The Home Secretary "jokes" about spiking his wifes drink with Rohypnol

[cakeorwine]

As the other thread has been automatically hidden

"James Cleverly has apologised for joking about spiking his wife’s drink with a date rape drug in comments made at a Downing Street reception.
The home secretary’s remarks came just hours after the Home Office announced plans to crack down on spiking, when someone puts drugs into another person’s drink or directly into their body without their knowledge or consent.

Cleverly told female guests at the reception that “a little bit of Rohypnol in her drink every night” was “not really illegal if it’s only a little bit”, the Sunday Mirror reported.
He also laughed that the secret to a long marriage was ensuring your spouse was “someone who is always mildly sedated so she can never realise there are better men out there”."

So much to say about this

This. Absolutely this.

They already had one, remember? And still voted for more of the same.

You may not think it's a "punishable crime" but surely it warrants him losing his job?

If nothing else it shows such poor judgement (making the 'joke' hours after announcing measures to tackle drink spiking aka a path to attempted rape and rape itself) that he's not fit for a critical role in government.

If a pupil had made a joke at school, they would have been suspended.
If an employee had made a joke in the workplace, there would be disciplinary proceedings.'
A celebrity would have been dropped by brands who don't want to be associated with him.

If someone with power makes such comments, should they face repercussions?

I have noticed over the past few months that Sunak talks a lot about a lot of things and nothing changes. To the extent that I can't help but feel he will be remembered as the Jackanory PM ....

Rape culture at its finest.

What an utter twat.

It's not being permanently offended. It's expecting those that govern to have some basic decency.

God, the bar is so low

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This.

You hold a job of this stature then damn right I shall hold you to a higher standard

That would be a very awkward question for Sunak.
VAWG needs tackling.
Mysogyny needs tackling.

It needs leadership from the top

I have no doubt Yvette Cooper will hold him to account in Parliament

@beastlyslumber I'd like to live in a society where the fucking HOME SECRETARY doesn't joke about drugging women in public.

Come on, is the bar for our highest offices in the land, the people that represent us on the world stage, really so low that we're going to brush this off with 'oh everyone says silly things sometimes'?

If DH had said that in a meeting at work, he'd have been disciplined and rightly so. Even if the context was 'oh I'm a loser, I need to drug my wife to get her to stay with me', it's still utterly, utterly inappropriate, isn't it?

They voted to Get Brexit Done and basically rejected Corbyn in favour of Johnson.

The next election should be very different.

Yes and actually in this context actually it has a whif of incel about it

So still a bad look

That would be a very awkward question for Sunak.

He's hardly renowned for facing questions is he ?

I'm sure she will. It's just a shame she'll have to wait until the new year.

I think I would have a stern word with him about making stupid jokes. But no, I don't think people should lose their jobs based on this sort of thing. I don't believe in policing language to this extent.

Yes, if he'd said, hey you should do this, or women deserve to be drugged, or something like that, it would be different. That could come under incitement.

But just making an ill-judged joke, no. I don't think anyone should lose their job for something they say, whether it's a crappy joke or a statement that men can't be women. Just to pick two topical examples.

I'm more concerned about freedom of expression than I am about someone making a bad joke. Unfortunately, the price for your freedom of speech is everyone else's freedom of speech.

If DH had said that in a meeting at work, he'd have been disciplined and rightly so. Even if the context was 'oh I'm a loser, I need to drug my wife to get her to stay with me', it's still utterly, utterly inappropriate, isn't it?

Exactly.

And the 'joke' when you think about it is "my wife is so out of my league that to have sex with her I have to rape her".

Jesus fucking Christ how low is the bar for men, let alone ones in public office.

Taking a step back, I think we all need to applaud whoever it was who managed to trick him into it. The only problem is the odds on "how thick is the Home Secretary" bet they won probably weren't that great - evens at best.

@TisTheDarnSeason absolutely

I'm horrified that anyone would defend his comments

We had all the police who had to resign for their sexist / racist / homophobic Whatsapp messages.

Part of the "bantz"

And he is ultimately responsible for law and order

I never said it was appropriate. Or funny. Or reflects well on him as a person.

I simply believe that freedom of speech is a more important value to protect. People should not lose their jobs because of the things they say, even if you find them offensive or disagree.

A lot of people find it highly offensive to say, e.g. only women can give birth. I am strongly opposed to anyone losing their job over making such a statement, no matter how many feel offended.

The price of your freedom of speech is everyone else's freedom of speech. People will say things you find deeply offensive and wrong. But as soon as you try to silence them, they will use that same silencing power against you.

And he is ultimately responsible for law and order

Is he ? Has no one noticed the narrative for the past few years has been how the people at the top aren't responsible ?

At least he knows what a woman is though.

@beastlyslumber are you okay with misogyny then?

Secondary schools are having a nightmare with misogynistic attitudes among male students, not helped by people like Andrew Tate. Should they just let it continue because of freedom of speech? Do you think people in authority saying things like this help?

This is basically a rape joke and speaks off an underlying culture that is so, so harmful to women. And to come from a someone in a government that has practically made rape legal, so low are conviction rates.

Do you think the fact that the Home Secretary, in charge of law and order, made such a comment changes things?

What if it was a racist joke by a politician?
A homophobic or transphobic joke by a Home Secretary?