Hate, an odd hill to fight on

I’m no fan of the new Hate Crime Law (clearly, I’m against hate crime, that’s not the point), but I have no intention to break its terms at a football game, nor do I have any fears that thousands of Celtic fans would do so.  After announcing he and 48,000 others would break the law at Ibrox on Sunday, Ally McCoist has today decided it wise not to attend the game.  Police may be inclined to borrow an inflammatory phrase from McCoist, “I want to know who these people are?”

McCoist is known for his cheeky chappie routine (very effective), not his wisdom (seldom evident).  It really doesn’t matter if you would like to say that men should not enter women’s only spaces, it is very unwise to use that hill to fight for your right to spread hate against anyone.  In this case, I can only presume Ally has racial or religious targets in mind.  McCoist has energised a sentiment he should be discouraging.

God save us from idiots with a platform, be it a radio interview or political power.