European Elections
 

The racist, near-fascist BNP have won a seat for the Yorkshire and Humber ward. And the newly-elected BNP MEP is, well ... sort of articulate. 10% of voters in that ward wanted him. Turnout was about 30%. This is the real cost of a duck island and a moat cleaning service. We're living in torrid times.

Rory,

Is the BNP the British equivalent of the Front National? Forgive my ignorance, I haven't heard of them. I suppose they're 'fronted' by someone like Le Pen? When I was in Nice, those people actually tried to burn out the Modern Languages department, because 'we' were polluting their tongue.

I hope the press there doesn't do the same as the french press did. They would put on a piece that said "Isn't this terrible?" and of course they'd have a few quotes from Le Pen, which they thought were risible, but actually just gave the FN more exposure.

Here's hoping this is their high water mark, and that they sink back into the sludge... ;)

Thanks,

Bill

Bill,

Perhaps you have heard of the National Front in this country? Well, the British National Party are essentially the same vicious, blinkered one trick pony but they've grown out their hair, covered their jingoistic tats with suits and stopped personally beating up non-whites. Their leader Nick Griffin once referred to the Holocaust as the 'Holohoax', but generally they try to keep their noses relatively clean. The same probably can't be said for their voters though, of course, or anyone who supports their aims. A political scandal over expenses oils the wheels that have been built by economic instability and some very bad decisions by New Labour, but the fact that one in ten voters in Yorkshire has just registered what is essentially a vote against non-whites is no less loathsome for all that. They have never done so well and now they have their foot in the door. Regarding the media: no publicity is bad publicity and they'll clearly do very well out of this among the thick and disenchanted.

Rory

Rory

In fact it seems that the BNPs’ actual vote went down. The collapse in the Labour vote meant, however, that the proportion of the BNP vote went up sufficiently to entitle it to the two European seats.

Clive

Clive,

I hadn't noticed that. It's still a staggering proportion of the vote, though, andthe result gives the BNP a significant platform.

I woke up to the second seat and Nick Griffin's garbled speech about walls and tides and so forth. The man's like a cross between Dennis the Menace and Adolf Hitler and we're sending him to Brussels.

Hey, a cross between Benito Mussolini and a scarecrow has been elected premier three times in Italy, and his party took the elections this time as well. Brussels is going to be a cross between Brussels and Brussels. The only ray of light in the election here was the showing for Antonio Di Pietro's party, "Italia dei Valori."

Andrew,

Italian voting mores astound me. To what extent, do you think, is Berlusconi's success down to his media empire?

To every extent possible. That and organized crime. Hence Italian cynicism about politics. Nobody believes that change is possible because every decent person in politics is squelched by the thugs in power. I tell my friends that a few years ago it seemed like Dick Cheney (er, George Bush) was going to be in the White House forever, then along came the newbie Obama. But they are right that a similar phenomenon would be much harder to come by in Italy. Partly because Italians are more likely to let the "authorities" take care of things, and partly because the electoral system makes it possible for someone to be premier any number of times, instead of limiting it to two terms. There has been a lot of talk about overhauling the electoral system here, but while Berlusconi is around there is virtually no chance of that happening.

Recently Berlusconi, the third-richest person in Italy, said that the economic crisis is mostly “psychological,” a matter of people’s perception. And yet people voted for his party.

Yes, well, quite: that's exactly what I mean. I know an intelligent, thoughtful person from Sicily and he votes for Berlusconi. I also know a (reasonably) thoughtful, intelligent American and he voted twice for Bush, but as you say the option has been taken away. Ostensibly, anyway.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8091605.stm

An understandable backlash, though I'd rather these types were put down with words. I imagine that Griffin is seen as a martyr by his supporters (and he probably sees himself that way too), so this sort of reaction is only likely to steel their / his resolve. A wasted opportunity. Detestable man.

