Monday 27 April 2009

Righteous Commandment Number Three: Thou Shalt Not...

....express thy opinion on anything in the UK today.

Even if you appear on a programme where you are asked questions, it seems:
David Starkey has provoked fury by describing Scotland, Wales and Ireland as 'feeble little' countries.

The acid-tongued historian also said Scottish poet Robert Burns was 'deeply boring' and dismissed bagpipes as 'awful'.
Well, you might say, he’s entitled to his opinion. And I have to agree with him on the bagpipes, at least!

But it seems that some people ‘took offense’ and would like to prevent such opinions from sullying their ears in future:
The comments on BBC1's Question Time prompted a backlash from viewers and politicians, who called them 'silly', 'offensive' and 'disrespectful'.
You know, it takes two – one to give offense, the other to take it.

And ‘disrespectful’...? Sheesh...
Scotland's culture and external affairs minister Mike Russell accused him of simply creating controversy to attract publicity.
Which by your outburst, you’ve promptly given him, you cretin...
Russell Brown, Labour MP for Dumfries and Galloway, where Burns lived for many years and is buried, said: 'Starkey should apologise to Scotland.
All of them? Individually?
Starkey's agent last night insisted he would not be making an apology, adding: 'I don't think David has anything further to add at this stage.'
Other than ‘Get a life, idiots’, one presumes...

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

How I long for English independece.I've lived in both Scotland and Wales and know just how much they despise us.Of course it is perfectly acceptable to knock us though isn't it.

Dr Melvin T Gray said...

I do not recall the same Scottish outrage towards the cultural gaffes of Philippos of Greece and Denmark. A demand for David Starkey to be tawsed to death can only be attributed to his capacity for forethought.

Mark Wadsworth said...

Q - Why do bagpipe bands march while they are playing?

A - To try and get away from the awful noise.

Q - What's the difference between an onion and a set of bagpipes?

A - Nobody cries if you cut up a set of bagpipes.

Edwin Greenwood said...

"Starkey's agent last night insisted he would not be making an apology, adding: 'I don't think David has anything further to add at this stage."

Starkey is a bit of a professional curmudgeon, and I am not noted as one of his most committed admirers, but full marks to him for this response. Most public figures in his position would be rushing out an apology along the lines of

"Mr Molestrangler apologized for any offence that may have been caused. He insisted that he is not racist and that the remarks were taken out of context. When he said that 'The Scots are bunch of whingeing mean-spirited resentful transvestites living off English hand-outs', this was in fact no more than an ironic and ultimately respectful reference to the ancient sport of wild haggis hunting'. Mr Molestrangler is 94."

Stan said...

Starkey was out of order.

I like the bagpipes.

Rob Farrington said...

God help him if he ever says anything about Liverpudlians...

ScotsToryB said...

I watched the programme and laughed out loud at his comments.

Offence? None taken: long live free speech etc.

@dmc Only in your little bigoted brain do we despise you; I admit their are people in most countries who despise other countries' natives but they normally condemn themselves by their outpourings.

See what I did there?

STB.

ScotsToryB said...

Oops, strike their(x2) replace with there.

STB

JuliaM said...

"God help him if he ever says anything about Liverpudlians..."

I guess Starkey isn't that much of a controversialist...! ;)

Anonymous said...

ScotsToryB
Thankyou for your petty slur about my little bigoted brain.
When I moved to Scotland in the 70s I thought myself British,had lived happily with Jamaican friends so not racist(before you call me that next)so imagine my suprise and disappointment to be labeled immigrant and settler,English are scum.Was told I would soon need passport,but when I mentioned there were far more scots in England than English in Scotland was threatened for telling the truth.
If I am bigoted then it is your fellow countrymen that have done this.Plus you even have a political party that wants indepedence,we haven't.When I ask for English independence you don't like it,why is it alright for you but not allowed for us.