It is my view that the BBC continually posits the BNP as a latter day evil whereas the same BBC is “sensitive” about Islam’s propensity to produce Jihadi determined to kill as many of us infidels as possible. As it happens, I have no time for either but the BBC must have drooled when they got the news that a former British National Party “activist” who converted to Islam in prison is trying to radicalise young prisoners. Inmate Stephen Jones is being held in a segregation unit at Whitemoor Prison, Cambridgeshire, the BBC has been told. Jones was put there after being suspected of recruiting for groups allied to al-Qaeda. The case has raised concerns that some radical Muslims are using prisons as a recruiting ground. If you read this BBC report it is a remarkable insofar as one is virtually led to believe that Jones is the first Islamist seeking to spread the good news that Jihad against us Brits is all part of the Prophets’ great plan. The BBC appears unaware that this same preaching of hatred is rampant in Mosques throughout this land and that thousands of Muslims living in Britain are fully on board with the perverted ideology of radical Islam. Who taught them? It wasn’t poor Jones, was it?
A QUESTION OF CONVERSION.
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Well, maybe they’re going to ignore “islam” the same way they are ignoring the “bnp”. I wouldn’t mind reading fewer stories about the “religion of peace”.
Funny that Channel 4 did a whole piece on “Jail to Jihad” but the BBC ignored it.
And Robert Spencer of Jihad Watch has written about it many times, Martin… not that Al Beeb would take notice of Robert, of course.
Your piece hits the bull’s eye except I have to disagree with your last line about “the perverted ideology of radical Islam”. What is being preached by this ex-BNP convert and other islamists is not “perverted Islam” but pure islam, radical in the original sense of the word, islam from its root.
As Martin above has mentioned Robert Spencer and Jihadwatch, I would like to direct anyone not up to speed on islam to Gregory Davis’s Islam 101 there:
http://www.jihadwatch.org/islam101/
Oops! Sorry for my mis-attribution in my earlier post. Robert Spencer and Jihadwatch were brought up by disillusioned german not Martin
My apologies to Martin and to disillusioned german.
From the BNP to Islam? Why am I not surprised?
Oh maybe because they both share a hatred of Jews?
I wonder if that was the initial point of contact whilst “banged-up” as the crims say.
Jack Bauer | Homepage | 21.06.08 – 10:12 am |
Spot on. From one hate filled ideology to another.
Re: BBC report on this, there is a political analysis at the end of this ‘New English Review’ piece (in italics) which is an important addendum. The BBC may find the comment either too subtle or too politically inconvenient for its dhimmitude.:-
“Muslim convert (and ex-BNP) ‘recruits’ inmates”
http://www.newenglishreview.org/blog_direct_link.cfm/blog_id/15458
See also:
” Prison Da’wa ”
(by Hugh Fitzgerald)
http://www.newenglishreview.org/blog_direct_link.cfm/blog_id/15420
Martin: 12:06 am.
Yes, Channel 4’s, BBC-ignored, TV documentary should still be available here:
“‘From Jail to Jihad’ – Channel 4 Dispatches documentary ”
http://www.newenglishreview.org/blog_direct_link.cfm/blog_id/15434
I haven’t been living here long very long but I must admit I wasn’t aware of any anti-Jewish feeling in the BNP. (But the BBC – certainly.)
I can’t find any evidence of it on their website either. What is your comment based on?
Harel:
I haven’t been living here long very long but I must admit I wasn’t aware of any anti-Jewish feeling in the BNP.
Historically the BNP is as antisemitic as the German Nazis. Recently they tone it down in public in an attempt to appear more mainstream and perhaps gain Jewish votes.
See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_National_Party
The BNP asserts that there are biological racial differences that determine the behaviour and character of individuals of different races.[21] The party claims that preference for one’s own ethnicity is a part of human nature.[20] Historically, under John Tyndall’s leadership, the BNP was overtly anti-Semitic; however, under the leadership of Nick Griffin, the BNP has focused on criticism of Islam rather than Judaism. The party has said that they do not consider the Jewish, Hindu or Sikh religions to have a significantly detrimental or threatening effect, although the BNP doesn’t accept practicing Sikhs, Jews and Hindus as culturally or ethnically British[22][dead link] although they do have members with Jewish ancestry. The BNP has been known to work with extremist Hindu and Sikh groups opposing Islam[23]and has actively tried to win Jewish votes[24], although the BNP rejects a foreign policy that would support Israel.
And:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_National_Party#Anti-semitism_and_Holocaust_denial
Harel | 21.06.08 – 11:10 am |
I haven’t been living here long very long but I must admit I wasn’t aware of any anti-Jewish feeling in the BNP. (But the BBC – certainly.)
Visit any Jewish cemetry and, chances are, you’ll find their calling card. Mind you these days you are just as likely to find some ME scrawl as a swastika. But the end result is the same.
Hilel…
It’s really not a great leap to see why someone attracted to the BNP, and or the National Front, would find comfort in a religion which specifically targets Jews for race hatred.
It’s in the Koran folks.
Also worth noting, the terms left and right are meaningless here. Scan most loony left websites and you will find a level of brazen Jew hatred not seen since the 1930s in Britain.
We are heading to a very dark place in Europe. Again.
JB: Agreed. One thing that unites the left, the right and Muslims is their hatred of Jews. This was the whole point of Littlejohn’s excellent programme on Channel 4 some time back.
Not just in Britain. There have been similar recruiting efforts in American prisons for decades. (For instance, Black Muslims have had considerable success winning converts in prisons.)
I suspect, from news stories I have seen, that this kind of recruiting is nearly universal in western countries.
Biodegradable, The Cattle Prod of Destiny and Jack Bauer:
“Historically the BNP is as antisemitic as the German Nazis.”
A bit of an exaggeration I think. As for wikipedia and marks on tombstones – not really evidence are they?
If swastikas are an indication of BNP activity, it must be a very large organisation indeed. I’ve been confronted by raw anti-Semitism in several parts of the US but never here. That’s why I’m interested.
Wether the beeb accepts it or not we have a large and growing minority of muslims in Britain who wish death upon the rest of the population.Regardless of good intentions action of one sort or another will in the future result in a major realignment of britain and its muslim population.
thud: Problem is the Government thinks it can create some sort of “Islam lite”. They treat Islam as if it’s “just” another religion.
It isn’t. It’s a whole way of life, it’s culture, religion and politics rolled into one.
Only stupid politicians and left wing gay arts liberals in the media seem to think they can create a form of Islam that is western friendly.
They are in for a big big shock. Sooner or later something will happen that will make 9/11 and 7/7 lok like a fire cracker. I just wonder what the politicians will do then?
Harel | 21.06.08 – 1:03 pm
Why not Google
BNP
Nick Griffin. It’s easy.
In 1995, Griffin joined the BNP. He began to edit The Rune, an anti-Semitic quarterly. He also announced that the BNP should prioritise denying the Holocaust to schoolchildren.
He earned a two-year suspended prison sentence for his sick views on the Holocaust. In 1998 he was found guilty of inciting race hatred at Harrow Crown Court for denying that the Holocaust ever took place.
But now Griffin tries to pretend the BNP is respectable.
Griffin’s BNP may hate Islamic fundamentalists now. But this has not always been the case. After his faction took control of the NF, they began to make some strange alliances. They met with representatives of Colonel Gaddafi’s regime through the Libyan People’s Bureau in London, and expressed support for Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini.
http://www.stopthebnp.org.uk/uncovered/pg03.htm
And from al Beeb:
A smartly-dressed, Cambridge-educated family man, he has written of the need to “normalise” the party.
He has a controversial past, which includes a 1998 conviction for incitement to racial hatred for material denying the Holocaust.
Nick Griffin http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4670574.stm
Sue: “And from al Beeb:”
Strange recommendation to make on this blog.
Well, the BBC is still capable, on rare occasions, of unadorned fact.
But if you can’t trust the BBC, how do you decide whether to believe it or not?
I can’t say it would be my first port of call on anything remotely political.
