The season of goodwill
By Steve Sharp
As we approach The Season of Goodwill and Peace on Earth to all men….and women… it seems the narrative is more hostile than ever.
Is it social media or are we simply less kind than we used to be?
Well Jeremy Clarkson didn’t use social media for his outburst last week, but rather his column in a popular daily newspaper.
He wrote that he “hated Megan Markle on a cellular level” which presumably means a lot. He went on to say that he was “dreaming of the day when she is paraded naked through the streets of every town in Great Britain while the crowds shout, ‘Shame’ and throw lumps of excrement at her”
After a widespread outcry, Clarkson issued a statement saying “Oh dear. I’ve rather put my foot in it.” And concluded, “I will be more careful in the future.”
Not exactly an apology.
One commentator on BBC Radio 4’s Moral Maze said of the fuss, “Clarkson v Markle is like France v Argentina, I don’t know who I want to lose!”
It could be said that Clarkson makes a living from being offensive, and that Megan makes hers from being offended, but either way it’s not very kind.
It begs the question, is freedom of speech the enemy of kindness?
Freedom of speech has certainly come back to bite him with thousands of press complaints and Twitter attacks matching and even surpassing his own rhetoric.
Piers Morgan often likes to give us the benefit of his opinion on such matters and other powerful men like Donald Trump and Elon Musk bless us with their contentious thoughts on a daily basis.
And lest we forget, it’s not just men that can spout bile willy nilly.
Miriam Margoyles said on live tv that she wanted Boris to die as he lay in hospital with Covid and uttered to Jeremy Hunt “FXXX you, you bxxxxxx” on Radio 4.
It was, however, a surprise to see the unspeakably kind New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern overheard calling an opposition leader an ‘arrogant pxxxk.’
“I apologise, it’s not something I should have said “she texted to him. “As my mum would say, if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it.”
To her credit she got then together with the target of her outburst, David Seymour, and framed a transcript of the remark from Hansard to auction off for a prostate cancer charity. The auction has just closed and has raised over NZD $100,000.
That’s the spirit!
Kindness, politeness, civility and especially chivalry appear to be in short supply and yet they are possibly the most appealing of human characteristics.
I was taught to have good manners and subscribe to ‘ladies first’ when it comes to opening doors serving food and the like.
Jacinda and I agree that it’s worth listening to your ‘inner mum’ especially at Christmas.
My wife and I are off to New Zealand to visit family shortly, so my next post will be from there.
With best wishes for the Season of Goodwill, and a very happy and healthy New Year to you.
Steve