thinking? I never cast the first sweary word in conversation to avoid causing unnecessary offence. Similarly I don't presumptiously call elderly folk by their first name unless invited to do so. In other words I tailor my conversation to suit the company. I'd been led to understand from the right wing papers that the BBC was a nest of pc lefties so why on earth did Carol Thatcher think no one would mind if she started bellowing about golliwogs? Does she have no social skills? I do wonder whether or not she'd have made the same remark to Tsonga himself and if not why not?


Frankly I'd have had more respect for her if she'd stood by her remarks but as far as I can tell she wants to have her cake and eat it by violating her employers code of conduct, one with which she evidently disagrees but still wants to stay on the payroll. Oh and another thing she might wish to reflect on the fact that she only is where she is today because of her mother and that means taking the rough with the smooth or developing an ability to muddle along in the work place and be judged accordinglyon one's own merits. She has been happy in the past to take work on the basis of being Thatcher offspring . In the circumstances is having it taken away as she is claiming on that basis any different?

Still the level of outrage being shown regarding all this is ludicrious and somewhat disproportionate. As far as I can tell most folk who were offended have said so and that's been that. In contrast other sections of of the press are behaving as if civililisation has ended because some folk find racially abusive language offensive. As far as I can tell what they seem to be demanding the freedom to say what they like without consequences. This of course would be the same press who were so understanding of Jade Goody and chums for their less offensive remarks towards Shilpa Shetty. Wrong sort of parents, I suppose.

All these recent scandals do make me wonder about the nations toffs though. What is it about race that gets them so excited? We have a fair old racial mix in this country these days it's hardly a novelty seeing someone that isn't white. I can't say I've ever had the urge to stroll into work and say 'Morning my little paki friend' to the girl at the next desk. I usually find using her name and the usual chit chat suffices. Similarly I can't say I feel any urge to knock my African neighbour's door and call them a golliwog. Are the toffs worried they'll forget what race someone is if they don't keep banging on about it.

I was perusing the comments on some report of this story which I have unfortunately lost the link to and some chap was going off the deep end about all the awful things black people call white people which apparently includes 'snowflake'. I honestly hadn't heard of this before and whilst I don't want to encourage racial abuse I must confess I think 'snowflake' is charming. It's lovely like the sort of thing an elderly lady might call one as you helped her on the bus. I'm genuinely quite tickled by that, so much so that I may start calling myself snowflake.

Right that's enough from me, I'm off to Istanbul to point at the foreigners.