From world-famous, extra dry – to worryingly moldy. That appears to be the sad trajectory of the quality of the sense of humor fostered, or even allowed, in the UK. And a recent victim happens to be a wine expert.
The authorities might easily end up having the last word and control over this aspect of speech in the prevailing culture – all the while apparently oblivious to the fact that humor and satire should be treated not only as the cornerstones of democracy but also, in the UK’s case, as a national treasure.
Adding to the ever-growing collection of items filed under censorship (but justified in a myriad of most often misleading ways) – is the case of a Waitrose supermarket chain’s wine expert, Ben Woods.
Woods claims that his employer launched an investigation into his online activities, which included him sharing a cartoon published by The Telegraph. The whole thing resulted in his suspension and disciplinary action.
Worth noting is that the cartoon is among the dozens of Wood’s other social media posts now under scrutiny, that identify him as a supporter of Reform UK, and of President Donald Trump.
“I believe to try to appease the left-wing mob, Waitrose have investigated my X timeline in order to find any they feel is suspicious,” he wrote on his blog.
One of the (re)posts reportedly under investigation is a Telegraph cartoon authored by Matt (Matthew Pritchett) – that features a teacher telling parents that their child is “falling behind in sex education” – because he “could only name 47 out of the 100 different genders.”
However, the entire thing seems to have been triggered by an X post by Woods, picked up by Elon Musk, which called for the dissolving of the current UK parliament and a snap election. And whoever heard of a citizen expressing such an opinion, in a democracy.
Apparently, Waitrose has not – and the “charges” against Woods, according to a fundraiser to help his legal battle against the employer’s actions, including voicing support for Tommy Robinson, who has been put in prison for “repeating libelous allegations against a Syrian refugee.”
Waitrose, however, highly likely unwittingly, demonstrated a glimmer of a sense of humor, when they reportedly cited their wine expert having “the smell of alcohol on his breath” as one of the reasons for launching the disciplinary proceedings.
The Free Speech Union said they are supporting Woods, adding that he is “one of 260 ordinary people we’re assisting right now who are being punished for their opinions.”
