Shortly after completing his dictionary, Dr Samuel Johnson was visited by a delegation of London's "respectable womanhood".

They said: "Dr, we congratulate you on your exclusion of all indecent words". He said: "Ladies, I congratulate you on your persistence in looking them up"
As the late, great Christopher Hitchens put it:

"If people are determined to be offended - if they will climb up the ladder, balancing it precariously on their own toilet cistern, to be upset by what they see through the neighbour's bathroom window, there's nothing you can do".
We live in a world now in which it's not the left which chooses to take offence at literally everything under the sun. It's the right. Especially: the far right. Desperately searching for an excuse - no matter how pathetic or risible - to justify their hatred, their racism.
You may also care to note how these custodians of 'dignity and respect':

- Couldn't give a shit when austerity kills hundreds of thousands
- Couldn't give a shit when government incompetence and negligence kills at least 60,000
- Couldn't even give a shit about our veterans.
What happened in Reading yesterday was shocking. Appalling. Everyone's hearts go out to the families and friends ot those killed.

But for those on the far right, it's really not about that at all. It's about displaying their vile hatred for the whole world to see.
Sending a young Muslim woman death threats... for eating an ice lolly.

Next week, exactly the same hatemongers will be back telling us how Islam "hates women". Nope. YOU do. YOU hate women; and you especially hate brave, smart young women who call you out on your hatred.
Fuck you, you hideous bunch of snowflakes. And to @AyoCaesar: keep doing what you're doing. Their hatred is a sign that you're doing it right. 🙏
You can follow @shaunjlawson.
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