Online action is welcomed
Shout abuse at someone in the street and you risk an earful back from your victim, action from the police or even, depending on who you abuse, a punch on the nose for your troubles.
Launch that attack online and it is, for the large part, a free hit.
Keyboard warriors who fire barbs and brickbats at whoever irks them that morning have been hiding, largely untouched, in the undergrowth of the internet.
Free speech and opinion is all very well - and good for our society in many respects - but when those comments step into the realms of the criminal, we ignore them at our peril.
The Crown Prosecution Service has today sharpened the blade of their metaphorical legal scythe to cut those who step out of line down to size.
They have told prosecutors that online hate crimes should be treated as seriously as abuse committed face-to-face.
It is a move that is not only long overdue but one that should be welcomed across our community.
It doesn’t just protect the individual targeted by the abusers but the community as a whole.
Those attacked on social media need to know that they are protected by the rule of law. Abuse online is no different to abuse in the street.
An offensive tweet can be just as devastating as the spoken word ... and the vigour with which our legal authorities pursue offenders and the punishment meted out should be no less.
If left unchecked, online abuse can not only escalate, but be viewed by others as acceptable behaviour.
The new guidance for prosecutors on online hate abuse is welcomed. We only hope it is backed up by action ... and delivers bloody noses to the offenders.