Nick Griffin blogs his trial

The final stage of Nick Griffin's trail gets underway on Monday.  Media savvy Griffin and his co-accused,  Mark Collett, have set up a blog to record their thoughts and experiences as the trial progresses. They intend to update  "Free Speech on Trial"  every day.

I'm not going to get into an argument about whether the BNP is a fascist organisation, or whether Nick Griffin is a total bastard.  As far as I'm concerned,  that's beside the point.  This trial is about free speech and if we have free speech, that means even Nick Griffin must be allowed to make his point.  If he is found guilty and his condemnation of Islam is ruled illegal,  then that would effectively restrict everyone else's right to criticise Islam openly.  For that reason alone,  I hope he gets off.

I will be reading the  "Free Speech on Trail"  blog regularly.

Comments

[j0nz]

Good point well made. In an abstract context, all Griffin said, and the crux of the trial is on him saying "Islam is a wicked religion". How can any free country criminalise something so simple?

To draw parallel with this rather odious man to another odious man, e.g. Omar Bakri, I don't recall Griffin inciting white Britains to murder Muslims. If he did he should be in the dock. But he didn't.

"Islam is the hallucination of a psychotic mind." Extremely provactive statement (well if you're a Muslim at least), but does that make me a criminal? Hmmm. Well I'd happily go to prison if it was for saying something so, well, banal.

[Eric]

Well, let's not sugarcoat Nick Griffin's party of fascist thugs:

"My dream is to have a transit van with a machine gun in the back, with about a million bullets to fire on people coming out of the mosque on Friday."

Granted that was not Nick Griffin himself, but one of his brownshirts.

What exactly did Griffin say that has led to this court case?

[James G]

Eric,
I seem to recall hearing that Griffin said that second-generation British Pakistanis would blow up the Tube. I could be wrong, though.

[j0nz]

"My dream is to have a transit van with a machine gun in the back, with about a million bullets to fire on people coming out of the mosque on Friday."

Well that is simply repungant, however he is expressing his own disgusting opinions. You should not criminalise opinions; the expression of feelings however abhorent.

It would have been illegal however if this fascist had incited others to commit murder and rightfully so. That's where the line HAS to be drawn. "I urge all white Britains to machine gun all those coming out of a Mosque".

[j0nz]

“Sooner or later there will be an Islamic terrorist attack in Britain. And when it does the terrorists will turn out to be either asylum seekers or second generation Pakistanis, probably from somewhere like Bradford.”

[Steve]

Eric, I wasn't trying to sugarcoat the BNP. Even the BNP have the right to criticise Islam.

As well as the comments quoted above, Griffin also described Islam as a "wicked and vicious faith" and said that eventually Muslims will "do for someone in your family". If anything, I reckon this last comment is probably what will get him sent down.

[HSBguzzler]

Eric, your provocative anti BNP language does not help the debate, especially when the main point already said ' I do not want to get into an argument about whether the BNP is a fascist organisation'.
To reiterate that point; the politics and personalities of the BNP is totally beside the point. What Griffin has said is what alot of free minded people are thinking.

[Eric]

Well, I'm glad my language is provocative and anti-BNP. For the record, I'd defend Griffin and Sacranie's right to free speech, but draw the line at incitement to murder or violence as in the case of Abu Hamza and Griffin's Brownshirt friend.

[Steve]

Yes, Eric, I'd take pretty much the same line.

[Chatham Boi]

Eric: A long, long time ago while down the pub, a Pakistani friend said to me something along the lines that if he could get away with it he would kill all white people. And he was a Labour supporter. And had 2 degrees.
Now how does that equate to your quote from a BNP supporter? Do you now denounce the Labour party?
Yes, revolutions will pick up a lot of bad un's: look at the Bolshevik revolution. But take your blinkers off and don't believe everything you're fed by the BBC and others.

[Eric]

On the contrary Chatham Boi, the fact you think Pakistanis secretly wish to kill all white people has re-enforced my opinion of you and your ilk.

Next you'll be telling me "you are not racist but"...

[Imli]

Eric,

Chatham Boi reported that a long time ago, a Pakistani friend of his said this.

He doesn't "think", he "knows" that there is at least one Pakistani (with 2 degrees) who thinks that way. This does not state that he thinks that 'all Pakistanis secretly wish to kill'.

So, next I'll be telling to be a little bit more observant when you read people's posts =)

And I'm not sure why you're playing the racist card here -- if anyone is racist it was Eric's Pakistani friend, not anyone else.

Rascism is colourblind.

[Chatham Boi]

Eric, all I ask is that you think for yourself.
Everyone has a motive behind what they say. No-one tells the truth all the time. Even an honest person only says what they perceive to be true.
If you were a journalist, wouldn't you embellish in order to be published? Or is that what you're training for?
Do I deserve a good kicking for daring to question the received wisdom?

[Rhory Fraser]

Why the knee-jerk comments about Nick Griffin's odiousness? He holds views about the desirability of a homogenous, rather than multiracial, society that are beyond the pale to New Labour and melting pot Lefties. But why is that odious? And why should Griffin be damned by association for the violent statements of a bloke in a pub, who was actually being egged on by an agent provocateur in the pay of a) the BBC and b) Searchlight, the anti-fascist group. Anybody who claims to believe in freedom should be very worried indeed by this outrageous example of state-funded undermining of 'political undesirables' - ie: opponents of New Labour

[wayneo]

"Griffin also described Islam as a "wicked and vicious faith" and said that eventually Muslims will "do for someone in your family"

Hasn't that already happened to some? think July 7th

[Terry]

The agent provocateur paid by the biased BBC was once a "student member" of the anti nazi league but had kept an open mind (yeah right) when he infiltrated private BNP meetings.Should N.Griffin be found guilty what it means in effect is that we are all liable to arrest and trial whether it's in the pub or at the next political rally.

[Marc Ward]

The BNP are in a win win situation here. If Nick Griffin and Mark Collett are found guilty of racial incitement, there will be international press coverage and outrage from free speech activists across the globe. If they are found not guilty, the governement will have mud all over their face for bringing this WORTHLESS case to trial. The BNP have finally got the press coverage they so badly needed to strengthen their party and lift them to higher levels. Now they have support in countries like the U.S, Canada, France, Australia and New Zealand, as well as national coverage throughout Britain. The BNP has changed in recent years and so has the make up of Britain. Watch out people, as i can only see this party becoming larger and stronger as the white majority wakes up and realizes they have been duped and sold out under Labour control. With Immigration and crime at uncontrolable levels, it is only a matter of time before another one of Nick Griffin's predictions come true, just like his one about the 7/7 bombers did.........

[Marc Ward]

I would to also say that Blogging of the trial is excellant and it keeps the public informed. Free Speach should never be restricted, even though it is under constant attack from the Labour party who are trying to pass another law against religious incitement. My only guess is that this law is to stop us from talking about the threat of Muslims within the UK; Like we should pretend that ALL THE BOMBERS of the 7/7 and the failed attacks were not all Muslims residing in the UK, some 2nd generation and some recent asylum seekers???

[Terry]

The religious incitement bill is just another stick with which to beat the opposition with, Nulab's real motives are to appease muslims in return for non violent activity and votes at any cost. To stifle and supress free speech and debate has far reaching consequences for us all on par with soviet repression of yesteryear.

[Terry]

Join the real uk political debate.
http://www.politicsforum.co.uk/forum/index.php

[Marc Ward]

I will Terry, hope to see you in there?

[Jonathan Wood]

I have just written my own article of Free speech and if you check my blog, you will find that what Nick Griffin is on trial for, is actualy an infringement of free speech.