I once heard a panelist on Q&A say she’d had an abortion and didn’t ‘give a rat’s arse’ about the destroyed fetus. I often think of that brutally frank opinion and wonder if it truly represents her character. Was she as tough as she sounded? Surely something must press her buttons – the plight of whales, perhaps, or pygmy possums?

You don’t have to be a psychologist to know that de-humanising something is the first step to take if you want to destroy it.