Also, I’m not an expert on race legislation but I didn’t know that holocaust denial was illegal in 1998.
Illegal or not, one has to be a real swine to indulge in it.
Martin:
JB: Agreed. One thing that unites the left, the right and Muslims is their hatred of Jews. This was the whole point of Littlejohn’s excellent programme on Channel 4 some time back
—————————————————-
True. But the basic difference is that the right don’t bother to hide it, whereas the left dress it up as “anti Zionism”.
Sutekh: That’s right. Wankers like George Galloway deny they are Jew haters, but continually stir up anti Jewish feeling.
As a believer in free speech, I am against making the “denial” of the Holocaust a criminal offence.
This issue flushes out the enemies of reason. If someone is peddling this seething hatred I want to know exactly who they are.
What are you talking about Barry?
I was answering this:
“Harel:
I haven’t been living here long very long but I must admit I wasn’t aware of any anti-Jewish feeling in the BNP. (But the BBC – certainly.)
I can’t find any evidence of it on their website either. What is your comment based on?
Harel | 21.06.08 – 11:10 am “|
I should have thought it was obvious that the reason I linked to the BBC web article as well as the ‘stopthe BNP’ one was to illustrate the diversity of sources that recognise the BNP’s antisemitism.
I also used it because it comes near the top when you Google Mr. Griffin.
Holocaust denial indicates antisemitism. What has the legality of it got to do with anything? In any case incitement to racial hatred is what is supposed to be illegal. Although some people get away with that; so maybe it’s O.K. nowadays.
Even if a link was the same as a recommendation, this site is about BBC bias. Not about the entire BBC output. Just the bias. Which in my view is primarily in its distorted and selective reporting on the Middle East.
Why did you make your irrelevant and annoying comments?
At least this article shows that it’s not too late for you all to see the light?
Harel:
Biodegradable, The Cattle Prod of Destiny and Jack Bauer:
“Historically the BNP is as antisemitic as the German Nazis.”
A bit of an exaggeration I think. As for wikipedia and marks on tombstones – not really evidence are they?
Fine, you asked, we told you. If you don’t want to believe it that’s your problem.
Or maybe you’re really a BNP troll?
See Channel4’s “Young, Nazi and Proud”
http://youtube.com/results?search_query=Young%2C+Nazi+and+Proud+&search_type=&aq=f
… especially towards the end where the journalist tells the little Nazi he’s a Jew, at 7 minutes in here:
Bio – yeah, I saw that documentary. When he broke the news that he was Jewish, I thought the punk would try to hit him. He didn’t know how to handle that bit of info. Someone he had obviously looked up to and confided in turned out to be a bloody Jew?!
From the extreme racist right to Islam, not as uncommon as Al-Beeb would let on:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Myatt
Why do so many people here equate anti-semitism with racism? The Jews are not a ‘race’. You can have black Ethiopian Jews and white Russian Jews. They are certainly not the same race as anyone who has been to Israel will notice. The only people who call themselves a ‘race’ are the ‘white’ Jews themselves. Very convenient, and very racial in itself.
Perhaps this is the problem the BBC is having; on the one hand they are pro-Jewish, and on the other anti-Israeli. It’s a gaping hypocrisy the BBC will never be able to reconcile.
Amazing how quickly some people on this page start to demonstrate irritation with difficult questions and opposing points of view. You’re obviously not Jewish enough.
I’m also surprised at what passes for evidence around here. And to suggest that the BBC and ‘stopthe BNP’ represent some sort of diversity of source is bizarre.
Fleur – it is far too simplistic to state that Jews are not a race. A victim of one of the many genetic diseases that affect Jewish people would beg to differ. And if the BBC is pro Jewish, my middle name’s Mohammed.
Lastly, to attempt to add weight to a political view by equating the BNP with the Holocaust is pretty disgusting and insulting to the 6M who were murdered. In any case, the BNP seems to be going nowhere.
Someone he had obviously looked up to and confided in turned out to be a bloody Jew?!
