to consider Prime Minister's quip re Torrettes as beyond the pale?

[sovreign]

Everyone has a bad day and no one can be pleasant all the time. I accept that men are sexist and just raised my eyes at the 'calm down dear' in House of Commons. But to stoop to using Torrettes as name calling device for your opposition is surely beyond the pale. Coming from a man who would have us all believe that he tended his son with a disability, the only conclusion I can make is that Cameron is suffering from stress and isn't fit to look after our children.

The fact that DC paraded his son to every camera he could find in order to gain the favour of carers nationwide, the fact that he did very much portray himself as understanding the needs of carers and fashioned himself as some kind of defender of the disabled means that yes those of us with disabled children now feel seriously fucked off at the fact he has screwed us every which way.

And yes i would expect someone who himself has had to deal with the discrimination the disabled receive should have a better understanding of the offence such a comment could cause.

it is troubling that there is so much (righteous) uproar about DA's comment, yet this has gone completely unnoticed. It is because in todays society the disabled are seen as nothing but an expensive irritant. And much of that has come from DC himself. His campaign to make the world believe that the DLA is paid to lazy fakers has lead people to be suspicious, or to assume we are over reacting.

His comment was saying that to sit opposite a person with tourretts would be distracting, irritating and annoying.

How can that not be offensive?

WhingingNinja very good post and well said

Very bad taste comment fron DC but very bad taste OP too.

the op doesn't run the country though D scam does. he is supposed to be an educated man, yet he once again just acted like a uneducated twat

Ed Balls does have a disability - he has a stammer.
It's a disability which affects his communication style, and for some people stammering can include facial, or or other ticks. The comment about tourettes is a bit close to the mark, and I'm pleased he's apologised.

He used interruption/disruption and tourettes as a simile and as a statement of fact. It wasn't scripted, it was an off the cuff comment that has been pounced upon and used out of context. I don't believe for one minute it was meant to be offensive or discriminatory.

Have seen far more offensive comments on here; he has apologised and everyone needs to move on.

His 'off thge cuff' remarks are always so illuminating. They give a much clearer representation of his thinking then the guff his speechwriters feed him.

He apologised? What, he was really, truly, genuinely, from the bottom of his heart sorry?

Well, the OP has gone off to name change never be seen again, probably.
UABFU, especially with Both sexes are sexist; that's why you have your hair cut love
WTAF?

"Coming from a man who would have us all believe that he tended his son with a disability"

- oooh dear you messed up there!

What were you moralising about?

I agree with you, Edam and Whinging. I have a child with Tourettes and Cameron's comment shows the usual ignorance of the condition. It's no more acceptable for him to use Tourettes as a comparison than it would be for him to use any other disability. Unfortunately, people still laugh at Tourettes because it very occasionally includes calling out swear words and insults. It's actually a miserable condition to have and usually brings with it associated learning disabilities and conditions. Personally, it hurts me to hear someone be so offhand about it and someone in Cameron's position should know better.

Exactly Sauvignon. The man is a nasty piece of work IMO.

That's it fooffy - that's the thing about modern politics that really grinds my gears. You can basically say what you like as long as you say sorry afterwards and there seems to be no follow-up on the fact that these aren't 'gaffes' - they're sometimes expressions of people's true thoughts and feelings.

In this case, DC - I don't believe he is disablist because of his son. Yet his policies and actions have done nothing but demonise the disabled (and see ninja above). And the use of disablist and sexist insults leads me to believe that he is smug and pompous and over-privileged and that his 'trust me' shtick is all rubbish. But I knew that anyway, I guess.

WhingingNinja - "His comment was saying that to sit opposite a person with tourretts would be distracting, irritating and annoying."

But it would be.

Don't tell me you wouldn't find it so.

However, you can be understanding about a condition, and therefore withstand those feelings.

I wear a hearing aid. I don't tell everyone that I wear one, and I don't always catch what people say the first time, and you can see people thinking "What is she, deaf?"

Ummm...yes, actually. But offended? No because it is the truth. I know it is annoying speaking to me in certain situations (large echoing rooms are worst...but lots of children in a classroom, no problem.)

Soon, you won't be able to make comments about anything..... "is he mad?" (offensve to "mad "people), " they are so fat/skinny" (sizeist), even "what planet is he on?"(alienist) because someone ,somewhere will be "offended", even if it is the truth.

My feeling is everyone should just calm down.

The fact that DC paraded his son to every camera he could find in order to gain the favour of carers nationwide...

Utter bollocks.

I agree the likelihood is he isn't disabilist just unutterably ignorant. (although recent policies with regards to those with a disabity and carers do make me wonder)

He's apologised, move on. We all know full well an advisor dashed over in sweat. "you fucked up Dave. Here's an apology on a flash card. Quick, save yer skin". Incident brushed under the carpet. Until the next one.

Actually, jam, sitting opposite someone with Tourettes might not be in the slightest bit distracting, irriating and annoying. That's why it shows such ignorance of the condition. People with Tourettes do not spend all their time shouting out, swearing and having motor tics. They go through tic-free periods. Their tics may be so subtle as to be unnoticeable. They often succeed in changing an 'irritating' tic to something that can't be noticed by other people, usually causing great stress to themselves in the process. It is often the comorbid conditions (ADHD, OCD and so on) that cause them more problems in life and, possibly, cause more 'irritation' to those around them.

I'm sorry, but witnessing what my son has had to go through in his short life and what he still has to go through on a daily basis makes me really very angry about comments like this.

Jamdonut - Well put!!

ToffeeWhirl

As Jamdonut says - you can still be understanding about a condition despite having feelings of irritation at the negative aspects to it.

Has DC apologised? All I've seen is a 'spokesperson' saying 'apologies for any offence'. That's not DC speaking and it's not a proper apologies - 'any' offence my arse, of course it's offensive and a proper apology would acknowledge that.

a proper apology, I meant, I do know the difference between singular and plural (most of the time)!

Well, maybe it's a sore point because most people aren't understanding about Tourettes, Animation, whereas they do tend to be understanding about being deaf. In fact, people think Tourettes is so funny that there is now a petition set up by Tourettes Action to 'stop turning Tourettes into a joke'.

I do tend to find that "off the cuff" ie. unrehearsed comments tell you much about the real person

It goes back to "when somebody tells who they are, you would be wise to listen"

Camoron is making quite a habit of these unguarded lapses in taste and discretion isn't he ?

This kind of scenario where it just skips off the tongue with such ease is the very worst imo. Agree shows who he really is. Superior and with a sense of the untouchable

agree with noddy and AF, nothing he says really surprises me.