Five months minus one day

Depressing remarks from a professor at Liverpool University appeared in the News of the World last week, with reference to the possible kidnapper of Madeleine McCann:

Society probably regards the man as an oddball. Normally these offenders also have some sort of minor disability, which makes them feel even more isolated, such as a hare lip.

Where to start! Well, 'hare lip' for one thing - why is an academic using a completely outdated and offensive term? More seriously, on what does he base the assertions that a) 'these offenders' are likely to have a cleft lip and b) people with a cleft lip are more likely to feel isolated? I seriously doubt that any research could back up the claim that us clefties have criminal tendencies, and I was astonished to discover that I should be feeling isolated because of my cleft.

Happily, the chief executive of CLAPA has already written eloquently to Professor Canter to object to his ignorant comments, as have many of the users of the Faceforward forum.



Update: Professor Canter has since apologised graciously and made it clear that the News of the World printed a summary of his comments without clearing the content with him first. (What a shocker.)