Bryan | 21.06.08 – 8:32 pm
I had a real life experience like that when I had to work with a young member of the National Front (and a Gooner to boot!).
I made no secret of being Jewish but he had a hard time at first getting to grips with the fact that I wasn’t at all like his idea of what a Jew should be like.
Big nose: nope.
Rich: nope
etc.
Which brings me to:
You’re obviously not Jewish enough.
Harel | 22.06.08 – 2:17 am
Enough for what?
“Just as there are still Japanese soldiers in the jungles of Borneo, unaware that they should have surrendered 63 years ago, there are still people who think ‘New Labour’ is Right-wing.
I’ve tried to get the message across to them, ever since the whole Blair project began.
This is the most revolutionary government since Oliver Cromwell, dedicated to overthrowing the moral, social and cultural order of this country.
More…
Debate with Peter Hitchens
But simpleton Labour Leftists (who want to nationalise Mr Whippy vans, Starbucks and eBay) and dimwit Tories (who likewise don’t grasp that the battlefield has shifted) just don’t get it.
Ex-Trot: Minister of State at the Home Office said he used to be a radical
The truth is • and I know it because I was a Sixties Trotskyist myself • that the Blair-Brown Labour Party is crammed full of unreformed revolutionaries.
That’s why the MI5 files of that era have been so zealously destroyed.
I tried to obtain my own docket and was refused on feeble grounds.
The fact is that mine went in the incinerator along with Peter Mandelson’s, John Reid’s and many others whose interesting pasts are much-rumoured around Westminster, but impossible to prove.
But now you don’t have to take my word for it.
Last week, my lonely warnings were confirmed in an astonishing public statement by Tony McNulty, Minister of State at the Home Office.
Mr McNulty was sucking up to a pro-liberty group, who didn’t think much of his enthusiasm for jailing people without trial.
Believing that everyone there was a Leftist like him, he tried to win them over with these words: ‘I know it’s terribly hard to believe but I used to be radical myself.
‘I used to think that politics was about selling newspapers…my excuse was I was very, very young but, you know, like a lot of government, I’m an ex-Trot.’
Now, I don’t find it hard to believe at all.
Looking at the bland, prosperous faces of the Parliamentary Labour Party I see my generation, the ones who between about 1965 and 1975 learned to loathe patriotism, the Armed Forces, proper policing, proper schools, traditional religion, marriage, the Monarchy and all the other things that ‘alternative’ comedians are paid handsomely to sneer at on the BBC.
What a conformist bunch we were.
And how hard we were on anyone who broke ranks • as I discovered when my direct experiences of Communist countries and of the inner workings of the Labour Party persuaded me to change my mind.
Hardly a week has passed since when I haven’t been gratuitously mocked or personally insulted by my former comrades.
These people haven’t changed their minds. They haven’t the courage, the character or the experience to do so.
They’re too fat for the jeans and they’ve lost the hair, but they still think what they thought back then.
Mr McNulty’s totalitarian belief in imprisonment without trial • justified, of course, by supposedly noble ends • comes straight from his revolutionary teens.
Trotsky would have approved.
*I’ll post the full quote from Mr McNulty on my blog later this week.”
Peter Hitchens
Here’s the CLIFFS notes version.
The BBC is run by liberals.
Liberals have liberal opinions.
Liberals love the bad guy.
Liberals hate those who are successful.
There is no successful Muslim culture or country.
Liberals believe that if you hold people accountable for their actions and or behaviors, you are a bigot.
Liberals don’t create. They suck the taxpayer dry.
Got it?
I have searched the web to find out why this said ‘ex BNP activist Stephen Jones actually did to end up in prison. Google just refers to the thing about him converting and turning inmates to Islam. How odd.
The BNP are not what the media have painted them to be nowadays and every party has/had it’s share of bad apples. I guess you all prefer Muslims who have declared Jihad against the West. Hope you will be happy living under Sharia Law.
peter — The truth is • and I know it because I was a Sixties Trotskyist myself • that the Blair-Brown Labour Party is crammed full of unreformed revolutionaries.
