I sat in Sir Bob Jones' office once, and he regaled me with a story of jury duty and what a shock it was to him to find such a large collection at the courthouse of downbeat, poorly dressed no-hopers lining up alongside him to deliberate on some poor sod's future.
It was classic Jones. Acerbic, brutal, yet colourfully accurate and funny. That's who he is, that's who he's always been, and I love him for it.
He's in trouble of course at the moment over a column he wrote for the National Business Review, in which he suggested Maori should be grateful for colonisation and maybe they'd like to mow our lawns or bring us breakfast in bed to show their appreciation.
Once again, classic Jones. Except Jones in 2018 is subjected to upset 2018-style. And that includes the obligatory petition. The petition is calling for him to be stripped of his knighthood.
Now as I said, Jones is in some trouble. He isn't of course, not really. Because Jones couldn't care less. Never has, and that's also why I like him, and what we really need are more people like him. Not necessarily to be as acerbic, but to be confident enough in their own skin. To not be worried, upset, or kowtowed by a world in which more and more people get up every day full of vengeance, angst, upset and a full-on desire to make noise and trouble.