Thursday 3 July 2008

Discrimination Rife in NI Crime Fiction for Kids


(Colin) Bateman has updated his blog!

Breaking news in itself, I know. But the madness doesn’t stop there. Oh no. Things at camp Bateman have taken on a Starkey-esque turn for the bizarre. The Godfather of Northern Irish Crime Fiction™ has been accused of discrimination against albinos.

No, I’m not joking. Bateman blogs it thusly:


“Well, it seems that a school in Ballymena read the books [from The Gang with No Name trilogy], and took exception to my occasional references to Albinos and the fact that they look quite distinctive. Instead of celebrating the fact that an Albino features as a heroine - as opposed say to something like The Di Vinci Code, where the Albino is a crazy serial killer - they have taken what they perceive to be a few negative comments and launced a witch hunt, which includes recruiting the Albinist Fellowship and the RNIB and then the BBC.”

To learn the identity of the mastermind behind this campaign of insane stupidity, and Mr Bateman’s completely reasonable plan of action (presented in classic internet rant style), check out said blog entry, dated 3 July 2008 (accessed via the Latest button on Bateman’s website).

I’ve rummaged about on the Newsline website, but can’t find an electronic version of the report. If I do come across it, I’ll be sure to provide a link.

4 comments:

Michael Stone said...

I feel sorry for the Bateman, but jeez, that's just hysterical.

One thing I don't understand (well, I don't understand any of it really), but the bit that puzzles me the most is why the RNIB are involved. Isn't that the Royal National Institute for the Blind? Am I missing something here?

Gerard Brennan said...

Mike - Yeah, I'm still not really sure about the RNIB thing.

Very weird.

gb

Peter Rozovsky said...

I won't discount the possibility that this whole thing is a joke; it is just as absurd as Colin Bateman makes it out to be. But Albinos do tend to have poor eyesight, which might account for the RNIB connection.

Do you regard Eric Clapton as a better rock guitarist than Johnny Winter? I thought so, you &(*&@#$% Albino-hating bastard.
==============
Detectives Beyond Borders
"Because Murder Is More Fun Away From Home"
http://www.detectivesbeyondborders.blogspot.com/

Gerard Brennan said...

"Do you regard Eric Clapton as a better rock guitarist than Johnny Winter? I thought so, you &(*&@#$% Albino-hating bastard."

Hahahaha.

gb