Radio One’s decision to bleep the f word out of perennial Christmas hit Fairytale of New York, was stupid and incomprehensible. The subsequent decision to unbleep it in response to public opinion was patronising and added insult to injury. The Political Correctness police at the BBC have decided us proles can have our bit of Christmas fun so long as we all promise to be very very good once the holiday is over, after all the song uses the word in a very non – homophobic way.
Even more annoying than the intervention of the Political Correctness Police was the subsequent intervention of the self appointed homophobia tsar Peter Tatchell. The arch-screamer Tatchell, a man who mission has set back the cause of gay acceptance by 30 years, launched into his usual self-pitying whine, claiming it is wrong and offensive to use the word faggot ever because it is insulting to gay men.
What, even when ordering a meal of meatballs and peas in the Midlands or South? (we call them Savoury Ducks in the north, surely an offence under the trade descriptions act.) Even when cutting timber into logs for the fire? Even when referring to an unattractive middle aged woman, although it is rarely used in that sense these days.
The whinging shirt-lifter seems so determined to find something to whine about he overlooks the fact faggot as slang for pouf, queer, queen etc. is an Americanism and rarely used in this country. So what
the truculent turd-burglar whinging about? We have plenty of derogatory words and phrases for gay men without needing to import any from the U.S. of A.
Now just in case any literally-minded types look in and think of accusing me of being homophobic, I’m not. They gay community make a huge contribution to our national life and their presence should be not merely tolerated but celebrated. But as with any group whose lifestyle varies from the norm, occasionally people will say something that may be interpreted as offensive but is merely thoughtless. Like when somebody makes a crack about short people in my presence.
I could run round complaining but instead choose to be grown up about it. Even if they did mean me, they probably did not mean to offend. And if they did mean to offend am I not winning by not being offended?
When I was younger and had darker hair I was often thought to be “a bit paki” (only in London though.) When that was reported in an old post somebody told me it was my duty to be offended.
Why?
I had one Indian Great Grandmother and a mixed race Grandma. So what? I’m more British than most of those low life, pikey bastards who called me a paki and so I chose to be grown up about it.
Choosing to be grown up is something self pitying whingers like Peter Tatchell should try. If he gets upset just because in a pop song the word faggot is thrown as an insult by a fictional woman at her fictional husband he ought to be glad he does not live in a nation where not insults but stones are thrown at gay men.
This blog would never support calls to stone Peter Tatchell for being gay. His dodgy dress sense, now that’s a different matter.