Clive Bibby: Curious response to mental Illness campaigner

One thing you learn when entering public debates in the modern era is that you should be prepared for a trashing if you choose to defend people who speak out against those who set the rules that govern our society.

It isn’t hard to work out that the aim is to silence those who have, because of their own life experience, formed an opinion which may differ from the popular narrative.

And, as if to deter any support for these renegades,  you yourself will become subject to similar character assassination simply because you have chosen to bat for the other side.

It becomes a disgraceful exhibition of what happens when journalists have sold their soul to the highest bidder - the popular woke agenda.

The latest example of this trend is the case of one of this country’s most popular rural  mental health campaigners - Doug Avery, who has earned a reputation for helping save the lives of many exhausted kiwis who were pretty close to calling it quits.