The one word you don’t want to get wrong
A wide-eyed Alberici realises her mistake
Dr Mumbo is always a fan of politics-as-farce. Particularly when it goes beyond anything that might be realistic for a sitcom script.
The idea that a minister who hospitalised himself after Tony Abbott’s drunken spill party, would then get tanked up in Hong Kong and have to resign over inappropriate interactions with a young female member of staff stretches it a bit.
(And Dr Mumbo belatedly salutes the Daily Telegraph for its “Briggs Trouble in Little China” headline, by the way.)
Even less realistic that a second minister could then find themselves on the front pages a few days later by referring to Sunday Telegraph political editor Samantha Maiden as a “mad fucking witch” over her coverage of the affair and accidentally texting the insult to the target.
Which you’d think would make all concerned with the story tread exceptionally carefully. For instance, you wouldn’t want to get the words “bitch” and “witch” mixed up. Not when the word “bitch was so politically loaded because of Tony Abbott’s “ditch the bitch” faux pas.
But the ABC News Breakfast’s Emma Alberici managed it.
Welcome to day four.
{quote] Even less realistic that a second minister could then find themselves on the front pages a few days later..[unquote]
Supposition him/herself, known gender him’ or herself
The PC attempted chewing gum fix for the grammatical absence of a common gender, has forced the misuse of “their” instead of his or his/hers. However, “themselves” in place of “himself ” where the gender is known to be male, is simply over stating the PC cringe, and supporting the as yet weak, but growing assumption, that as long as it’s a man getting ignored, it is acceptable journalism.
I maintain that the inclusion of trans, duel and unidentified gender when unknown, supports the absence of a common gender, and supports the use of him/his, or her/hers, to represent all.
Witch/Bitch? what is the difference they are both pejoratives? one may be worse than the other in the minds of some, historically the accusation of the former was once enough to get a woman burned live.