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#TheToneCommandments: The internet’s not done with Tony Abbott

WHEN Tony Abbott gave his big speech in London yesterday morning, not everyone was pleased.

WHEN the internet senses a screw-up, it can be terrifyingly quick to react.

A former Prime Minister gives a speech 17,000km away, one comedian cracks a little joke about it on Twitter, and suddenly everybody is rewriting a sacred 2000-year-old book in an almighty mass piss-take.

At least, that’s what happened yesterday in the aftermath of Tony Abbott’s Margaret Thatcher Lecture speech.

The former PM copped a fair share of criticism over the speech, particularly over his urging European leaders to turn back refugees fleeing the Middle East.

But it was his references to the Bible which really seemed to pique people’s interest, when he said: “The imperative to “love your neighbour as you love yourself” is at the heart of every Western polity... but - right now - this wholesome instinct is leading much of Europe into catastrophic error.”

Comedian Wil Anderson soon took to Twitter to ignite what became a humorous backlash/game-of-who-can-be-the-wittiest using the hashtag #TheToneCommandments - an obvious reference to the Ten Commandments of the Christian faith.

Predictably, the hashtag immediately began trending, and as you may have imagined, people delighted in it.

This isn’t the first time our old mate Tone has drawn criticism for trying to link religion to refugees. On a 2010 episode of Q&A, he responded to a question on the issue saying: “Jesus knew that there was a place for everything and it’s not necessarily everyone’s place to come to Australia.”

Read related topics:Tony Abbott

Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/technology/online/social/thetonecommandments-the-internets-not-done-with-tony-abbott/news-story/196ca84e7e3527f872066a91270b9a89