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"a silly thing to say... I'm sure he didn't mean it".
says David Cameron.
Like Jonathan Ross do we have to continue letting the BBC waste our licence money on loud-mouthed buffoons and should the PM be covering his back for him?
Last edited by Chris Newman; 02-12-11, 11:05.
Reason: sp. our not out
Like Jonathan Ross do we have to continue letting the BBC waste out licence money on loud-mouthed buffoons and should the PM be covering his back for him?
donner und blitzen worrever appened to free speech? .... thought police and pc monitors popping outa the woodwork all over ..... it was unsubtle, it was gross, it may even be inapropriate at that time of night in front of the nippers [nippers do not go to bed at all early btw] and he might be a toenail etc but why must he not say it?
one of the virtues of a free society is that schoolboys of any age can mouth off
According to the best estimates of astronomers there are at least one hundred billion galaxies in the observable universe.
I'm surprised the BBC apologised. They usually point out that people know what to expect by way of jokes from Clarkson and no offence was intended. Whereas anyone would be able to work out, I'd have thought, that his sole purpose in opening his mouth is to offend. A bad day for Chipping Norton yesterday ...
It isn't given us to know those rare moments when people are wide open and the lightest touch can wither or heal. A moment too late and we can never reach them any more in this world.
Although no fan of Clarkson, I wonder how much of this is a response to the reporting of the incident, rather than the incident itself.
Clarkson also said he thought the strike was absolutely fabulous. His 'joke' was aimed at the BBC's desire to maintain balance in any political discussion and he quite clearly signalled that, in order to provide this balance, he was giving alternative and opposing views of the strike; firstly, that it was all fabulous and secondly, that they should all be shot. It was quite clear that he was not professing either of these views as personal opinions.
His, admittedly feeble, joke was not even aimed at the strikers, but at the BBC.
The speed with which Union leaders were keen to express outrage and waste money on expensive lawyers was depressing, if predictable. It was also sadly predictable that various labour politicians would quickly jump on the bandwagon and express their own personal disgust.
'silly' seems to be an apt summary of the whole debacle from beginning to end.
"I do not approve of anything that tampers with natural ignorance. Ignorance is like a delicate exotic fruit; touch it and the bloom is gone. The whole theory of modern education is radically unsound. Fortunately in England, at any rate, education produces no effect whatsoever. If it did, it would prove a serious danger to the upper classes, and probably lead to acts of violence in Grosvenor Square."
Lady Bracknell The importance of Being Earnest
However, whether we like it or not, his right-wing views probably represent a significant proportion of those of 'the people' and as Calum says there is a real issue of free speech here. Even bar-room bores like Clarkson have a right to bore and say something nasty about others. We all do from time to time, the trouble is that Clarkson seems to do it all the time. Anybody with a semblance of a brain would have learned from calling Broon 'a one-eyed Scottish idiot', and moderated his language, especially when it is widely known he is a close friend of the PM.
Just ignore the guy. He obviously doesn't have a brain and I'm genuinely surprised the BBC still employ him for that very reason alone.
Although no fan of Clarkson, I wonder how much of this is a response to the reporting of the incident, rather than the incident itself.
Clarkson also said he thought the strike was absolutely fabulous. His 'joke' was aimed at the BBC's desire to maintain balance in any political discussion and he quite clearly signalled that, in order to provide this balance, he was giving alternative and opposing views of the strike; firstly, that it was all fabulous and secondly, that they should all be shot. It was quite clear that he was not professing either of these views as personal opinions.
His, admittedly feeble, joke was not even aimed at the strikers, but at the BBC.
The speed with which Union leaders were keen to express outrage and waste money on expensive lawyers was depressing, if predictable. It was also sadly predictable that various labour politicians would quickly jump on the bandwagon and express their own personal disgust.
'silly' seems to be an apt summary of the whole debacle from beginning to end.
LHC, you've said it all there
"...the isle is full of noises,
Sounds and sweet airs, that give delight and hurt not.
Sometimes a thousand twangling instruments
Will hum about mine ears, and sometime voices..."
Well, those who saw the One Show are in a far better position to judge, that's for sure, and the rest of us can only go by the news reports and the fact that even the PM described the remarks as 'silly'.
If Clarkson was merely joking and being sarcastic he is now 'suffering' because of his extreme remarks in the past?
So, even if he only meant it as a joke, he really has only himself to blame ...
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