Bully for you, sexists, your time is up
ANT Middleton is pleading the latest, go-to defence of every macho relic who is accused of demeaning women.
All I was doing, guv, was acting like a proper fella used to before snowflakes took over the world and tried to neuter us blokes with their Pc-gone-mad wokeness.
And, just like the testosteroneproducing glands that fuel his alpha maleness, it’s a load of balls.
When I started work in the late 1970s, sexual harassment by a certain type of inadequate male was given an easy ride. Women who objected to being pawed at, or embarrassed by comments, were basically told if you can’t hack it in a man’s world then work in a typing pool or stay at home with the kids.
But the vast majority of us men never felt the need to demean or frighten female colleagues with macho “banter”. Let alone, as Middleton does when called out, defend it on the lines of women needing to get over themselves.
Thankfully that vile atmosphere of 40 years ago is vanishing fast because younger generations realise masculinity is not defined by bragging about the number of sexual conquests they’ve had or the size of their biceps. It’s more about intelligence, sensitivity, compassion.
Middleton seeks to defend allegations against him by saying the “PC Patrol” have taken over, making the world less authentic. But he couldn’t be more wrong. The old, sexist world that protected men like him has become less acceptable.
Most men today engage the brain, not the brawn. Maybe he should give it a go.
As they say: Who cares, wins.