Alex Britton: Immigration is the least of my worries
I START this week with a bit of a confession.
This weekend, I did something which, with hindsight, it might have been better not to do.
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Alex Britton
I shared a picture on Twitter which I found on the internet from the English Defence League protest in Cambridge and added a comment deriding them.
In a similar position, you would have done the same.
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The picture showed a typical EDL-indentikit follower, complete with tattoo upon which the name of our proud nation had been written "Britian."
Oh dear.
Still, what was a bit of harmless joshing soon turned into something a lot more sinister, as I started getting quite a lot of flak for what was essentially pointing out a typo.
I mean, pointing out typos is pretty much my bread and butter – I still find it pretty difficult to walk past anywhere offering "lunch's" without feeling a little bit uneasy.
Apparently, I should start getting concerned about the state of the country, rather than living in blissfully ignorant, liberal, communist, multicultural bliss, etc. I should get off the fence and start getting concerned about floods of non-indigenous people living here.
And those are the only two instructions offered to me that are printable in a family newspaper.
For what it's worth, I am concerned about the state of the country.
This week's news that the country's credit rating has been downgraded from AAA was a bit frightening, and the economic picture looks as if it will be getting bleaker as the months and years pass.
Other things that concern me? Retirement ages increasing, poverty among families, increasing reliance on food banks and mass consumption of finite sources of energy.
In fact, you'll have to wade through everything from irritating answer-phone messages, traffic lights that change too quickly, people texting 'u' instead of 'you', supermarket trollies with wonky wheels and so on before getting anywhere near the religious make up of our country on Mr Britton's Big List of Things That Bug Me.
I might be wrong, but I imagine there are few other souls who are with me on this.
I think the biggest issue that I have with the English Defence League is their name.
It just sounds as if it should be some kind of football training camp run by Stuart Pearce and Peter Shilton, preventing woeful performances at future World Cups.
I respect the right of anyone to express themselves, but as soon as you hold EDL views up to scrutiny, they fall short.
This is not to mention the fact they constantly undermine their points through what many will consider to be questionable behaviour.
Their vision of England is one that is unwelcoming and not one that I aspire to this country being.
They are attempting to protect this country from something that I (and many others) don't consider anything near a threat.
So, the EDL, feel free to shout about Islam all you like, but for as long as you do so with a can of Stella in your hand, forgive me for not listening.
Oh, and lighten up. It was a joke.
10 Comments
by EggyEggCup
Tuesday, March 05 2013, 1:35PM
“No political group has a monopoly on stupidity or bad spelling. Should the concern about immigration be dismissed due to one or two idiots. Do all those Eastleigh voters who sent a loud and clear message that immigration is a very real concern be ignored because some tattoo artist had an off day?
If so, then perhaps we shouldn't listen to left wing protest groups either
http://tinyurl.com/bkoen38
http://tinyurl.com/a2vxt5q
http://tinyurl.com/alqgag4”
by Radford_NG
Saturday, March 02 2013, 3:48PM
“So the boy can't spell!What's that matter so long as he does't hate the Jews?And this is what the EDL is about as much as anything-else....defending Anglo-Jewery./...../I get on an NCT bus to go two stops;it is near full;;I stand near the front;I hear a voice saying:"Are you a Jew;because I hate Jews".I look-up and see a sixteen-year-old member of the Taliban dressed all in black a few feet away.He goes on:"....because I hate Jews".I've never heard such a thing since my uncles returned from North Africa,Italy,and Palestine with the Sherwood Foresters;[and my family has been in this land some 5,000 years before Abraham left Chaldia].That is what the EDL is about.”
by SteveBasford
Saturday, March 02 2013, 1:59PM
“I would gladly welcome in a million hard working immigrants providing we can kick out the same number of bone-idle Brits.”
by LestaLM
Saturday, March 02 2013, 11:45AM
“Thanks Eric. Look like a typo and he can hardly see what being tattooed on his neck unless he's got a mirror and then it'd be backwards and difficult to read.
Why do journalists obsess about groups such as the EDL ? Is it some sort of "right of passage" that they have to do an anti-EDL, anti-BNP or anti anthing that they see as "right wing" piece every now and again ? Or do they do it as they're an easy target ? Rather like gay rights protestors attacking the Church of England. They're a bit of a safe target to criticise and it nails a journo's liberal stance to the flag. There's lots of things that an article could be written about such as forced marriage, tax evasion, benefit fraud, money laundering, heroin dealing and child grooming but these must take some effort and may end up offending sensitive groups. We can't have that, can we ?”
by ErikPetersen
Saturday, March 02 2013, 9:58AM
“LestaLM: Here you go. http://tinyurl.com/axhuhyg
(And just to clarify, Alexander Britton wrote this column, not me. But I like helping.)”
by CALTHROSS
Saturday, March 02 2013, 9:49AM
“I have no problem with people but do with some Muslims who "preach hatred" on our streets and go on to receive thousands of pounds in benefits plus social housing.And much more besides.
Whilst our heroic soldiers in Afghanistan are being killed and injured and our own people being neglected.
To be called white trash on the streets by Muslims is very unpleasent,called such a name myself and heard others called the same and no one bothers,but you call them,different story.
As LestaLM says Islamic gangs go round areas of London and there are "no go" areas in other parts of Britain
People should have the right to be concerned as to what is happening in their own country.
If nothing is done to stem the tide of Muslims coming to Britain then the day will come when Britain will become an Islamic State.
Britanistan,no thanks.”
by LestaLM
Friday, March 01 2013, 7:59PM
“So, can the writer of this EP news item provide a link to their Twitter post so that we can all see it ? After all, Tweets are public and "out there" so there's no harm in providing a link to something that is on the net and available to all or will readers of this article in the EP have their suspicions that it's been made up ?”
by LestaLM
Friday, March 01 2013, 12:22PM
“Maybe, this EDL supporter (if he actually existed) was named Ian and was British.
Brit Ian.
What does the writer of this article make of Islamic gangs roaming areas of London threatening non-Muslims and claiming that they are in a Muslim area and Sharia is in force ?”
by mof_gedling
Friday, March 01 2013, 10:36AM
“pictures on the internet are not lost so therefor you didnt find it,surely being a journo you of all people should understand copyright law,please excuse my typo's.”
by Ted_Notts
Friday, March 01 2013, 8:15AM
“Surely the mockery concerning the spelling error should be aimed at the tattoo 'artist' rather than the person wearing the tattoo? Also, in your quest to correct everyone's spelling, punctuation and grammar don't you belong to an English Defence League of your own making? Perhaps you can help me out a little. I have just asked two rhetorical questions. Should I have punctuated them with question marks? That is not a rhetorical question, by the way.”