English Defence League march in Dudley

[Sooty the Thief]

Not sure why the idiots of UAF have to organise a counter march on the same day? Obviously going to cause trouble and that is exactly what occurred.

Birmingham Mail - News - Top Stories - EDL in Dudley: UAF bring 1,500 to town for counter protest

 

[Gwylan]

 

[Goldstone Rapper]

Is the English Defence League live and exclusive on SkySports?

 

[Fef]

Not sure why the idiots of UAF have to organise a counter march on the same day? Obviously going to cause trouble and that is exactly what occurred.

It would be a waste of time organising a counter march on a different day, cos then it wouldn't be a counter march any more, - it'd just be a march!

 

[Hungry Joe]

Interesting name the English Defence League. Who exactly do they think England needs defending from? Could it be they are suffering from paranoid delusions?

 

[daveinprague]

They love a nazi salute.... nothing like taking up a fascist, foreign countries salute to show you represent England.
These people are as thick as pigshit but without the glamour.

Cue: BUT BUT BUT..... ONE anti fascist infiltrator was caught giving the salute...supposedly..

Ok...thats one... and the rest??

 

[Brighton Breezy]

Someone needs to protest against them. If that someone has to be the UAF then all power to them.

 

[strings]

I hardly think that it was Unite Against Facism that was throwing bricks at the Mosque...

 

[Surrey Seagull]

Best way to deal with idiots like this, is not to draw attention to or protest against them. Just ignore them.

 

[Brovion]

Interesting name the English Defence League. Who exactly do they think England needs defending from? Could it be they are suffering from paranoid delusions?

I had a look at their website the other day. I was disappointed to see that the front page was dominated by an anti trade union rant, indeed the whole thing read like a bad National Front pamphlet from the 1970s. So until I get evidence to the contrary I shall have to dismiss them as just a load of bog-standard right-wing bigots rather than defenders of my homeland. Shame, as in some ways I think we could do with a predominantly English-orientated political grouping.

 

[Hungry Joe]

I had a look at their website the other day. I was disappointed to see that the front page was dominated by an anti trade union rant, indeed the whole thing read like a bad National Front pamphlet from the 1970s. So until I get evidence to the contrary I shall have to dismiss them as just a load of bog-standard right-wing bigots rather than defenders of my homeland. Shame, as in some ways I think we could do with a predominantly English-orientated political grouping.

How would you define 'English-orientated political grouping'?

 

[Brovion]

How would you define 'English-orientated political grouping'?

Not 100% sure, in some ways I won't know it unti I see it. On one level I'd say an English equivalent to Sinn Fein, the SNP or Plaid Cymru. I'm not saying I'd vote for such a party in the same way I won't vote for the Greens, but they could be useful in bringing issues (such as an English parliament) into the mainstream. The problem is of course that once it becomes a political party there is a danger it will become bombastic and jingoistic ('unEnglish' even) and will in all honesty attract 'the wrong sort'.

 

[Hungry Joe]

Not 100% sure, in some ways I won't know it unti I see it. On one level I'd say an English equivalent to Sinn Fein, the SNP or Plaid Cymru. I'm not saying I'd vote for such a party in the same way I won't vote for the Greens, but they could be useful in bringing issues (such as an English parliament) into the mainstream. The problem is of course that once it becomes a political party there is a danger it will become bombastic and jingoistic ('unEnglish' even) and will in all honesty attract 'the wrong sort'.

I see, thanks. It's funny but I've never even thought of an English 'nationalist' party along those lines, probably for the problems you mention. Maybe it's harder to define 'Englishness' compared to the Irish, Scottish or Welsh, and therefore it automatically slips into visions of jingoism.

 

[Brovion]

I see, thanks. It's funny but I've never even thought of an English 'nationalist' party along those lines, probably for the problems you mention. Maybe it's harder to define 'Englishness' compared to the Irish, Scottish or Welsh, and therefore it automatically slips into visions of jingoism.

Yeah, there's the whole problem of 'English Nationalism'. We've had this discussion before that we (the English) don't make a big thing of St Georges's Day for example. And that's got nothing to do with our Politically Correct masters banning it and everything to do with the fact that most of us don't give a toss one way or the other. As you say we don't have that narrow nationalistic (dare I say 'anti-English') focus that our celtic neighbours have.

I've also got another problem in that I would define myself as being 'from the left'. Growing up in the 1970s I despised nationalisms of all kinds; I was a 'workers of the world unite' person and I dismissed anybody who said "I'm British and proud of it" as right-wing scum. Even then I'd be both amused and exasperated at my fellow lefties who, whilst happily describing British nationalism as 'bad', would jump through all sorts of ideological hoops to claim that Irish nationalism was 'good'.

Now I accept that the waters are muddier and the dividing lines are more blurred than they were in the 1970s; after all it's 40 years ago and the world's changed. Or maybe they were always muddier and blurred and it's just that I've grown up!

 

[Couldn't Be Hyypia]

Why is this thread still open?

 

[1 night only]

I've also got another problem in that I would define myself as being 'from the left'. Growing up in the 1970s I despised nationalisms of all kinds; I was a 'workers of the world unite' person and I dismissed anybody who said "I'm British and proud of it" as right-wing scum. Even then I'd be both amused and exasperated at my fellow lefties who, whilst happily describing British nationalism as 'bad', would jump through all sorts of ideological hoops to claim that Irish nationalism was 'good'.:

I have a similiar problem in that growing up in the 70/80 and I suppose still today I was/am a British nationalist but without the hardcore racist views of many of my fellow right wingers. I am very proud of Britain's achievements and history and whilst I feel our immigration policy over the years could have been handled slightly better (to say the least) I welcome anyone who wants to be British regardless of colour. So my exasperation is that the British Nationalist agenda is so often centred on people's colour. (I want to believe the BNP are changing that but dont buy it yet)

Funny Brovian that despite the left/right labels that suggets we should be political enemies I expect we share a lot of common views.

 

[Husty]

It would be a waste of time organising a counter march on a different day, cos then it wouldn't be a counter march any more, - it'd just be a march!

Slightly worrying it had to be said.

 

[Gwylan]

I've also got another problem in that I would define myself as being 'from the left'. Growing up in the 1970s I despised nationalisms of all kinds; I was a 'workers of the world unite' person and I dismissed anybody who said "I'm British and proud of it" as right-wing scum. Even then I'd be both amused and exasperated at my fellow lefties who, whilst happily describing British nationalism as 'bad', would jump through all sorts of ideological hoops to claim that Irish nationalism was 'good'.

Not something that bothered George Orwell, to name one person, who was of the left but was certainly fiercely patriotic. You could probably say the same of Billy Bragg too. It just shows that being left wing and "British and proud" aren't mutually exclusive.

 

[cunning fergus]

Interesting name the English Defence League. Who exactly do they think England needs defending from? Could it be they are suffering from paranoid delusions?

Yep, its a real poser........what with everyone all happily rubbing along with each other these days.

I mean who would want to kill their fellow citizens in our cosy little multicultural paradise?

Some people eh?

 

[HampshireSeagulls]

You can be Nationalist without being racist, but the media will never stop making the link between anyone that waves a Union Flag and the Far Right. Personally, I find the UAF as odious as the BNP these days, and would happily kick the shit out of both sides to pass a couple of hours on a boring Sunday.