Apology (Not) Accepted 2

As the furore from Nick Clegg's apology dies down, we are now faced with the Conservative Chief Whip and former International Development Secretary, Andrew Mitchell, allegedly swearing in front of a Police officer in Downing Street.

The Sun has gone to town on the story and compared it with the response to the deaths of two unarmed officers in Manchester on Tuesday.

Mitchell, has come forward with an apology to the Police officer concerned though has denied he called the officer a "fucking pleb". It's interesting to see how the Conservative-inclined on forums like politicalbetting.com are hardly rushing to defend Mitchell and it may be that his resignation will be the end result of all this.

Our attititudes to the Police are ambivalent - when incidents like Hillsborough and the death of Iain Tomlinson are publicised, it's easy to argue the Police are a bungling group of brutish thugs led by idiots. Yet the death of two unarmed female officers on Tuesday leaves us praising the Police to the skies and almost prostrasting oursleves in thanks before them. It's no wonder the Police are confused as to where they stand with the public. This schizophrenic attitude is curious.

Mitchell's other "offence" has been to use the word "pleb". That has huge connotations in this country and implies a class distinction which many claim should not exist yet the mentality of it does. We resent those who feel they are somehow "better" than us while admiring those who have earned their place through hard work.

Combine the insulting of a Police officer with this derogatory class-war ridden term and you get a hugely toxic combination which may well drag Mitchell down.