Home Secretary James Cleverly criticised over drink spiking joke

[Nearly Sane]

He's an arse, but then we already knew that. I'm a bit baffled as to what Labour think it is if not a joke. It's not an excuse, it's just what it is. It's a crap joke, that he shouldn't have made given his position but it's still a joke.


https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-67813689

[SteveH]

Quite - a bit tasteless, but not worth getting upset about.

[Gordon]

Jimmy Dimly lowers his game - yet again. 

[Nearly Sane]

Quite - a bit tasteless, but not worth getting upset about.

I think it's worth pointing out that someone in his position shouldn't have said it, and that he has form for saying this he shouldn't have said.

[SqueakyVoice]

There have been lots of reports about how many police have  sexually abused their recent partners and how many use their powers to sexually abuse other women.

I think it's worth pointing out that someone in his position shouldn't have said it, and that he has form for saying this he shouldn't have said.

I agree.

There are senior police who've said they want to bring down that 'culture'(?) from top to bottom.
Now, look at the top.

[Nearly Sane]

There have been lots of reports about how many police have  sexually abused their recent partners and how many use their powers to sexually abuse other women.
I agree.

There are senior police who've said they want to bring down that 'culture'(?) from top to bottom.
Now, look at the top.

I'm annoyed at Labour screwing this up. They should have said we know that it was a joke, we know he didn't mean it but he's Home Secretary.

[Aruntraveller]

I'm not getting your criticism of the Labour party here, NS.

The report linked has both Yvette Cooper and Alex Davies-Jones acknowledge that it is an "appalling joke" and "banter".

So they did say it was a joke in the article you linked to.

And the last line is surely correct:

"The 'banter' needs to stop and it has to start at the top."

Which is surely exactly what you argued for with this:

They should have said we know that it was a joke, we know he didn't mean it but he's Home Secretary.

[Nearly Sane]

I'm not getting your criticism of the Labour party here, NS.

The report linked has both Yvette Cooper and Alex Davies-Jones acknowledge that it is an "appalling joke" and "banter".

So they did say it was a joke in the article you linked to.

And the last line is surely correct:

"The 'banter' needs to stop and it has to start at the top."

Which is surely exactly what you argued for with this:

The report has been edited since I first put it up. In that version Alex Davies-Jones was quoted as saying that it was ridiculous that Cleverly was rolling out the old excuse that it was a joke.

[SqueakyVoice]

The report has been edited since I first put it up. In that version Alex Davies-Jones was quoted as saying that it was ridiculous that Cleverly was rolling out the old excuse that it was a joke.

Alex Davies-Jones, the shadow minister for domestic violence and safeguarding, said: “‘It was a joke’ is the most tired excuse in the book and no one is buying it."

(Full article available  on the Grauniad / Observer).How funny is repeatedly drugging your wife to the point she won't  be able to resist or remember  being raped?

[Nearly Sane]

(Full article available  on the Grauniad / Observer).How funny is repeatedly drugging your wife to the point she won't  be able to resist or remember  being raped?

It isn't funny but saying it wasn't in some sense a joke when it was means you lose effectiveness in challenging it. The point is that it's a lousy tasteless joke, not that it's not a joke which is what the statement implies.

[SqueakyVoice]

It isn't funny but saying it wasn't in some sense a joke when it was means you lose effectiveness in challenging it. The point is that it's a lousy tasteless joke, not that it's not a joke which is what the statement implies.

"It was a joke" is used time after time, try Russell Brand for starters. 
 
https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/lily-allen-russell-brand-noel-fielding-b2447288.html   Shouldn't this sort of "joke" be made much, much less acceptable and (again) shouldn't that start at the top?

Police receive an average of 561 reports of spiking a month, with the majority being made by women, typically after incidents in or near bars and nightclubs, according to a Home Office report.
 

(Other links are available if needed. Just ping me a message.)

[Nearly Sane]

"It was a joke" is used time after time, try Russell Brand for starters. 
 
https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/news/lily-allen-russell-brand-noel-fielding-b2447288.html   Shouldn't this sort of "joke" be made much, much less acceptable and (again) shouldn't that start at the top?
(Other links are available if needed. Just ping me a message.)

I'm obviously not being clear. It was a joke thar was tasteless that the Home Secretary should not have made, and that given he has form on this is worrying.

The best way to make an effective challenge on this though is not to go down the route that Alex Davies-Jones did initially that it was in some sense not meant as a joke. All then that happens is that it gives power to the 'it was just a joke' line.

Given the change in the BBC report from when I put it up to when Aruntraveller read it, I wonder if the Labour Party suggested to the BBC that the most pertinent points were that it was an unacceptable comment from a Home Secretary as a joke and that the intention to make a joke of it was a problem.