How the spirit of Capt Speedy landed in an unholy row

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Letter – What say you, Timah? – Hafiz Hassan

I REFER to your report “What’s in a name? Controversy surrounds Timah whiskey over perceived namesake”.

Women’s rights activist Ivy Josiah was reported to have lambasted detractors of the award-winning Malaysian-made Timah whiskey, saying: “This is a perfect example of making a mountain out of a molehill.”

“In fact, I feel silly having to respond to this manufactured offence.”

I must say that I’m disappointed with Ivy. If you are a rights activist, you are a rights activist for all. You stand up for the rights of all – like the rights of one Vicki Noble, who was offended by the beer name and label Lost Abbey’s Witch’s Wit Belgian White.

A 2010 New York Times article reported that Noble – famous in the pagan and Wiccan communities for her astrology readings, shamanic healing, and writings about goddess spirituality – said she and other members of the pagan and Wiccan community were personally offended by the pale ale’s depiction of a witch being burned at the stake.

The bottle has a painting of a witch being burned at the stake. Noble wrote to her email list, with a subject line: “Can we stop this brewer from their hate imagery?”

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