THERE'S an iconic documentary series called The World at War. It was made in the seventies and has been repeated many times on television, but the compelling mix of its haunting theme tune, chilling images and brilliantly scripted commentary by Laurence Olivier never fail to move the viewer.
It should be made compulsory viewing for those people who turned up at Belfast City Hall last weekend to protest against the introduction of vaccine passports and had the nerve to wear yellow stars on their clothing.
How dare they compare being asked to take a vaccine, or present proof as part of the community's effort to reduce the risk of spreading a deadly virus, to what happened to Jewish people under Nazi rule. Do they put freedom to walk into a nightclub or shop without a mask on the same level as men, women and children forced into death camps?
UUP leader Doug Beattie called it right when he said to try and associate decisions made in the midst of a pandemic with Second World War Germany was "beneath contempt".
Maybe the DUP's Paul Frew, the electrician turned epidemiologist, who praised the "great turnout" at the demonstration, (which coincided with the opening of the Christmas market) should take a look at himself and the protestors he is lauding.
Maybe he should feel a bit ashamed of himself. I doubt he will since he even thinks it's a good idea to plug shortages of health care staff with those from England who face the sack for not getting vaccinated.
Little wonder there are health workers so despairing of the situation that they are quitting their jobs.
Nobody wants another Christmas lockdown but it is still possible to avoid it if people take a little personal responsibility. It's understandable that the hospitality industry is despairing at the prospect of another dismal festive season ahead and confusing messages from the Executive don't help.
But if the public would work together and obey restrictions like wearing a mask, proving they've been vaccinated and just being sensible, then we could get through it.
It's reasonable for small shops to say they can't be expected to police people who won't wear masks on their premises. With nightclubs it's a different story. They have door staff who can say "Not tonight mate" to anyone they just don't like the look of and they've always been able to demand proof of age, so it's not much of a stretch to ask for Covid ID, surely?
It's a pity that our unique form of government doesn't always pull together for the common good at times like this. It's also a pity people elect politicians like Paul Frew and his ilk, but that's democracy. The people have spoken. I won't finish that quotation.
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SERIOUSLY, is Boris Johnson smoking something, or has Michael Gove slipped something into his tea?
His speech to a group of bewildered business leaders at a CBI event on Monday was like a skit from Spitting Image. He rambled pointlessly, losing pages of his script for an agonising 20 seconds while he muttered "blast" and "forgive me".
Then he went off on a tangent about being to Peppa Pig World and how that was a tribute to British ingenuity while also taking a swipe at the BBC who he claimed had rejected the original Peppa programme.
He talked about electric cars while making "vroom, vroom" noises and at another point compared himself to Moses over his plans to tackle climate change which he described as the Ten Commandments.
Little wonder that restive Tories are said to be increasingly worried about his competence., never mind his sanity. One backbencher said it was the most embarrassing performance by a Conservative Prime Minister since... er, last week's PMQs.
It's a bit unfair for commentators to compare this débâcle with Theresa May's unfortunate speech to the Conservative Party conference when she coughed like the consumptive heroine of a 19th century novel as the letters in the signage behind her fell to the ground. At least that wasn't her fault.
It's incredible that Johnson won't also be handed a P45. He's unlikely to face a leadership challenge because the polls are still fairly even between the Tories and Labour.
Personally, I blame Have I Got News For You for turning Johnson, then a high profile journalist fired twice for lying, into a lovable clown.
Clowns have their place. Just not usually being in charge of the country.
