BBC Reporting by numbers#2:

If saying anything remotely critical of Islam, criticise another religion first.

As reported by 21st March World at One on BBC Radio 4, al-Qa’eda issued a statement after the Madrid bombing, part of which said

You [the West] love life, we [al-Qa’eda] love death

World at One decided this was worthy of discussion, which I though was surprising. The BBC tells us constantly how ‘peace-loving’ Islam is.

So how does this discussion continue and progress – by talking about Christian martyrs of course, and the willingness of early Christians to kill freely, and be killed. So, that’s all right then – it’s nothing new, nothing to get excited about.

Except this. It’s much less of interest to me when people did 1500, 1000 or 500 years ago – many religions seem to have turbulent pasts. What matters to me is what people do and think now. World at One is a news programme, not a history programme.

It should have been the here and now that was the focus of the discussion, not some equivalence-seeking PC nonsense. Needless to say the Islamic cult of death as exhibited by al-Qa’eda, and supported by many, and it’s roots in scripture, were not examined. It’s simply too hot a subject for the BBC.