++ bonne anniversaire Asterix! ++

SH

Thank You BBC

Personally, I thought it was an excellent edition of Question Time, with Nick Griffin being ridiculed left, right and Centre (that's Chris Huhne, Baroness Warsi and Jack Straw respectively..... controversial!)

A final musing - the viewing figures for tonight's programme will be one of the biggest for a long time, by my guess.

For that, the BBC was right to invite him to speak. For a brief period politics has mattered again and hundreds (if not thousands) of people have been moved to demonstrate, to stand up and be active in the fight against fascists.

At the same time, the actuality of the BNP has been made visible for all to see. A Free Press has held politics to account, and we are free in our minds, without pressure to agree that the BNP are homophobic, racist and well, frankly, pathetic.

Nick Griffin in truth came across less like a baby-eating monster but instead as an inarticulate and foolish man.

The popular opinion at Scouse House towers however is that it is impossible for anyone to have watched that programme and make excuses for them - if you voted BNP you must now accept you voted for a party whose politics are abhorrent in the modern world.

But I celebrate the debate, and the popular discussion. Beats talking about Jordan and Pete again.

SH

LET NICK GRIFFIN SPEAK!

RING IT FROM THE CHURCH BELLS... Nick Griffin should be allowed to speak on BBC's Question Time.

Quite apart from the fact that we can't ignore the fact he has an electoral mandate, and we could not, should not, ignore those men and women who cast their vote.

But we should let him appear because he is going to prove the whole theory about why free speech is good for society. Tonight Nick Griffin is going to stand up (metaphorically) on national TV and show everyone he is a complete fuckwit.

And I welcome that.

Because there is a wider danger we are treading perilously close to falling into.

The Danger is that politics has become sidelined from dailylife. A select few who care enough to read a broadsheet will know how bad the BNP are, but to be honest, until I saw Nick Griffin speak the day after the European Election, even I didn't realise how bad they are.

And We select few decide to carry out our arguments and disagreements in private. That we should stop Nick Griffin speaking on Question Time, is to say that we are capable of resolving the issues our county faces, including extremism, behind the scenes and not to worry your pretty little innocent minds because we will take care of it for you.

Free Speech is about shining a light in dark corners and opening to the world to see what people actually believe.

We have to have faith that when his extremist points of view are laid bare to the country, the BNP will become less not more popular.

We have to have faith that every time they speak, we are capable of pointing out the idiocy of their argument, the hate and bile behind it and the damage they can do.

We have to have faith in ourselves that we can win the argument against racism and extremism.

And we have to have faith that the country will reject him and his ideas when they appreciatewhat they actually are.

SH

Re: the Sun - a reality check!

Conservatives are (rightly) making a fuss over the Sun's decision to back David Cameron - announced in a triumph for good spin operations on the same day as Gordon Brown's speech to Labour party conference.

I say rightly because this is straight out of political playbook 101.

However, as similar as Labour's response is to the Tory response of 1997, this time there is slightly more a ring of truth to the idea that the opinion of a newspaper doesn't matter as much anymore.

However again, that's not the point I'm going to make which is instead a swift spiritual reality check to the head (I hope!)

The Sun (wait for it....) is a (gasp) RIGHT WING PAPER (double gasp)!!!!!

Why is no-one saying this?

Unhelpful attitude to Europe? Check.
Opposed to the idea the state can be a delivery agent for good? Check.
Lazy bastards who can't check facts and blame scousers for things they haven't done! Check.

Don't get me wrong - I'm very grateful for their support in helping to get new labour elected, but this would be less of a blow if we came out and said that the policy cost of earning the Sun's support is too high and Cameron is welcome to them.

For almost ten years, the party of the centre left has had the support of a right wing paper. No wonder people have been known to comment that they're all the same and no-one can tell the difference. We've been given the answer to that on a plate and this is a real chance to paint the clear red water between the parties and start identifying the differences between the ways we would run the country. After all if the Sun can tell the difference.....

It is a feature of our newspapers that they are politically aligned and the Sun's move needs to be seen as a return to the natural order of things, not a prediction of electoral success. When the Mirror comes out for Cameron I'll start to worry.

SH