Ahhhhh, freedom, such a magnificent concept, such a superlative ideal. The dream that liberates us, whilst in some ways, constraining others. And if you express your freedom you’re either a libertarian or a total bastard, depending on whether you’re scottish or not. Or other things, perhaps.

Take Andy Murray, f’rinstance. He used his freedom of speech last week to offer the world his studied political insight in a tweet telling fellow Scots (he left Scotland when he was 12 to go learn tennis proper in Florida and probably lives in Monaco as a tax exile, visiting his mum, who lives in London, twice a year) to “Let’s do this!!!!” in the up-coming vote. “Fuck the English!” he would probably have said, and in fact, he might as well have said it anyway for all the furore south of the border his comment stirred up. Now he says he’s sorry for the upset caused (ain’t everybody; after the fact) but was free to express an opinion, though in hindsight would probably have been better off keeping shtum. Always, Andy, always. But you can’t un-say things once they’re out there. And coupled with his famous comment years ago about ‘I’ll support any team that’s playing England at football’, a pattern emerges.
There is a hill, far off in Wimbledon Town, that currently bears the title of ‘Murray Mound’. I’m starting a petition to rename it ‘Loser Lump’.

There’s other freedoms, even if you’re not a tennis player.

A girl at a school in Camden chose to start this new school term wearing a niqab. A full face veil. In terms of freedom nothing is more divisive than that single item. Women cliam it ‘liberates them’, though from what I’m not sure, unless they were grotesquely ugly to start with. Others claim it to be the ultimate symbol of female repression. Its not a ‘muslim’ thing, the niqab, its a Saudi thing. Thus theories about repression of women would seem fairly sound coming from the most hateful of oppressive regimes.

The school have told her she must unveil or go home. There’s no uniform rule at the school, just ‘appropriate’ is all that is required. So hot pants are cool, t-shirts with “THE POPE’S A C**T!!!!” are fine, even the revolting Arsenal football shirt is acceptable, and many find that more offensive than a niqab. But that, she cannot wear. Because, clothing must be deemed to ‘not interfere with teaching interraction’. And a niqab does just that. And so much more, none of it good.

If women find it liberating to live their public lives inside a black sack then good luck to them. But what it does is seperate them from society, from normality. It creates an aura of ‘weird’, it is, in every way, exactly what its intended to be, a barrier from the world. It says ‘DON’T SPEAK TO ME’, it says ‘DON’T EVEN LOOK AT ME’ and it says ‘GO AWAY’. It removes any possibility of social interraction. Including teaching. I could not hold a conversation with someone wearing a mask; it would be wrong. And thus I agree with the school. Which is more than I ever did when I was attending such institutions.

Happy new year (yes, its Rosh Hashanna today)

And enjoy your freedom

A xxxx