we think it’s important as a society that we can freely make fun of the rich and powerful

[Elise72]

Just read an update from mumsnet with the above. Why is it important that we are able to make fun of the rich and powerful? What a weird statement.

Can you imagine if that statement was reversed to read "Its important that as a society we can make fun of the poor and weak".

AIBU?!?

As someone pointed out on the thread, that presumably means we can have a pop at Justine too. She’s rich. Awaiting her photo so we can all comment on it #inthespirit

MN users make fun of the poor and weak everyday.

Holding the rich to account and trying to dismantle the unequal, patriarchal and racists frameworks our society has been built on and that they are enjoying the privilege that all returns for them as individuals? Absolutely.

Taking the piss that he has big ears? Fucking undermines our real protests about the establishment and it embarrassingly puerile

Do you really not see how making fun of the rich and powerful is very different to making fun of the poor and weak? That's such a ridiculous thing to say.

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Can you imagine if that statement was reversed to read "Its important that as a society we can make fun of the poor and weak".

But that's the whole point, isn't it? Comedy and making fun of people should punch up not down. I'm not a fan of the MN logo change- I think it's in poor taste even though I'm very much not a royalist - but I don't think it's terribly controversial to say that it's ok to poke fun at wealth and power, and I think it's odd to imply that poking fun at the poor and vulnerable would be considered equally valid by anyone who wasn't a complete, unrepentant arsehole.

Even without the reverse rich/poor situation it's still a dreadful thing to write.

No one should mock anyone in a perfect world obvs! But a very large and influential website like mumsnet should not be encouraging the making fun of anyone....

No one should mock anyone in a perfect world obvs!

I'm not sure I agree. I think mockery of people with offensive views and behaviour is a healthy thing, and probably much better than trying to 'cancel' or no-platform them. Greta Thunberg's mocking of Andrew Tate, for example, was a wondrous thing to behold!

Mocking someone's natural physical features is not on though.

I whole heartedly agree that society should have the right to mock the rich and powerful. But to choose to mock physical appearance demeans that right in my opinion. I wouldn't campaign against the right to do it. But I think less of those that choose such to do so because the impact of the mockery extends beyond the rich and powerful individual.

In a perfect world no one would be poor and weak, and no one would be richer and stronger than them.

Since the poor and the weak have absolutely had the piss taken out of them,....hence why they are poor and weak, the rich absolutely deserve to be pulled up. They certainly don't require your petty and don't need your protection.

*pitty obviously

I’d have been impressed if the MN logo was replaced with, say, a picture of an empty plate to signify how many parents are going hungry today. Mocking KC’s physical appearance is neither here nor there.

I think mocking someone for being rich and powerful is very different to mocking someone's physical appearance. It doesn't matter how rich or powerful someone is, mocking a physical aspect of them is a total low blow and tbh makes a mockery of the whole "be kind" spiel we see here all the time.

Hmmmm not sure why we have to make fun of (aka make bullying/offensive remarks towards) anyone.

The ears on the logo was ill judged. This is a website where people chat to help eachother. Not a satire show.

I am no royalist (feel neutral towards the whole lot), but I don't condone meanness.

Yes but it's not poking fun at him being rich or powerful is it? It's poking fun at physical appearance that he has no control over. You're the one being ridiculous.

I think a lot of people suffer tall poppy syndrome and need to cut others down.

So someone has a birth defect and it's OK to mock because they are rich? Double standard, Justine.

Disgusting thing to do initially and an even worse response to it. Why should we be mocking anyone based on wealth alone. Unfortunately there will always be richer and poorer. He was born into this, didn't ask for it. And whilst he is incredibly privilidged I would bet there are a fair few days he wished he was a nobody free to live his life the way he wanted.

And I am not rich at all BTW, but wealth alone should not give us free rein to mock someone in any way, not just physical appearance.

I think they shouldn't have marked the day at all.

It was as if there'd been a row in the office and a crown with a pair of ears was chosen in the end to appease the royalists and the republicans in the MN office.