Shooting off at the mouth

I am sick of people in the public eye saying something they really shouldn’t, like say our friend Mel, and then denying they think that way at all in an apology press release.

Dean Jones has just been sacked for calling a muslim South African cricket player a terrorist on air, and then in his press release said this…

"Everyone needs to get away from perpetuating the myth, publicly and privately, that beards associated with the Muslim faith are somehow suspicious, and I intend to do exactly that."

"It does not represent who I am, how I think or what I believe."

That is quite clearly just not true. The reality is neither Mel nor Dean would have said the things they did if they didn’t think them. It does nothing to advance the causes of social and religious harmony when those who hold prejudice just deny it, get drunk (or into a commentary box) and say offensive things, and then deny it again.

Perhaps by discussing prejudice, rather than denying it we might go some way to actually solving it. But not while a lie in a press release is all that is required to sweep the matter under the carpet.