Barry Soper: Susan Devoy the product of sports celebrity culture

Living in this rigidly politically correct world, surely the last job you'd entertain is that of the Human Rights Commissioner, but then somebody's got to do it - or do they?

Compared to most countries God's Own is just that, blessed with a multi-cultural population that generally gets along pretty well compared with most other countries.

It would seem the current watchdog of wowserism Susan Devoy needs something to occupy her time if her latest outburst's anything to go by. Speaking at a sports journos' prizegiving, the former world squash champion outed an ageing white male, which seems to be all the rage these days, as obnoxious.

Only her target's not a wilting violet. Winston Peters is more like a prickly rose, and doesn't take well to criticism. Devoy described him as obnoxious, saying he once told her to lose weight.

Her audience was apparently bristling as she recounted a comment 30 years ago where he's alleged to have told her she was "a bit round" and suggested she walk the length of New Zealand to burn off some kilos. She did walk the length of the country back in 1988 but Peters says her memory's clearly fading. His version is that he once observed, as a former sportsman himself, that even when she's out of condition she was still able to beat the best of them around a squash court.

It was meant to be a compliment, he maintains. Why she decided to raise the issue now is beyond comprehension.

But apparently it's not a death wish, given that her five year contract that's up next April was never going to be renewed.

Devoy was the product of a sports celebrity culture that the last Government fawned over, they almost had to beg Richie McCaw to take an honour. He finally relented, turning down a knighthood because he didn't want the title, but agreeing to the highest honour available, and open to just 20 living Kiwi mortals, the Order of New Zealand.

Devoy has made some wacky and inflammatory statements in her time as custodian of correctness, many about politicians who she sees as role models who need calling out. She had few qualifications for the job other than being superb at bouncing a little black ball around in a confined space.

The person who appointed her as the first woman to do the job would take issue with that. Judith Collins at the time said she knew what it was like to be a minority, she served as a woman on a board and received less money than the blokes did on the squash circuit.

It's probably politically incorrect, but fair suck of the sav!