At least that is what the leaflet that was posted through my front door said the other day.
It had a very nice picture of the BNP candidate for the Basingstoke, UK area. It told of how he grew up in the area, frequented the local chinese takeaway and then of how disconcerted he became at the number of immigrants that he was seeing around his area.
It also tells the story of the old lady who had to spend all of her savings so that she could survive, and that when she had spent it all, she could not get put on a waiting list for a house, or that she could get a fraction of the benefits that she was due. It then gave an example of how family X arrived from location Y as an illegal immigrant and was immediately given all the financial support that he needed, along with a house and a car to go with it.
When you put it like that, it does tend to make you wonder what the hell is going on. In fact most of the flyer contained a lot of common sense arguments. If you took away the name of the party responsible for the flyer, and if you forgot about any preconceptions of the BNP that you had, you could be insensed enough by the issues to actually want to vote for that constituent.
I heard an interview on the radio with Nick Griffin, the leader of the BNP. He was very careful on what he said, and how he said it. He touched on the issues mentioned in the leaflet. He gave a very good account of himself, and again, forgetting who the party are, and assuming for a minute that he was a new independant candidate, you would probably consider a vote for him. Nearly ever issue about race relations or in fact any question that seemed racist or contentscious, he deflected.
This general election, I have noticed a very deliberate ploy by the BNP to only discuss and campaign on the issues that most ‘normal’ people would support. Gone are the days when your local BNP candidate would turn up in jeans, nazi slogan’ed t-shirt and a pair of 40 hole Dr. Martins, with a zillion piercings and a Nazi emblem somewhere about his body. Todays candidates could be your next door neighbour if appearancs were to be judged upon.
I visited the BNP website after the radio show to have a look at their manifesto. They have a brief version, and the much longer full version. Much longer, in fact, long enough to make people only want to view the shorter version. The shorter version that doesn’t contain half of the ‘racist’ policies that we would normally associate the BNP with.
My biggest fear this election, is they are going to win a large number of votes that makes us out to be as bad as some of the other European countries where facists appear to be making a comeback. We are not that sort of nation. But they have guided their media attention at the immigration policies that are at the forefront of a lot of peoples minds. I would expect they have been campaigning strong and hard in an area like Dover for example. Not that they will win the seat, but they will get a huge number of votes, which the media will pick up on and give some coverage to.
They seem to be glossing over the more negative policies that they have lurking in the background. Now don’t get me wrong, all the information is there if you look, all the history is there too. They haven’t hidden it, suddenly denied it. It is merely the BNP applying ‘spin’ to their own image, and doing it well which is most worrying. If the comments on their site are to be believed, it appears that there a huge number of people who are disheartend by the number of ‘illegal’ immigrants who have entered our system. But I wonder how many of those are in favour of banning ALL immigrants. I wonder how many of those are in favour of a fraction of the policies that they have not discussed.
One of their policies which they do discuss is the repatriation of foreign nationals back to their home country. Anyone wishing to return would be paid a lump sum of money and given free flight back to their ‘home’ country.
This applies to all foreigners, all would be made to leave eventually.
When asked what effect this would have on our already delapidated NHS when you consider the number of foreign doctors, nurses and auxillary staff, their answer was that by reducing the number of foreigners within the UK, this would releave the pressure on the NHS to such and extent, that we wouldn’t need them.
Now thats is a more polite method of ‘making Britain white’ than the “Pakki’s Go Home” slogans of years ago, but it is no more common sense now, than it ever was. Britain is a multi-cultural society and it is the only way we can ever survive. Most of the people who will vote for the BNP will not see past the issues that have angered them so much to see the real racist agenda that really drives the BNP.
All current and ex-forces personnel will be allowed to own and carry a firearm. They will be allowed to kill anyone deemed to be carrying out an illegal activity without fear or persecution by the judicial system. (Another quote from another radio show, based on an actual policy item in their manefesto). This one made me laugh as an ex-Royal Navy guy. If you gave guns to us lot, half of us would have shot ourselves within 6 months. And it would be no use taking us to hospital, because there would be no one left to treat us.
No Mixed relationships, they would be illegal. The family would be asked to relocate to the country of origin of the foreign partner.
The practicing of foreign religion would be banned.
There are so many racist items that they have glossed over in an attempt to gain support from those who feel they have suffered as a result of illegal immigration.
I am all for free speech, but in this day and age, allowing a party like this to practice what the majority of the world would consider racist, elitest and even extremist mystifies me. Given the weapons, given the power, or just simply given the means, these people would be far worse than any Hitler or Hussein. They would commit far worse crimes against humanity than ever commited before, yet we allow them to not only voice their opionions in public, but to stand for office in order to be elected.
It is a difficult one I know when it comes to free speech. I don’t have any angst towards the Basingstoke candidate, I just don’t agree with his beliefs and his policies. But democracy being what it is, if this was a just and true world we live in, they would never get elected. I suppose it is their hidden agenda I disagree most with, or the way that they praying on the emotions of those most effected by some of the issues they raise.