How an off-colour joke about women putting on blusher - and an orgy of blasphemy - expose the hypocrisy behind cancel culture

On Saturday evening, arsenic Australia's triumphant 4x100m freestyle relay women's squad were making their measurement retired of nan Paris Aquatics Centre, a sports commentator called Bob Ballard observed: 'Well, nan women [are] conscionable finishing up. You cognize what women are like... hanging around, doing their make-up.'

Ouch.

There's nary getting distant from nan truth that this was a gratuitously sexist remark.

Four women had conscionable put successful astonishing performances to triumph golden and present was a 64-year-old man musing connected their exertion of lippy and mascara, arsenic if they were teenage girls astir to deed nan town.

His co-presenter connected nan Eurosport channel, British swimming champion Lizzie Simmonds, instantly branded his remark 'outrageous'.

Then his words went viral connected societal media and nan mixed mightiness of nan online woke organization was unleashed connected nan seasoned erstwhile BBC journalist.

Eurosport mislaid nary clip successful bowing to nan mob and sacrificing 1 of its ain to nan censorious bloodlust of nan internet.

It issued a connection denouncing Ballard's 'inappropriate comment', adding that 'he has been removed from our commentary roster pinch contiguous effect'.

Ballard was connected nan adjacent level home, contempt his mea culpa and fulsome apology posted connected X (formerly Twitter). It trim nary ice.

This is nan world we unrecorded successful now, a world wherever location is nary room for forgiveness aliases for knowing that, conscionable occasionally, men of Ballard's procreation — he was calved successful 1959 — will autumn into a style of mini talk and banter of different era that jars pinch nan painfully woke younger generation.

He had nary volition of demeaning nan swimmers. He conscionable didn't deliberation earlier he opened his mouth.

I find this authorities of affairs profoundly depressing and it seems that galore decent group agree. A whopping 55,000 group responded to a MailOnline canvass connected nan rumor yesterday and 72 per cent believed that Ballard should not person mislaid his occupation complete this.

Most of them agreed that this was a 'ludicrous cancellation' complete a remark that was intelligibly 'a joke', and Ballard's societal media provender was flooded pinch messages of support.

One station read: 'Countless hours of commentary, trying to support things absorbing and entertaining, sometimes erstwhile not overmuch is happening. And past removed for 1 misjudged comment. A chance to apologise would person seemed much proportionate. Take attraction Bob.'

Now, that is understanding; that is humanity.

The woke Left poses arsenic civilized and decent, and yet it dangles nan guillotine of cancellation complete nan caput of each individual who says thing that they deem 'offensive'.

It is successful truth nan defenders of nan cancelled, nan sympathisers pinch nan victims of governmental correctness for illustration Bob Ballard, who really springiness sound to nan civilised virtues of forgiveness, knowing and freedom.

Just a fewer days successful and nan Paris Olympics person not only exposed nan merciless quality of cancel civilization —they person besides highlighted its rank hypocrisy.

For if you really want to spot 'offensive' commentary, hide Bob Ballard's lame joke astir nan Aussie swimmers and fto maine mention you alternatively to nan Games' Opening Ceremony connected Friday.

There I saw a acold greater degradation of womankind astatine that rain-soaked show on nan Seine.

The headless Marie Antoinette singing a heavy-metal opus was surely successful mediocre taste, but astir disturbing of all, was a grotesque caricature of The Last Supper.

A group of resistance queens gathered astir a rotund female wearing a halo successful what seemed to maine — and galore millions watching — a nonstop insult of Leonardo da Vinci's celebrated depiction of Jesus pinch his disciples connected nan nighttime earlier his crucifixion and earlier he was betrayed by Judas.

The resistance disciples were past 'served' a portly and naked blue-painted man connected a platter of fruit.

So that's OK, is it? An off-colour joke astir women putting connected blusher will get you hounded retired of town, but move Jesus Christ into a female and situation Him pinch preening resistance queens successful a blasphemous orgy of Bible-mocking grossness and you will beryllium praised.

For, of course, nan woke person people gushed complete this performance, praising nan performers' 'transgressive' demeaning of women and Christianity contempt nan howls of outrage from those of belief belief.

An apology of sorts was issued by nan opening ceremonial organisers who denied it was a parody of The Last Supper.

I'm not convinced. Worse still, fto america not hide this is an Olympics successful which a convicted paedophile has been allowed to compete.

Steven van de Velde is simply a personnel of nan Netherlands' formation volleyball squad contempt having been found blameworthy of raping a 12-year-old British schoolgirl successful 2014, erstwhile he was 19 years old. He was sentenced to 4 years successful jail.

In nan warped civilized beingness of nan woke, making an un-PC joke is deemed a greater crime than abusing a kid aliases offend billions of decent group of belief religion astir nan world.

It is telling to maine that Bob Ballard has behaved pinch nan utmost graciousness contempt his abrupt dismissal.

'The comments I made during nan Australian freestyle relay triumph ceremonial connected Saturday person caused immoderate offence. It was ne'er my volition to upset aliases belittle anyone and, if I did, I apologise. I americium a monolithic advocator of women's sport. I shall miss nan Eurosport team, dearly and wish them each nan champion for nan remainder of nan Olympics,' he posted connected X aft nan statement erupted.

And aft watching nan beginnings of a backlash against his co-presenter Lizzie Simmonds for her disapproval of him, he moreover urged users not to 'pile successful on' her.

Old-fashioned chivalry, you mightiness say, from a man whose profession whitethorn person suffered terminal harm from 1 ill-judged joke.