Britain’s enduring fascist heritage
Juliet Samuel at the Telegraph – yes really – says the murder of Jo Cox is far-right terrorism.
The Quilliam Foundation, one of Britain’s foremost anti-extremism think tanks, has been the first major organisation to call this dreadful event by its name: an act of nationalist far-Right terrorism.
Why does it matter what we call it?
Because calling it by its name shakes us out of our complacency and it helps us to understand how we should react. There’s a tendency to think of Britain as a moderate, sensible, reasonable place. Until yesterday, we had been spared the horrifying extremist attacks that have recently been taking place in other western countries. And Britain is mostly a safe and moderate place.
No you hadn’t, not entirely. She must have forgotten the London bombings, and the foiled plan to bomb a London nightclub, and the attack on Glasgow airport, and the slaughter of Lee Rigby…Or she’s defining “recently” as the last couple of years or so.
But our society is not immune from extremist hatred, whether it’s Islamist or fascist. There is an ongoing and energetic discussion about Islamic extremism. There is very little discussion of our enduring fascist heritage. Yet Britain has been home to fascist groups for decades. There was a strong vein of support for Adolf Hitler in this country before the Second World War. The first lists of banned speakers drawn up by university student unions were populated by hateful fascists, not Islamist hate preachers or mildly controversial Right-wingers.
Those lists still don’t include Islamist hate preachers. Those are mostly welcomed and fêted.
Mr Mair might be a mentally ill loner. But he is also a loner who took inspiration from neo-Nazism, just as other mentally ill loners have been inspired by Isil propaganda. It seems increasingly clear that Mr Mair belongs to a vile tradition of the murderous far-Right that includes Anders Breivik and Timothy McVeigh.
It’s interesting how much they have in common with the Islamist brand.
Well, they are all authoritarian social conservatives. The gulf of religion is a shallower divide than the chasm between progressive and authoritarian conservative.
No you hadn’t, not entirely. She must have forgotten the London bombings, and the foiled plan to bomb a London nightclub, and the attack on Glasgow airport, and the slaughter of Lee Rigby…Or she’s defining “recently” as the last couple of years or so.
Yeah, she’s got quite the memory.
Because calling it by its name shakes us out of our complacency and it helps us to understand how we should react.
‘Workplace violence’ like Fort Hood and San Bernardino?
What else could it be?
And of course, Mental Illness can be invoked whenever the killer’s ideology is too close to mainstream for comfort.
‘Sudden Jihad Syndrome’ has been suggested, but we need a name that covers that, AND Roof, AND Mair.
We will see how ‘safe and moderate’ Britain is after the Brexit referendum, particularly if the majority vote to stay in the EU.
Samuel also seems to have forgotten the nation-wide race riots that occurred a few years ago.
@Johnthe Drunkard #3
I vote for “total goddamned loony but retaining criminal responsibility” for the lot of them.
The thing is, there’s a difference between mentally ill and lacking concepts of right and wrong. It’s perfectly possible to have a mental illness and still be a criminal and be competent to stand trial. However, in medical terms these guys are completely sane and completely able to take responsibility for their actions.
However there’s the “social”, colloquial definition of being a loony that simply denotes someone whose behaviour and/or beliefs are significantly outside social norms. It does not indicate mental illness (“mad” is not a medical or psychiatric diagnosis. “Mad” simply does not formally exist).
So yeah, total goddamned loony. Lock him up and throw away the key.