Jonathan Freedland: snob and nit

Last week Mr Freedland revealed himself as a snob who looks down on anyone in trade. Wealth producers are obviously the scum of the earth to him. He prefers to move in that more elevated zone inhabited by academics and professionals such as journalists. Quite how these good folk could maintain their positions without anyone creating wealth for the nation he didn't explain.

On Saturday he demonstrated his poor skills as a political pundit and today he's again showing that he just doesn't get it. The 'it' being that private companies offer public services a dynamism that is often lacking from enormous public enterprises. That wages and profit are what drive most people to work. Perhaps he does his Guardian column for nothing and waives his fee when he's on the telly.

He's probably never been employed by a nationalised industry or by a large private one for that matter. If he had he might understand that both are less than perfect. An ideal society would use the best of each. But he wants us to return to pre-1979 Britain. Fine, except we were in terminal decline then......

Query: Is 'nit' still used by anyone as an insult these days? When I was in junior school it was the stinging jibe of first choice.