BBC Confirms: Jeremy Clarkson to be Fired from Top Gear

End of the run.

I don't have a strong opinion on this. I do have a suspicion, though.

My suspicion is this: Despite the fact that I find myself nodding in agreement with Lord Hall's pronouncements that we must not have a different standard for those of high rank or public popularity, I believe that Britain does have precisely such double-standards, as does the BBC. The BBC, after all, let Jimmy Saville go around raping children for 40 years.

What I believe is that the left invokes General Principle and a Controlling Rule when it takes an unpopular position, claiming there are no exceptions to the rule.

The rule may be stern and unforgiving, the left tells us, but the rule is the rule, and society will fall if we admit exceptions to it.

It is only later, when the left wishes to spare one of its own from the stern application of the Controlling Rule that they suddenly inform you, "Oh well there are some exceptions here and there, you know."

When the Rule supports the Left, they invoke the Rule, and claim there are no exceptions possible in it; when the Rule runs against the Left, they start telling you that the Rule is cruel and senseless, unless it is supplemented by lots of humane Exceptions and Caveats.

In other words: They are always dishonest.

And make no mistake, the Left has it in for Jeremy Clarkson. He's said a few extremely minor racially "problematic" things, for which the vicious left has called for his head before.

So I can't fully disagree with the rule announced here: No exceptions. If you slap a producer (or whatever), you get fired.

But my very strong suspicion is that the next time a popular (within the left) BBC lefty gets in trouble for raping children, the BBC will say, "Well, you know Old Chap, in a Perfect World our presenters wouldn't be raping children, but in the real world, we have to expect a rape here or there..."

Jeremy Clarkson's contract will not be renewed after an "unprovoked physical attack" on a Top Gear producer, the BBC's director general has confirmed.

Tony Hall said he had "not taken this decision lightly" and recognised it would "divide opinion".

However, he added "a line has been crossed" and he "cannot condone what has happened on this occasion".

Clarkson was suspended on 10 March, following what was called a "fracas" with Top Gear producer Oisin Tymon.

The row, which took place in a Yorkshire hotel, was said to have occurred because no hot food was provided following a day's filming.

An internal investigation began last week, led by Ken MacQuarrie, the director of BBC Scotland.

It found that Mr Tymon took himself to hospital after he was subject to an "unprovoked physical and verbal attack".

"During the physical attack Oisin Tymon was struck, resulting in swelling and bleeding to his lip."

...

"For me a line has been crossed. There cannot be one rule for one and one rule for another dictated by either rank, or public relations and commercial considerations."

Yes well in two months, when a lefty's job is threatened, we will hear no more about the urgent need of one unforgiving standard.

I Didn't Even Have to Wait Two Months: In fact, the BBC is already punishing the Jimmy Saville whistleblowers for, I assume, making life difficult for those of high rank within the organization.

Nobody from John Humphrys in the morning to Evan Davis at night dares mention a scandal at the BBC. It undermines their reporting of every abuse whistleblowers reveal. It reinforces the dirty common sense of British life that you must keep your head down if you want to keep your job.

The scandal is simply this: the BBC is forcing out or demoting the journalists who exposed Jimmy Savile as a voracious abuser of girls. As Meirion Jones put it to me: "There is a small group of powerful people at the BBC who think it would have been better if the truth about Savile had never come out. And they aim to punish the reporters who revealed it."

I can't really quote more because the rest of it is proving this allegation by telling the stories of the people who worked on the Savile story being forced out of their jobs. I'd have to quote too much to present the evidence.

But it is worth reading.

posted by Ace at 01:00 PM

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