Right, I'm not going to give the usual caveat here. The little icons dotted around this page make it perfectly clear who it is I support.
Looks like old Harridan Harperson is going to get what she wanted. It sits nicely with the old warning about being careful what you wish for.
BNP leader Nick Griffin has agreed to ask his party to amend its constitution so it does not discriminate on grounds of race or religion, a court heard.
Now as far as I'm concerned, it is a party with its own values. They are values I do not hold therefore I won't join them, just as a Labour supporter won't support Libertarian values and therefore won't be joining us. Fine.
Ahhh, yes, but black people can't join the BNP. Their rules don't allow it.
Well, fine. Their party, their rules.
I have a sneaking suspicion that not many black or Asian people would want to join the BNP, but discrimination is bad and it must be stamped out. The right of a hypothetical black person to join the BNP trumps the right of a very real BNP member to exclude them. I don't understand how one person's 'rights' can trump those of another, but there you go.
Let's just suppose for a minute that the BNP relents and alters it's constitution to allow 'non-indigenous non-Caucasian' people to join. What will the outcome be?
Will the BNP be flooded with ultra-nationalist Rastafarians and Taoists?
Doubtful.
Will the BNP find themselves hamstrung by a large faction coming into the party that is determined to work against their policies?
Possible, but then, the current BNP members will just leave and start up another party, so that won't work.
No, what would happen is that the BNP would hang an 'all welcome' sign on their front door, secure in the knowledge that the people they don't want to join, won't join. And then, when they start to appear on Question Time (which could be quite entertaining tonight given the reaction to their name last week, either that or someone released a shit load of snakes into the studio), the Big 3 will no longer be able to point their fingers and scream 'Racists!' at them, as they will have the constitution to prove they are not.
Much is written in the Libertarian blogosphere about this government's tactic of denormalising people, drinkers, smokers, the free of thought and will, but now Harman and her chums are doing something even more daft, they are normalising a party.
Eh? How's this going to work? On the one hand you use legislation to enforce your will and values on a political party. Legislation that, if the BNP have any sense, they won't break. So you can't very well screm 'Racist' at them anymore, what does that leave you? It is obvious you'll continue to do your best to ensure that they are shouted down at every opportunity, blocked from attending Parliament or debates and generally excluded, inspite of the fact that they are legitimately elected.
But of course, there's no room for views you don't like in your democracy.
The BNP will be able to point and give another example of the Labour mania for controlling anything their gaze happens to fall upon, and cries of 'but they're not very nice people' is hardly going to cut the ice, is it? Did they go to war in Iraq? Did they use expenses to fund their own companies? Did they promote their biggest trougher to the Lords to allow him to bleed us dry until the day he dies? Did they go back on a referendum promise? Did they desert their natural constituency in order to cling on to power? Did they plan a smear campaign against opposition MPs and then whine when they got caught out?
No.
The problem is, all of you Big 3, but specifically Labour, just because most people find the BNP objectionable, it doesn't follow that they like you any better, and at least the BNP are honest.
By enforcing normality upon them, you surrender your second biggest weapon against them and will do nothing more than generate sympathy for them, you will increase their membership as for many waverers using the law to force a political party to do as you want will be the straw that broke the camel's back.
It isn't the last straw for me, my camel's spinal cord was severed about nine years ago, but for a number of people this will be it, for others it will be what you do tomorrow.
What I don't understand is why you don't use the most effective weapon you have against the BNP; just let them talk. Or is it that you've made such a horlicks of your time in power that you are scared that the people you have a God given right to expect to turn out for you, will look at you, then at them, then back at you, and say to themselves; 'You know, this BNP lot aren't as half as bad as Labour'?
If that is the case, then who is to blame?
a) The BNP
b) Those two Irish lads on the X-Factor
c) The Cybermen
d) You
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