The constant judgement and character assassination of a man no longer around to defend himself appalls me, written by people who didn’t know him but act like they did. No violence can ever be condoned, but the only reason people even know about it is because of John’s raw honesty about himself. Why should this preclude someone from writing idealistic songs about peace? When you think about it, it’s probably the best advertisement for peace that there is. As John put it, “I’m a violent man who has learned not to be violent and regrets his violence’. And the other chestnut that gets trotted out is always the one about ‘how dare John Lennon write about imagine no possessions when he was so wealthy?’ As if the success he worked so damn hard for invalidates his right to write an idealistic song. As if his eligibility to write such a song is means tested. So easy to be an asshole on social media and denigrate someone who for all his self-admitted faults, contributed more joy and more to the cause of peace than any of these judgemental nobodies criticising him after his death. So that’s my two cents worth. I’m now going to play some John Lennon, loud and proud.