The BBC most definitely did the right thing and N(D)ick Griffin was shown to be a slimy and manipulative scum bag. Unfortunately, Jack Straw also wriggled and prevaricated, Baroness Warsi was accused of significant homophobia and didn’t fully deny it and Bonnie Greer looked bored and disinterested. The only member of the panel I thought really came out well was Chris Huhne, although I am prepared to give Bonnie the benefit of the doubt as it could have been disgust at having to sit so close to Griffin that caused her to wrinkle her nose all evening.
All in all, the most important lesson I have learned is how many normally non-racist Brits will turn a blind eye to the BNPs murky ultimate goals in their search for a vote that counts. The comments section on the BBC Question Time forum made me sick. It was full of winging about how Griffin wasn’t given the opportunity to speak and how the BBC had selected a partisan audience. What nonsense. Griffin was given plenty of opportunities and he obligingly hoist himself each time. If he didn’t give straight answers, it wasn’t because he wasn’t allowed to, it’s because he is a weasel deliberately hiding his true colours from his voters to get support for his own ends under false pretences. In that regard I agree with him when he says he is no different to any other politician. As for it being a partisan audience, by the votes, 1/40th of the UK support the BNP, the level of pro BNP clapping seemed about right for that proportion. If the majority disagrees with you, it might not be that they are pawns of a liberal leftist conspiracy, it might just be that you are a dangerous right-wing nut job.
One thing I just don’t get though. Why are people of all parties so determined to “fully integrate” first generation immigrants? I suppose it’s because they’ve never been one and they don’t know what it’s like. Well, I have some insights into that: it isn’t easy and it isn’t fun. When you are past 8 years old a new language doesn’t come easily, you are used to your own culture and it is ingrained to a level so deep it can’t be erased. Even if your choice to leave your homeland has been your own and made of your own free will (and it often isn’t), understanding all the subtleties of a new culture is impossible. It leaves you feeling uprooted and unsettled and that can really get you down. It’s perfectly understandable that people segregate themselves, the community understands them and what they are going through in a way the Joneses in the next street will never be able to. If they tried to integrate (and I’m sure many of them have), they’d probably be rejected anyway, because we like to be with people like us too. Why can’t we just live and let live? Be friendly when we can, and understanding the rest of the time. It only takes one or maybe two generations and a community is fully integrated anyway. What harm does it do to let them make themselves as happy as possible in the meantime?
