Hypocrisy 101

(中文在下方)

Word of the Day today is Hypocrisy which is defined as “the practice of claiming to have higher standards or more noble beliefs than is the case.”

In the case of those who manage to get people to vote for them, it is often more simply put at “Do as I say, not as I do.” 

Sadly, my self-imposed scale of idiocy has been breached yet again. 

The latest rant from my Cat-on-the-Ceiling is again about Dr Dismal the so-called leader of Taipei City. 

He, and his party, are laughing off the fact he broke Government advice by not wearing a mask when he should. He is part of this country’s government and if as he admits he is so moronic he doesn’t understand the rules he should not be Mayor, much less a doctor with peoples’ lives directly in his hands.   

OK Doc, next time you see a patient or are in an operating theatre don’t wear a mask and laugh it off when you spread infection. Best try not to forget, eh? Tie a knot in your handkerchief, or something.  

The shameless laughing-off of something like this contrasts sharply with other leaders caught out in similar circumstances, and there are many.

They have genuinely apologised because they knew they are in the wrong and need to say sorry because they have jobs where they tell other people how to behave. They know they are accountable and behave in an honourable and respectful manner.

To laugh it off as 'Oops, sorry, tee, hee..it was only a song' shows a staggering lack of respect for the public who have had their lives controlled by Covid regulations for the past two years. 

Maybe Mayor Malfunction caught the hypocrisy virus from the equally appalling British Prime Minister Borish Johnson who is rightfully being asked to resign as a result of attending Christmas parties at No 10 Downing Street at a time when gatherings were banned under Covid rules his government put in place. 

His constant lies were initially “all guidance was followed completely at No. 10” a week later “I have been repeatedly assured since these allegations emerged that there was no party” and “I can tell you I certainly broke no rules” and “nobody had told me that what we were doing was…against the rules.”

Police yesterday issued fines on 20 people who attended the Downing Street parties and more are expected to follow. Johnson himself could be fined. 

Let’s not let someone in Taiwan who thinks it’s OK to laugh off rule breaking and disrespect the public get into a position of greater power. Let Johnson’s outright lies be a warning of where it all might end.

Tinkerty tonk...    

今天的每日一字是偽善/虛偽/表裡不一/(Hypocrisy)，這個定義為：聲稱擁有比實際情況更高的標準或更崇高的信念。

對那些設法讓人們投票給他們的人來說，更簡單的說法是：照我說的做，而不是照我做的做。

很遺憾我設定的白痴程度儀表板今天又超標，那就是超過一定愚昧程度我才會評論某些政治人物，這個時刻再度來臨。

我家那頭憤怒時就會咆哮衝上屋頂的貓又黏在天花板上了，因為那個所謂的首都市長和他的政黨，對違反政府的口罩規定一笑置之，請注意他是這個政府的一員。

坦率地說，如果他承認自己如此愚蠢無法理解這個簡單的政府規定，他不應該成為市長，更不用說想當一個與病人生命息息相關的醫生。好吧這位醫生，下次當你看病人或在手術室裡不戴口罩傳播病毒造成感染時，最好也能一笑置之。

不過我希望你最好不要忘記戴口罩好嗎？也許你可以在你的手帕一角打個結什麼的提醒自己，很多英國父母都是這樣告訴他們的孩子。

這種無恥的一笑置之與其他面對類似情況的政治人物形成鮮明對比，因為有很多人真誠地道歉，他們知道自己錯了需要說對不起，因為他們必須以身作則，知道要對自己的言行負責，並以體面和讓人尊重的方式行事。

以「哎呀抱歉啦，不過是唱首歌而已」打哈哈帶過，表示此人對過去兩年來生活一直受到防疫限制的民眾，完全缺乏尊重。

也許台灣這位故障的市長先生，是從同樣駭人聽聞的英國首相強生那裡感染了「虛偽」的病毒。最近有人很合理地要求首相辭職，因為在他的政府規定Covid期間禁止聚會的期間，他參加了唐寧街 10 號首相官邸的聚會，他們在聖誕節和新年期間喝酒吃起司慶祝。

他一連串的謊言最初是「唐寧街10號完全遵循所有防疫指導原則」，一週後變成「自從這些指控出現以來，幕僚一再向我保證沒有聚會」和「我可以告訴你，我當然沒有違反任何規定」和「沒有人告訴我，我們的所作所為……違反了規定。」

警方展開正式調查後終於在昨天對參加唐寧街派對的20人處以罰則，預計警方還會宣布更多違法行為。

我們不能讓那些認為違法可以一笑置之的人在政壇獲得更大的權力，希望英國首相強生徹頭徹尾的謊言是一種警告，讓此類行為不再發生。

Tinkerty Tonk… 掰掰。