Young Young on BBC Newsnight
(Picture: Newsnight / BBC)Toby Young has been duly roasted for his latest column titled: “At last, Boris has placed his trust in the common sense of the British people, not the Cassandras in lab coats,” and he isn’t exactly making the point he thinks he’s making...
In the Mail+ article published on December 21, the General Secretary of the Free Speech Union praised Johnson for ignoring scientists aka the “Cassandras in lab coats” which is a reference to Greek mythology a Trojan priestess of Apollo.
But it seems the commentator may have gotten his mythological knowledge mixed up as Cassandra was actually cursed to utter true prophecies, but never to be believed.
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So Young is basically saying he’s glad Johnson is not listening to the scientists even though he described them as people who can truly predict the future - and ironically no one believes them.
Yeah, that makes perfect sense...
Of course, it didn’t take long before people on Twitter were happy to highlight this inconsistency to Young - and rip into him for it.
An Oxford education and no one ever told him Cassandra was right! pic.twitter.com/1quaSra5xr
— Sam Freedman (@Samfr) December 23, 2021
You’d think an egg cursed to have the opinions of Toby Young would know Cassandra was cursed to utter true prophecies but never to be believed pic.twitter.com/Mvw2frGwsT
— James Felton (@JimMFelton) December 23, 2021
Toby Young continues to be the best antidote to Toby Young. https://t.co/2L4Tipjj7z
— Malcolm Barnard (@Oldsocky) December 23, 2021
Rich people stop making classical allusions to make yourselves look intellectual/cultured and getting it wrong, it's another level of aggravating https://t.co/qMo0ufUvb2
— Rhys🏺🌈🌹 (@rnwills0) December 23, 2021
It would be amusing that these people keep spouting half remembered quotes to show off how intellectual they think they are if it weren't so scary that people actually listen to them. https://t.co/AOoafJcWRy
— Karen George (@KimsSis) December 23, 2021
Ah yes, great idea to not place your trust in the Cassandras who make only accurate prophecies but rather the people who don't believe them... 🤦
— Ed Hodges (he/him) (@EdwardJackfruit) December 23, 2021
Next time maybe research your analogies before publishing them @toadmeister? 😂 pic.twitter.com/2ZXsXJcW2N
This is absolutely astonishing. What does Young think he is saying? Does he just think a "Cassandra" is a doom-monger? https://t.co/E3fm2QADgt
— Sean Bamforth (@seanbamforth) December 23, 2021
Toby Young. The king of the self own https://t.co/6g61qXjvLM
— Andrew Yeoman (@adyeoman) December 23, 2021
However, it’s not the first time the commentator has made a Covid-related mistake either after Young admitted at the beginning of the year that he got it “wrong” downplaying the second wave during an interview with Emily Maitlis on Newsnight.
Young had previously stated how the second spike of the virus “refused to materialise” and had “all but disappeared.”
“Hands up I got that wrong.”
— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) January 5, 2021
Editor of the online blog Lockdown Sceptics @toadmeister responds to @maitlis pressing him on his previous comments that “the second [Covid] spike has refused to materialise”#Newsnight pic.twitter.com/n8LCo26n1n
(Given the fact we’re now near Christmas with the Omicron variant spreading across the country, and the prime minister considering what restrictions to put in place in order to curb transmissions - it most certainly has not disappeared).
“It’s not denying Covid per se, but it seems to be ignoring it’s actually amongst us,” Maitlis said, and then asked Young: “Is there not a moment of contrition from you?”
He replied: “Hands up I got that wrong, Emily – but let’s not forget that was during the summer when social distancing measures, curfews were doing enormous damage to the hospitality industry.”
Young added: “The lockdown sceptics’ case is that the lockdowns, not just here but across the world, have caused more harm than they have prevented.”
With Christmas around the corner, perhaps someone should gift Young with a Greek mythology book along with a medical science book on how viruses work as a present.
