By Rab Bruce’s Spider

The recent horrific events in Plymouth have led to some additional atrocities, although these have, thankfully, been confined to social media. The worst, if genuine, is truly horrific. In a Tweet, someone identifying as a Doctor has asserted that the way to prevent young men killing other people in rage is to give them available women in order to satisfy their desires. I hope this was the work of an online troll, but even then it is an opinion worthy of a fantasy barbarian world.

There have been other misogynistic statements, as if women are to blame for a young man going out to shoot people because he could not get a girlfriend. There seems to be no suggestion from the people making these sorts of claims that the reasons for his Involuntary Celibate ("Incel") status might just be his own attitude and behaviour.

I will readily admit that I have no solution as to how young men who harbour these feelings of resentment against women for their own social failings can be helped. Clearly, they suffer from an extreme identity crisis and probably a lack of self-esteem which they believe can be restored through acts of violence. It is too glib to simply assert that support should be available to anyone in that situation. The problem is identifying them in the first place. But treating women like goods to be handed out to anyone who wants one is the most bizarre and horrible solution I think I have ever heard. Whatever the answer is, it is not that.