Over the past fortnight we’ve had the blanket screening of the Emma Husar show. 12/10 for drama. Dialogue, an ambitious 4.

It had the expected, bitter ending but what I’d like us all to consider is this: Was it sexism or stupidity that caused the rookie MP’s demise? Was it a Machiavellian ALP plot? More than likely, elements of all three but as usual, the degree to which gender was assigned blame by her public defenders is, well, embarrassing.

Humour me while we suspend reality. Let’s pretend the person at the centre of this mess was a bloke. Call him Jack.

What if rookie MP (fictional) Jack Husar had been the subject of serious accusations, including that he bullied and intimidated his staff, improperly used his entitlements, and that these claims came from 22 former staff? What if it was Jack who had expected his taxpayer-funded staff to pick up after his dog and mind his kids?

If it were Jack Husar, not Emma, would anyone care that he’s a bloke? A single father of three? Would they have protested that the poor, maligned dog was a support animal for his special needs child?

Make a mistake? Own it. Do something wrong? Make amends. Penis or no penis.

How likely would it have been that anyone, let alone the regressive feminist Left would have included fictional Jack’s gender, his marital status or the fact he’s a father as part of the narrative?

Yeah I’m being trite and a tad facetious but when the first station you stop at is Victimhood you surrender all your credibility.

Many of Ms Husar’s most vocal supporters were women, their views primarily anchored in gender. If the best you’ve got is “it’s not as bad as what Barnaby did” then sorry, you’re benched.

It’s a terrible double standard and women who become apologists for inappropriate behaviour of other women simply on the basis of some warped sense of gender solidarity are no better than men they accuse of doing the same thing.

Camera Icon Emma Husar in Question Time. Credit: Kym Smith/News Corp Australia

The ALP’s investigation found Ms Husar’s treatment of staffers was “offensive and unreasonable” but saw no reason for her to quit Parliament. The report called for further inquiry into a range of allegations about her entitlements as well as the way her staff were treated.

Claims of sexual harassment didn’t stand up but I’ll tell you what very definitely doesn’t stand up — the “it’s not my fault, I’m a woman” narrative.

It is shabby. It is tired. It is cowardly. What’s more, nobody in the real world buys it.

Make a mistake? Own it. Do something wrong? Make amends. Penis or no penis.

The allegations deserved investigation. Ms Husar’s gender, marital status or the fact that she is or isn’t a parent? Irrelevant and certainly no basis for defence.

A friend of mine, a successful, hardworking single mum of two, snorted with derision: “It’s an insult to everyone like me, who just gets on with it. Doesn’t use it as an excuse.” She’s right. When the AMP board imploded following evidence before the banking royal commission, there was immediate commentary about the gender of the female chairman, rather than a singular focus on governance.

Actions have consequence, regardless of gender. This is an unimpeachable fact.

As a woman raised to look bullshit in the face and call it out, I’m done hearing the same twaddle, exalting what is popular over what’s right. It is popular to blame gender bias for everything. It is not right. It has become popular to avoid accountability. It is not right.

Ah but the air atop Mt Virtue is rarefied. So much so there seems to be a few cases of lack of oxygen to the brain. The journalist who broke the story (inconveniently, a female) was attacked by Team Husar for acting on “leaked information”. I guess it’s only good journalism when the other side leaks. No doubt it helps if the target’s a bloke.

What feminist apologists don’t realise is they diminish every legitimate case of women copping a raw deal when they pull this move.

There is a lot wrong with this episode — chief among it is the manure sandwich served up to the people of Lindsay while the circus rolls on.

The second, and it’s a bit of a postscript but no less important, is that once again we see that the dirty, cheap, undignified side of politics is alive and well, and the biggest loser is the long-suffering Australian public.