Ken Livingstone's Anti-Fascist Crusade

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/farright/story/0,11981,1138284,00.html

'Unite Against Fascism, a major national campaign aiming to alert voters to the "rising threat" of the far right, particularly the British National party, was launched today.'

It's 'I hate the Guardian' day at Enrique Towers. This is the cheapest point-scoring! The Labour government's record on asylum and its incredible undermining of the rule of law (eg, Blunkett's new 'get rid of "beyond reasonable doubt"' scheme whereby you can be locked up without any real sort of trial) shows up how incredibly opportunistic this is: if there is a threat from the right, it's there in Ken's new-old party, not from the extreme fringe of nutxors, vile as they are. Jesus.

― Enrique (Enrique), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:00 (twenty-two years ago)

With respect, Enrique, that is utter toss.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:06 (twenty-two years ago)

It just confirms my suspicions that a worrying number of people on the far left are incapable of viewing anything done by anyone perceived as to the right of them with any degree of perspective.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:08 (twenty-two years ago)

Is it? I think Blunkett's new policy wouldn't be out of place in Mussolini's 1923 prospectus; he also prejudices trials against alleged terror suspects -- he is as big a menace to jury trials as Thatcher was. Whereas the fringe far right poses no genuine threat in democratic terms: obviously it poses a street-level threat, but Livingstone's initiative is a classic centre-right tactic: distancing yourself from the absolute extreme right to seem more acceptable and 'left-wing'.

I'm not on the far left!

― Enrique (Enrique), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:10 (twenty-two years ago)

But Livingstone has nothing to do with Blunkett's policies, and vice-versa.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:14 (twenty-two years ago)

I mean, by what standard is this initiative not a good thing?

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:15 (twenty-two years ago)

Is the guardian the only paper publishing this?

But anyway, surely the main reason that people don't vote in local elections bcz they believe that power is so centralised, which is why candidates might have to come up with other reasons, like this one.

― Julio Desouza (jdesouza), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:15 (twenty-two years ago)

Whether Blunkett's policies on asylum are due to a geniune problem, cynical and cowardly populist pandering, sheer wrongheadedness or genuine fascism is a different debate. The latter option I find highly unlikely though.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:16 (twenty-two years ago)

KL has gone back to Labour as a kind of PR stunt prior to the general election -- Labour's Still Left -- for London voters. There's nothing wrong with the initiative except for its function in the wider constellation of New Labour, as a kind of screen for some very authoritarian policies (the anti-terror stuff is no joke, and plays on BNP prejudices).

― Enrique (Enrique), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:20 (twenty-two years ago)

distancing yourself from the absolute extreme right to seem more acceptable and 'left-wing'.

I mean, this is of course true - Blair has been playing this game with the Tories for ten years now. I just don't believe it is the case in this instance.

I don't think its even anything to do with covering up for Blunkett as Livingstone is hardly trumpeting the Labour connection here. Blair will promote Ken as a centrist Mayor, not as a leftie... the party's done its upmost to persuade people it ISN'T left wing and suddenly pretending to be again isn't going to win any elections.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:23 (twenty-two years ago)

Regardless of your pretty shrill tone, I basically agree with you about Blunkett's stance on immigration. But at the same time, Benjamin Zephaniah could lend his support to campaign (as he, sensibly, has done), or he could "you're in the Labour Party. The Labour Government is pursuing all these evil policies, fuck off", which is cutting off the nose to spite the face, so to speak.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:34 (twenty-two years ago)

I suppose, but there comes a point when it might be right to cut yer nose off -- the Labour party isn't going to improve now surely?

― Enrique (Enrique), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:39 (twenty-two years ago)

I presume this is a cross-party initiative, so actions of the government are beside the point.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:42 (twenty-two years ago)

Most of the personnel involved are more associated with Labour (Peter Hain, Livingstone) -- I mean the Guardian reporting it with KL at the forefront makes this a Labour PR piece either way.

We call, as a matter of the greatest urgency, for the broadest unity against the alarming rise in racism and fascism in Britain today.

Says the main statement -- you can hardly disagree with it in itself, except I don't think there is much of a rise in racism and fascism in Britain; if there is, Blunkett's policies tell their own story. KL has rejoined the party knowing what it stands for -- I think it's fair to associate him with its policies.

― Enrique (Enrique), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:47 (twenty-two years ago)

That's another moot point - is it right to associate, say, Alice Mahon or Jeremy Corbyn with Tony Blair and Geoff Hoon simply because they happen to sit under the same broad umbrella? I mean, they could leave any time they want to and they don't, and I can understand why they don't.

I am fairly certain that the number of people who openly admit to considering themselves racist has gone up in recent months/years. The BNP's share of the vote has also gone up in several areas. The Far Right always does better under Labour governments, whereas many of their potential voters swung behind Thatcher in the 80s. Most of the areas where the BNP is strong are Labour constituencies.

Something that worries me is that Blunkett recognises this trend and is a way pandering to the racists, partly to stop voters defecting to the BNP.

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 16:58 (twenty-two years ago)

the thing is, enrique's kind of right, blunkett's "reforms" are as worrying as the (still miniscule) rise of the right and are connected, because blunkett saying "lock 'em up/hang 'em high" etc moves what the BNP say from beyond the political pale. i don't think he's a fascist either, but he's clearly very very wrong, as was jack straw before him.

nice as these initatives are, it's still pretty much preaching to the converted, ie come on people who usually vote, don't let the nasty people in, isn't it?

― CarsmileSteve (CarsmileSteve), Tuesday, 3 February 2004 17:14 (twenty-two years ago)

twelve years pass...

On 21 August 2007, Quinn was hospitalized in Toulouse, France for an operation to repair two broken vertebrae and a smashed Calcaneus, sustained after falling out of a first floor window of a rented villa he was staying in with his family.[11][12] He subsequently made a full recovery, returning to perform with the Diamond Hoo Ha Men in January 2008.[1]

― nakhchivan, Tuesday, 10 May 2016 01:50 (nine years ago)

one year passes...

Thinking before he speaks again -

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/aug/03/ken-livingstone-venezuela-crisis-hugo-chavez-oligarchs

― chap, Thursday, 3 August 2017 12:51 (eight years ago)

christ on a bike

― -_- (jim in vancouver), Thursday, 3 August 2017 17:21 (eight years ago)

Not sure Corbyn would disagree with him so let's hope nobody asks.

― weird echo of the falsies (Tom D.), Thursday, 3 August 2017 17:22 (eight years ago)

I'd hope Corbyn would add the caveat that they would get a fair chance to peacefully submit to asset seizing proceedings, before gunning down the pitiless bastards like dogs!*

*joeks obv, but oligarchs and landed gentry are still the scum of the earth!

― calzino, Thursday, 3 August 2017 17:45 (eight years ago)

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