A Violent Tax Dodging Oaf

If there is a sure sign that Twitter (never X) is broken beyond repair, it is the fact Jeremy Clarkson was trending there for over a week, as various knuckle dragging right-wing xenophobes, bigots and general idiots drooled over his petulant comments over the Labour government's changes to inheritance tax.  They were all cheering him on as he bellowed about how he was going to join other 'farmers' in a Westminster protest (which seems never to have taken place), seemingly thinking that he was going to overthrow the (democratically elected) government because he doesn't want to pay his taxes.  Before going further, let's get one thing clear: Jeremy Clarkson is a violent oaf who was sacked by the BBC because he physically assaulted a colleague in an unprovoked attack.  (Although, of course, in the bizarro world of the extreme right, his dismissal was down to excessive 'wokeness' and 'political correctness gone mad', rather than violent conduct).  Now, if you or I were to behave in such a way, not only would be lucky to avoid criminal prosecution on top of disciplinary action from our employers, but our future employment prospects would also be severely impacted.  But Clarkson's thuggery was instead rewarded with lucrative contracts from other broadcasters.  Which brings us back to the beginning of this post, as Clarkson's main vehicle for staying in the public eye is that streaming series where he plays at being a farmer, full of manufactured confrontations with his local council (which also provides sensational headlines for his newspaper column in a right-wing rag).  By his own admission, he originally only bought that farm because, like James Dyson - the Brexit supporting millionaire who, once he got what he want, moved his manufacturing base out of the UK - he wanted to dodge paying inheritance tax.  Unfortunately for him, the incoming Labour government decided that farmers should pay inheritance tax.

It's profoundly depressing that there are people out there who idolise a violent thug throwing a hissy fit because he can't find a way to transfer his wealth to his offspring without paying tax.  Worse, that they seem to want him to be part of destabilising and 'overthrowing' the legitimately elected government.  Doubtless, these are the self same morons who directed abuse at protestors challenging the previous Tory government on issues like immigration, the environment and human rights.  They don't seem to grasp that the whole point of inheritance tax is prevent unearned wealth being accumulated by individuals because, contrary to what the Moron's Guide to Economics might say, wealth does not generate wealth.  Wealth simply accumulates more wealth, preventing it from being redistributed and redirected to those who most need it and where it can do most good for society as a whole.  But they probably get all of their opinions form the Daily Mail, which tells them that inheritance tax is widely 'hated', whereas the truth is that very few people are wealthy enough to be affected by it.  Certainly not those idolising Clarkson.  That's the irony of the situation, that they are the sort of people that, in real life, their idol would cross the street to avoid.  Make no mistake, privately educated Clarkson is a product of privilege, the sort of privilege that gives that sense of entitlement that makes his ilk believe that the rules don't apply to them and that those without wealth and the advantages it buys are, basically, scum.  Trust me morons, he might like to lap up your idolatry and take your money for his books, DVDS, farm shop and pub, but ultimately he has nothing but contempt for you.  Yet we have this whole strata of people in the UK who seem unable to see through the likes of Clarkson, Farage, Rees-Mogg or Boris Johnson, seemingly cannot see them for the grifting,venal, utterly self-centred elitists that they really are.  It's quite depressing and a sad indictment of of education system.  But these people now seem to make up a large proportion of the dregs that remain on Twitter.  No wonder it is broken.