Immigration Isn't The Problem

With the Tories wanting to impose artificial limits on immigration, a move that seems completely insane if put up against their belief in free enterprise and support for the business community, it comes as some relief to see Nick Clegg of the Liberal Democrats offering some sanity in the immigration debate.

The Liberal Democrats are considering a plan to channel immigration to certain areas of the country.

Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg told BBC One's Andrew Marr show the South East of England was facing pressure on resources due to its rising population.

He said other countries had shown it was "relatively easy" to target immigration at areas with proven labour shortages and away from crowded ones.

But he rejected Conservative calls for an annual cap on immigration.

"David Cameron wants to enter into a Dutch auction now, entering into implausible caps that can't work, that don't work, that we know round the world doesn't work.

"It might work in his focus groups but it is not actually going to produce the cohesive Britain that I want to see," he told BBC1's Andrew Marr Show.

"What has gone wrong in the immigration debate is that we have now had decades of tough talk and administrative incompetence from both Conservative and Labour governments."

Now this sounds like a fairly sensible plan and when combined with the rest of the Lib Dems immigration and asylum policies (including some tougher measures such as reintroducing exit checks) it seems to me that they are ignoring some of the latent racism in this country and going instead for sensible, industry friendly but also community friendly policies.

Which is much better than some of the proposals from some of the other "third" parties out their such as UKIP (who came second at the 2009 European Elections), who propose that the Government should be allowed to decide what one wears in public.

The burka and other face-covering veils worn by Muslim women should be banned, the UK Independence Party says.

Ex-UKIP leader Nigel Farage, who leads UKIP's 13 MEPs in Brussels, told the BBC's Politics Show they were a symbol of an "increasingly divided Britain".

He also said they "oppressed" women and were a potential security threat.

Let me make something clear: I hate burkas. I dislike the idea of someone sexualising men to the point where they must hide their body as they fear even letting a man look at them. I find it quite insulting. But I'm sure some people find my sexuality uncomfortable and dislike the fact I go places with my boyfriend. I don't expect them to tell me I can't go somewhere because I make them uncomfortable and thus I don't expect anyone to tell someone they can't cover themselves in fabric (for that is, when you really think about it, all they are doing) in public because others don't like it. What someone wears and what someone believes are not the problem. We are hardly going to solve the problems of isolated communities in our country by upsetting and insulting the beliefs of some of those communities! So perhaps we can stop this idea of letting the Government have the power to say "You can't wear that" (given they already abuse every other power we ever let them take) and instead focus on bringing isolated communities closer to the rest of society through dialogue and education.

If you feel benevolent and particularly generous, this writer always appreciates things bought for him from his wishlist

Who Are Antifa?

On my train journey home today I spotted a sticker on the window. Usually when I see such stickers they are for some fascist, semi-Nazi crazy group, I often think "What frigging twat decided that the best way of advertising their scummy, rubbish organisation was by DEFACING a train?". Well I was in for a surprise today, as the organisation defacing other's property this time was "Antifa", an anti-fascist group.

I hate the BNP, the BNP Lite parties (hello to the English Democrats favourite friends, the EFP) and even some of the weirdo fascist policies of the more mainstream parties. But I believe, despite my extensive experience of dealing with the stupidity of both myself and so many, many other people, that the best way to deal with these people is through the democratic process, by winning moral arguments, by being better people than those who spew this rubbish.

Sadly Antifa are a "direct action" group. They encourage, if not idolise, physical confrontation and do not discourage violence. God, I wish my morals would allow me to cheer them on, but they don't. In my opinion direct action is fine when it aims for a result: i.e. the Second World War to defeat fascism, or breaking out political prisoners, or defending individuals from direct attack. There the action is warranted. But direct action, where it means attacking people in their homes or public spaces because they hold views different to you own, where it means attacking people who are demonstrating, where it means throwing things at an elected politician, then surely it cannot be anything but wrong.

Oh well... not much one can do about these sort of things... there will always be people willing to take things to this sort of low level on all sides of any debate. Jesus, if the anti-fascists are being this backward there is not much hope for humanity.

This blogger works for nothing but the joy of writing but always appreciates things bought from his wishlist