It worries me that the reaction - whatever reaction - is going to work to the BNP's advantage. There's a nasty right-wing simplistic party that gets altogether too many votes here in Norway, and all the journalists and politicians and talking heads are queuing up to put them down. The net result of that is exposure and the more you see their picture on the telly the more real thay appear to be to the lunkheads that vote for them. Same sort of phenomenon that Bill refers to in France. Very hard call to choose between ignoring them and flushing them out...

Ugh, the best disinfectant is sunlight, as David Cameron kept on saying through the expenses scandal (what happened to that?), so put the fascist scum on telly, let them show themselves up for what they really are and shut them up about what "victims" they are.

Berlusconi's success is entirely because he says he will keep the immigrants out. Or that's the way I see it. However, Gregory will know more. What do you say, Gregory?

Incidentally we Brits are EXTRAORDINARILY insular if we suppose the British National Party is any different from the parties they have in Holland, France, Denmark, Germany (I'm guessing about Germany) etc etc. The vote for the BNP is essentially anti-muslim. The Labour Party tries to represent it as anti-Pole but it isn't. 5% doesn't seem seem very many to me. I agree that Mr Griffin and Mr Brons (the two MEPs) are rather unpleasant people, but that's democracy, isn't it? People you don't muchlike get elected by other people you don't much like. Mr Brown reduces me to incoherent rage, or he used to. Now I just laugh. Griffin and Brons are absurd people. Perhaps even more absurd than Mr Brown. And at least they haven't taken us to war, have they?

It's interesting that the BNP got two seats, but sure as, sure as, they'll go no further.

More interesting is the level of Fascist support in the elections in Central Europe--Hungary, Czech Republic, Romania, Bulgaria. They are having a go at their gypsies and it is not nice.

Also more interesting is the performance of UKIP (UK Independence Party) which is anti-EU and beat Labour into third place (Conservatives were first and Lib Dems fourth).

If the recession continues we'll see a resurgence of the old traditions: Central Europe reverting to extreme nationalism and the UK retreating across the Channel and leaving them to it. Anyone remember what was the consequence last time?

I was at an economic conference recently where one of the speakers made the point that wars occur during major recessions. Yes, asked one of the audience, but who shall we fight? The Irish, somebody suggested.

(By the way, our governing party set a new record in Cornwall in the local elections the other day: they managed to come in sixth, behind the Cornish Nationalist Party.)

Quite. Today's egg-throwers simply gave Griffin a pedestal to prate on about democratic standards. Which isn't to say I don't wish to pillory him with eggs, egg-cups, chickens, sheds, etc.

Actually, John, I wouldn't go that far. Berlusconi has never made immigrant-bashing a major theme. He's mainly left that to his coalition partners. At least that has been his strategy until very recently: now he has realised that that the Northern League is likely to become the leading party on the right in many parts of northern Italy and so he's started to come out with statements like "Milan looks like Africa" (not intending this as a compliment, you understand).

On the whole, I agree with Andrew. It comes down essentially to almost complete control over the media - or at least the media with the greatest impact on the electorate, television. And his personal success story (with all details over how he achieved this success carefully removed from public view). But we can take heart from the fact that he did not achieve the major triumph that he was proclaiming before the elections. His coalition was practically the only right-wing party that didn't increase its figures in this election. The control over what gets across to the public is slipping from him, with things like Internet and a few newspapers that manage to remain independent - mainly la Repubblica and Unita'. For the first time in a long while I'm beginning to feel slightly hopeful about Italy. Just slightly.

Clive,

I want to believe that. I really do. It sounds so attractive. And in a world where beauty, truth, and goodness meant something, it would be the best model.

Sadly, this is the world we actually live in:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_...election,_2002

I know you don't need to be reminded of this. But still, the RPR held together, the left fragmented, and Le Pen made it to the second round. I still think Jospin could have given Chirac a run for his money.

Now, picture this: say, you're in the PS. You make the sunlight argument. Result? On election day, your best option is Chirac. Ouch!

Oh, well. The world we live in is unfathomable. I hear that in one place, the Pirate Bay party got 7%, and actually won a seat.

Thanks,

Bill