YOU’D have to be living on the Planet Zog not to have come across Rachel Dolezal, a ‘black’ civil rights leader in the USA who has actually been outed as, er, white.

You’d think this might have put paid to such activities as talking about the ‘struggle’ she has faced as a black or mixed-race woman or to the allegations of hate crimes against her, but Rach isn’t going down without a fight. Oh dear me no.

“I consider myself black,” she snorted.

“And I don’t give an (expletive deleted) what you guys think.”

Then, when her bizarre assertion was questioned further by a TV news reporter she insisted there were ‘no medical witnesses to my birth’, so no one can say for sure if there’s biological proof she’s related to her extremely white-looking birth parents.

I do hope that when it comes to the movie of all this, they get Ali G to play her. Why not? After all, if Rachel can ‘identify’ herself as black, which she most certainly isn’t, then he can ‘identify’ himself as female, can’t he?

Choosing your identity – a big issue because of the discussion surrounding the Caitlyn Jenner situation - has set me thinking.

And it could be good news for a lot of people.

Criminals could identify themselves as ‘innocent’, thieving bankers could identify themselves as ‘entitled’ and Rolf Harris types could identify themselves as ‘misunderstood’ and ‘not a paedophile’.

Next time I get on a plane I can decide to turn left, and just tell the stewardess I’m identifying myself as ‘rich’.

I could buy a field, plonk a static caravan on it without planning permission and live there for the rest of my natural and no one could touch me because I’m identifying as a ‘traveller’.

And I could start this whole process by lounging around on the sofa all day, stuffing my face with Crunchie bars and telling my long-suffering old man that it was all OK because I am ‘identifying’ as the Queen of Sheba.

He’d probably tell me I was mental and deluded and to stop being ridiculous but he’d be right, wouldn’t he?

Just as I now reckon that is Dolezal’s real problem, and that she really should be identified as ‘seriously away with the fairies’.

When people change sex it’s for established medical and psychological reasons. Anything else is just dressing up and again, that type of behaviour is well-understood and accepted.

But Dolezal’s passing herself off as black or mixed race is different.

And in the week where nine of her fellow citizens have been gunned down in their church, simply because someone allegedly did not like the colour of their skin and everything they thought it represented, Dolezal’s ludicrous behaviour is not funny. I believe it’s insulting and despicable and, in my opinion, so is she.

Fun for Prince George at the polo 

NO WONDER little Prince George looked so happy, playing with his mum at a polo match over the weekend. He had Kate all to himself but, more importantly, looked as if he’s heard that all-important speech which wise mummies make to their eldest, when the sib comes along.

Which speech is that? The one that goes that while she is lovely, baby Charlotte is just a little bit boring sometimes, so how nice is it for mummy to spend time playing with George?

I hope claims about impression are true 

A NEW book claims that the Queen never liked Mrs Thatcher and used to do impersonations of her behind her back.

We’ll never know if this is true because Her Maj is not in the habit of giving interviews.

However, the fact that so many of us hope and believe it IS true says much about the regard in which we hold the Queen, compared to the uncaring and ghastly Maggie.

Brave to go bare faced 

A KINDLY newspaper picture caption describes actress Joely Richardson as looking ‘radiant’ without her make-up after she was papped in London. Hmm. Brave is the word I’d use. Not because she looks awful but because the difference between ‘with makeup’ and without at her age and mine is, for me at least, as wide as the Grand Canyon. Put it this way, we are now at the stage where the old man asks if I’m feeling OK if he catches me without the slap. Next stage is a facelift, and preferably performed by Taylor Woodrow.

Poor Top Gear viewers 

CHRIS Evans says he may have a female presenter in his Top Gear team and the smart money’s on former model Jodie Kidd.

This is excellent news. If your name is Jeremy Clarkson and you are possibly trying to get a new Top Gear-style car show off the ground and don’t want any serious competition. But boy do I pity the viewers...

Note: This piece by Faith is an opinion piece and not a news report. You can contact Faith by tweeting @HerFaithness