British National Party

[kags]

Do you think that the British National party will now give up the pretence of being a respectable party, and go back to what they always have been under the thin veneer, that is, a party of unpleasant and ignorant racists?

[slimjim]

I'm totally against them but I have relatives who fought so that we could live in a democracy. They exist as a political party and it is down to the voting public to decide what their future is. Incitement to racism is a different kettle of fish altogether and there may well be a case for police investigation against some of the individuals involved. But, overall their policies are within the bounds of our laws and they must be allowed to exist within our polictical spectrum. It's bad having such a party around but it would be a lot worse if we banned political parties for having tasteless policies.

[slimjim]

p.s. I remember a thread a short while back about the BNP that got a bit out of hand. So let's try and keep it reasoned folks.

[kags]

yes please, I don't want this to turn into a slanging match. I am genuinely interested in what people think the party will do next. Thanks folks.

[andy hughes]

Hello kags, i think the BNP are doing what all political parties do - presenting their 'best' face to the electorate in the hope of convincing people that they are right. I believe in the fundamental common sense of the electorate as a whole, there are simple not enough naiive, biggoted and stupid people around for the BNP to ever have a serious effect on our country. Let's not get carried away by the media seeing a good story, and giving these people far more credance and importance than they could ever reasonably expect, or indeed deserve.

[derbyram]

BNP - Bunch of thugs who will never gain popular support due to the British publics innate distrust of parties which hold extremist views.

[jills]

Yeah, they are already making noises about kicking out the folk who were seen to be out of hand in the film, so trying to do the whole damage limitation thing already. I agree with what's been said here (Kags and Andy, the voice of reason on most threads!) but I would be a bit worried if I lived in an area where they had a seat on the council. It means that enough people in your burgh/district thought they were worthy of a seat...and that's a scary trend. But you're right, on a national level, they'll neever figure.

[bernardo]

No, I think they will step up the process of trying to be respectable, and will do a few more token expulsions of the type of violent scum who were exposed in the programme. Even though there are still huge numbers of violent racist ant-semitic kneejerk reactionary etc s****** the BNP, it has travelled a long way from its roots in the last 20 years and will continue to do so under the leadership of Nick Griffin, who is undoubtedly very charismatic and media-savvy. Although there was an appearance by John Tyndall in the programme (making a typical old-fashioned anti-semitic rant), the most recent news which I read about Tynpot was that he was very alienated from Griffin, and on the verge of being expelled from the party.

[bernardo]

The bit in my answer above which has been obliterated by the AB thought police should have read "s.c.u.m. i.n. t.h.e."

[bernardo]

P.S. It was noticeable that in their 1997 general election manifesto, the BNP said "It's not a matter of 'hate'", whereas by the time of the 2001 election it had already evolved into "it's not a matter of 'racism' or 'hate'".

[Greedyfly]

I was on the bus in Leeds today and two Asian lads got on, as they were leaving to white MEN started to have a ao and completly abused them - I was soo disgusted and I felt sorry for the asian lads cos NO-ONE deserves cr** like that. It actually took me by suprise because never in my life have I encountered a racist person. I was naive in thinking that it just didnt happen anymore. The BNP are disgusting and should be 'shut' down because they are promoting behavior like this.

[archbishop]

Whatever the public face of the party,due to exposure in the media surely everyone knows what they are really like.Saying that they also received 750,000 votes in the recent Euro elections and I don't think they were protest votes against the large parties.

[CleverClogs]

Wow, 750,000 ignoramuses.......... Now that's truly frightening.........

[BenDToy]

Many more than that I am afraid. Funnily enough I have a similar opinion of anyone who votes for the tarnished party who initiated a war on the back of so called WMD then admitted that they got it wrong, without an apology or resignation. BTW this is not an endorsement of the BNP, but I think anyone who now votes for the liar Blair and his corrupt bunch of warmongering pathetic sycophants is no better than those who vote for any other party.

[Piss]

There is no point in pretending that the BNP doesn't play on (however unpalateable) people's fears. However 800,000 people (of whom probably 795000 aren't BNP members) cannot either be ignorant or swastika waving lunatics. The difficulty for the major political players (Lib Lab Con Green) is: The BNP is the only party ready to admit that there is to what ever degree you want to admit a clash of cultures between the indigenous, judaeo christian moral relativist liberal black / white majority and the Islamicist minority who are fundamentalist in their belief. Most Muslims do not take part in the greater society we live in but choose to remove themselves and will move further into their own orbit when given Madrassas (titularly 'Schools' but little more than Hate Factories). The Moslems detest most of what passes as western culture and society - alcohol, gambling, capitalism,contraception, liberty, choice etc). Their Mullahs and Imams - mainstream NOT extremists - teach that homosexuals should be stoned, victims of rape should be punished, corporal and capital punishment are the right way etc. Muslims finally say these things not for any rational reason but because God tells them to via the Koran. People are really frightened; especially at the plan to give Islam a status of complete immunity from Law under a Religious Intolerance Act which will criminalise even reasoned arguement against the Koran. At the same time we have the degrading spectacle of the candidates for the recent by election in Leicester grovelling in front of gangs of 'Community Leaders' pleading for votes from Islamicists who form a minority within Leicester. No I dont think the BNP will turn from the electioneering route to power. The BBC documentary is gold to Griffin and his pals; whilst the borgeouis elite who can't tell the difference between race and religion continue to brown-nose Islam Nick and his pals will continue to thrive and the liberal elite only have themselves to blame

[norfolk boy]

If you put the right spin in place,anything is acceptable,just look at how hitler performed at the nuremberg rally.The german people were taken in.

[dj_ajax]

Right well im not against them where i live the people that are so hard done by cause most of the crime and violence. I don't see why white people now have less rights than blacks or asians as if a white says something seen as racist by the black person then the book is thrown at them but when the tables are turned then its a whole different story. This is our fault for living in a so called multi cultural society where there are big pockets of foreign people who can cause crime and instead of getting deported they waste the taxpayers money getting put in prison. Why is that fair? and you wonder why the thicker parts of society become so called thugs.

[secretspirit]

I think the popularity of what used to be seen as an extreme party just goes to show how undermined so many in the country feel by the mainstream parties. This is because they seem too scared to stand up for equal rights for everyone (yes including white people) and don't condemn the few out of control Muslim extemists who are permitted to say whatever rubbish they like - even when they are going against what their own faith and what the majority of other Muslims feel. It's the same in every situation: if you feel one group of people are getting treated better than you for no reason, whether it's men above women, young people above older ones or one race above another the 'underdog' will naturally fight back how they can and feel resentment to the other side no matter whether they felt it before or not.