Nick Griffin - BNP Leader to appear on BBC's 'Question Time'

[beltic caldy]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstop ... ition.html

and

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8321157.stm



Ho ho!! This one'll be in the headlines for a few days, no doubt.

Should he be allowed to speak, air his views and those of his party?

Or should he be prevented the chance, for fear that his views will be, at some level, seen as being legitamised, simply by appearing on a flagship BBC program....?

Hmmmm.....

My thruppence? Let him on and ask him the hard questions that will compel answers to the BNP's less moderate views - shine a light on true ugliness - surely this is the path of wisdom, rather than protesting at his right to freedom of expression in this way? Doesn't protesting his right, in a society that supposedly allows freedom of speech give his (ugly ugly ugly) movement a power it wouldn't necessarily have without attempted gagging....


anyone have thoughts? The show will air (in UK) in 45 minutes.....

[fedfan]

I wouldn't be surprised if he cancels, they have got the press attention they wanted just from entering the BBC studios.

I agree they need to put him under scrutiny and try to highlight the ignorance of a minority of the public who follow the BNP.

At the end of the day you cannot censor free speech, it defeats the whole point but don't allow the guy to go on their to sit on a mantle and spout propoganda.

[fedfan]

BTW this should be in Off-Topics.

[beltic caldy]

no way he's going to cancel man...he sees this is as his golden opportunity.

quite right about not allowing it to be a soap-box for their propaganda - it's a measured risk, isn't it? the double-edged sword that is freedom of speech - but not allowing him to spout his rubbish...well, that's like countries banning these guys from entering foreign countries - it lends them a power that wouldn't be there otherwise.

let's put him under the spotlight, and not just ask, but demand answers - we'll see what he has to say - i rather seriously doubt my views of him or his ilk will change - at worst, i may gain a modicum of respect for how he handles himself....at best, he'll expose himself and his party for what they really are. We see.

[beltic caldy]

ahhh...there's an off-topics thread? apologies

[coke4]

You gotta hate facists, i dont even know if there is an irish facist party.....

[Chederer]

who is nick griffin?

[coke4]

who is nick griffin?

leader of the The British Nationalist Party

[coke4]

Just came across a white pride website called stormfront, some scary stuff.

[beltic caldy]

You gotta hate facists, i dont even know if there is an irish facist party.....

the real point here is not to hate anyone - let them speak their nonsense, and try to rally 'haters' to their cause - in the case of the BNP, it's the muslims that are their hate-target right now...but pick your era and it'll change - formerly, it was the irish, before that, in england, the african-carribeans, before that, the jews - there will always be tension between 'the haves and the have-nots' - the wealthy and the poor - to disregard or ignore this is to allow the likes of Griffin, or Mussolini or Hitler to gain a foot in the door of resentment and hatred and racism.

check out the show though - i think it wasn't that bad - Griffin was attacked too much and given too little chance to respond, for my liking - on the few occasions that he DID speak freely, he exposed himself for the ignorant bigoted fool that he is - a bit of a shame he wasn't allowed more rope - still, it would have to be considered a defeat for the BNP, from a PR position alone, i think.

did anyone see it? what are your views?

p.s. the irish (and i'm one - from the wicklow hills) would be advised caution when it comes to stone-throwing re fascism....a quick check in the none-to-distant past might reveal some interesting facts : ) which is also along the lines of one man's freedom-fighter being another man's insurgent rebel - it's all a matter of perspective. history should teach us the danger of ignoring patterns in behaviors - refusal to learn these lessons is the only true danger we face, no?

[Rob ITST]

Is the BNP actually a major party there? Sounds like you guys have a good bit of extremists. Of course I'm just basing that on what I read in this thread.

[beltic caldy]

well....certainly not what could be called a major party man - they won 2 seats in the european parliament pretty recently - but they did get about a million people (out of a voting population of about 60 million) voting for them at last elections.

most political analysts in this country agree that the reason they got even that much of the vote is from a general feeling of disappointment with the 2 major parties - labour (in power now) and conservative - roughly ideologically similar/analagous to your Democratic and Republican parties, respectively - roughly. Labour have been vague on certain immigration issues and also we had a major major scandal to do with expenses claimed by ministers, from both major parties - these 2 factors contributed to boost that the BNP would almost definitely not have seen otherwise.

i was afraid the show would turn into a pure lets-kick-nick-griffin-in-public affair, which would in turn do nothing except elicit sympathy for him (he's a pretty pathetic character) - it was a little like that, but on the whole, he was allowed enough clear-road, as it were, to expose himself for the sad little hate/fearmonger that he and his party are.

there's no such thing as bad publicity? wrong in this case - Griffin came across as evasive, deceptive, nervous, desperate and generally pathetic - it would take some spin to get positives from. coolio. victory for free speech.

[jayl0ve]

Wow, this Griffin guy is a hideous beast ....he looks like he was dropped on his head as a baby or something.

[Rob ITST]

Gotcha. Basically, you have your rednecks too.

[beltic caldy]

LOL!! just so Rob - phew - i need to learn your art for summary