Now they want knighthoods to be revoked for satirical columns

Kate Hawkesby writes:

Boom, just like that, the debate over freedom of speech versus hate speech has reignited over a column penned by the notoriously controversial Sir Bob Jones.

And when I say “notoriously controversial” – I’m hoping he doesn’t sue me for saying that. Freedom of speech and all.

Anyway, the upshot is, we have a petition, a petition to strip him of his knighthood. It’s been signed by 40,000 odd people, or as Sir Bob would call them, “losers”.

His knighthood was awarded to him for services to business management and community in 1989.

Thirty years ago.

 

And now “tens of thousands of people” want that taken off him.

Well, it’s just not going to happen.

Of course it won’t be.

And nor should it.

The speech police think satire they dislike is grounds for removing honours.

Petitions are a good way of venting your spleen or exercising your outrage all the way into a signature, but they don’t affect any real change.

They didn’t save Campbell Live and they didn’t get Mike Hosking axed from hosting the election, and they won’t take Bob Jones’ knighthood off him.

I bet you its the same group of people signing all three of those petitions!

The most effective way to regulate speech is to hold the platforms who peddle it accountable. Stripping a man of a 30-year-old title awarded for business, just because you didn’t like his “satire”, doesn’t actually change anything.

It’s just petty. Don’t like him, take his award off him. It’s our knee-jerk tall poppy reaction to all things. Get offended, smack down the hand of whoever offended you.

It is petty indeed.