EQUALITY FOR OWN SAKE

WE ARE rapidly approaching a point at which the PC Brigade has achieved the upper-hand, imposing its skewed vision of equality for its own sake.

Yes, society has evolved. Religious tolerance, votes for all, emancipation in many different forms, all introduced within living memory.

Significantly, none of these crucial changes were engineered by vociferous (sometimes violent) pressure groups attempting to dictate to others.

Punch and Judy is a long-standing piece of traditional, irreverent British humour. It may not be to everybody’s taste – though ‘taste’ is quite possibly an inappropriate word to use in this context.

But anyone who feels sufficiently motivated by their political opinions, and objects to the content of this one specific example of traditional holiday entertainment has the simple choice of not buying a ticket to watch the show.

Attempting to introduce legislation banning such performances is not democratic in any shape or form.

The origins of the show date back centuries, all the way to the Italian Commedia Del’ Arte.

Neither the audience nor the puppeteers take it as a serious dramatic work, bearing a hidden message of any sort.

Are those who protest so naïve and literal-minded they honestly believe we are in danger of being morally brainwashed and corrupted in our thinking by a couple of inanimate wooden puppets?

I can think of at least a dozen (alleged) comedians whose material is far more offensive – some of them are incapable of constructing a sentence which does not include a continuous stream of foul language.

Making it illegal to laugh? Sounds frighteningly close to the scenario predicted in George Orwell’s classic book 1984.