Did you ever wander into one of the Trot “recruitment” meeting at university (or poly), while this commie explained that if only he could talk personally to every person in the country they would soon be persuaded of the “benefits” of “socialism..”
But because that was impractical it was up to me and others like me to be the enlightened “vanguard” of the revolution and lead the proles?
That’s the BBC. Leading the proles to the promised land.
I’m rather (or very) pro-Israel and I do visit the BNP website frequently as it is a useful compiler of news which the BBC does not wish to have disseminated. I even comment on the BNP website and I have found no evidence of anti-Jewish or anti-Israeli sentiment: quite the opposite, in fact. Perhaps the BNP has used the National Front as a dustbin for its Jew-haters?
So, given that the web exists, and the BNP’s views can be accessed at the touch of a key, would those who believe the BNP to be ‘nazi’ please provide evidence?
In a typically misleading BBC web headline, about Scotland:
“Terrorism fight given £4m boost”
(I think the BBC means to say in that headline: ‘Anti-terror police given extra £4m’, but let that pass…)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7467320.stm
It is interesting that in this report, which is about the security threat now known by the Home Office word ‘terrorism’, a Osama Saeed of the Scottish-Islamic Foundation makes a comment. Why? Does he think that terrorism has something to do with Islam? What’s this: ‘Islamophobia’?
Fleur | 21.06.08 – 11:26 pm |
Why do so many people here equate anti-semitism with racism? The Jews are not a ‘race’. You can have black Ethiopian Jews and white Russian Jews. They are certainly not the same race as anyone who has been to Israel will notice. The only people who call themselves a ‘race’ are the ‘white’ Jews themselves. Very convenient, and very racial in itself.
Perhaps this is the problem the BBC is having; on the one hand they are pro-Jewish, and on the other anti-Israeli. It’s a gaping hypocrisy the BBC will never be able to reconcile.
DNA evidence contradicts your assertions. There are quite a few genetic markers shared by enough of the Jewish population to make it reasonable to call Jews and ethnic group. Of course, there are several strains: ashkenazi and sephardim have had separate cultural and genetic paths for centuries, and as you point out the Ethiopian Jews have African features rather than Indo-European. However, there are apparently a few shared genetic traits there as well.
The “Cohen” genetic marker, as well as mitochondrial DNA and Tay Sachs are just some of the evidence. Nor can we ignore the fact that traditionally Jews historically only married “within the tribe’ (I know about the Khazars, and I’m not saying there is anything like the old concept of racial purity here).
Having said that, the fact that we’re pretty much all going to look like Tiger Woods in a couple of centuries makes arguing over a handful of genes and genetic markers seem pretty silly.
David Preiser.
Interesting contribution of yours.
Mitochondrial DNA, which is used to trace genetic traits via the female line (crucial in tests of Jewishness some say) only show a generic link, not a racial link, and are nearly always Recessive genes.
Other genes that control skin, eye and hair colour/blood type etc are called Dominant genes, and are used more accurately to define a race.
Your quip about Tiger Woods is genetically correct as the brown gene is persistently more dominant than the gene for whiteness.
Peoples biases vis a vis RACE, are not thought out as intellectually as you are describing David and Fleur.
The term “RACE” has been bastardized.
It’s quite simple really.
It’s not about your race, it’s about your “protected status”.
If you are Black-African-American-Negro-Coloured etc. You have a card.
If you are GAY..(lesbian-thesbian-vegan-tri-sexual-bi-sexual-haymo-sexual-or-don’t-want-to-have-sex-with-y’all. YOU GET A CARD.
If you are Muslim, Middle-eastern-Egyptian, Mohican,Bi-polar, if you are a Polar Bear, or if you have been to Pakistan. YOU GET A CARD.
Women get HALF A CARD. Gay women get a CARD and a half, unless they are Tri-sexual. Then they get 2.5 cards.
I’ll continue if necessary.
If you are WHITE, ANGLO, SCOTTISH, ENGLISH, or are from the MIDDLE-WEST.
You get nothing and like it. Unless you are (SEE ABOVE).