How are you?
Me? Well, thanks for asking. Actually I’m feeling a little metaphorically battered and bruised to be honest. And, talking of being honest, I’d like to say right from the outset that I am vehemently against all ‘. . . isms’. As an example, take my fairly recent Cork Talk calling out racism in the wine sector – abhorrent, as is sexism, misogyny in fact.
Yet it seems that during a recent lengthy Twitter dialogue on that very subject, with many commentators taking part, I’m being wholly misunderstood. The knives have been out and, mixing my metaphors, I’ve been somewhat sliced! I’m not worried, however, as it’s clear to me where I stand (see above) and I’m certain to those who actually know me, as well as, hopefully, those like your good selves whom I’ve never met, but who read and listen to me. I’m not a bad bloke at all!
It all began when a friend and wine colleague of mine posted a tweet which had a link to a mutually disturbing article by an American lady in the wine sector, currently in Rioja, I believe. (https://bottledbliss.wordpress.com/2020/09/10/women-wine-and-the-uncomfortable-conversation-we-need-to-have/). It is a damning criticism of male attitudes to women in the same sector – horrifying to me, as I’ve honestly (there’s that word again) never seen or heard any of it.
Now, it’s that last phrase there, or ones like it, that I’ve used in my tweets that have been taken, wholly incorrectly, as if I am doubting what the author, Vinka Danitza (@DanitzaVinka) says. I openly replied to my friend and therefore to everyone else on Twitter asking if he’d seen the type of behaviour etc Vinka describes. And the dam’s walls collapsed, mostly in total misunderstanding.
