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We must take care not to abuse the power of words

A FEW months ago he was lobbing sticks and stones at fellow celebrities at the Golden Globes awards.

No broken bones resulted, just a few bruised egos. Now Ricky Gervais finds himself in the middle of a new verbal war, this time for his use of the term “mong”.

Gervais says it’s a modern, jokey term for “a div, a dozy spud-headed twonk”. Disability groups say it’s an offensive word that people with Down’s Syndrome need like the creator of The Office needs another few bob in the bank.