Dishonest BNP spins article by George Carey and deliberately misquotes him

The BNP likes to present itself as a party that tells the truth, unlike mainstream political parties that rely on lies, misrepresentation and spin, but have yet again demonstrated that this is far from the case.

Former Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey, recently wrote an article for the Times on immigration and the rise of the BNP. Carey was immediately denounced by the BNP Legal Director as an ‘idiot’ working for ‘Zionists’, but the BNP’s official statement on the article has wisely avoided following Barnes’s line (as it usually does). The BNP website’s take on Carey’s article (‘Lord Carey predicts BNP victory in Dagenham’) puts a typically dishonest spin on what he actually said. From the BNP’s commentary, you’d think Carey was on the verge of joining the party and it appears that he has endorsed them.

BNP website:

Writing in The Times this morning Lord Carey warns:

“The fact is that a rise in the UK population by ten million in two decades will put our nation’s resources under considerable strain, stretching almost to breaking point the enormous reserves of tolerance and generosity of the British people. Failure to take that action could be seriously damaging to the future harmony of our society.”

He also acknowledges that the million people who voted for the British National Party at the European Elections had genuine concerns about both overpopulation and the ability of this nation to integrate new communities whose values are sometimes very different, even antithetical, to our own.

What Carey said:

The fact is that a rise in the UK population by ten million in two decades will put our nation’s resources under considerable strain, stretching almost to breaking point the enormous reserves of tolerance and generosity of the British people.

The declaration by no means spells out a halt to immigration. In fact we welcome the contribution of both economic migrants and asylum seekers to our lively cosmopolitan culture. But we urge a return to the levels of the early 1990s, about 40,000, compared with 163,000 in 2008. Failure to take that action could be seriously damaging to the future harmony of our society.

Last year nearly a million votes were cast for the British National Party. We cannot ignore the fact that such far-right groups exploit genuine concerns about both overpopulation and the ability of this nation to integrate new communities whose values are sometimes very different, even antithetical, to our own.

BNP website:

He then went even further, and predicted that the British National Party could win the parliamentary seat of Dagenham at the General Election.

He told the readers of Britain’s premier newspaper:

“In Dagenham, where I was brought up, the white working-class electorate, alienated by far-reaching social change and largely ignored by the mainstream parties, could vote for a BNP Member of Parliament.”

He said that people were supporting the BNP because it was the only political party echoing the sense of unfairness that many people felt about immigrants, economic migrants and bogus asylum seekers coming to Britain and availing themselves of our social services and our jobs.

What Carey said:

In Dagenham, where I was brought up, there is a very real danger that a white working-class electorate, alienated by far-reaching social change and largely ignored by the mainstream parties, could vote for a BNP Member of Parliament. This would be a tragedy in our long history of parliamentary democracy. Yet we play into the hands of the far Right if we do not seriously address the concerns that have led to some otherwise decent people supporting modern-day fascism.

For some reason, the BNP’s statement fails to offer a link to Carey’s article. I wonder why that is?

Lest there be any doubt about Carey’s view of the BNP, here’s what he told the News of the World in October 2009:

To hear the phrase “Christian Britain” coming from the mouth of Nick Griffin made me shudder. It was the most chilling moment of Question Time, perhaps better described as the Nick Griffin Show.

And what a pity that none of the other panelists challenged Griffin’s deceitful attempt to align his despicable policies with Christianity. This squalid racist must not be allowed to hijack one of the world’s great religions.

All of us who believe in tolerance and decency must stand shoulder-to-shoulder in rejection of Griffin’s notion that “Christianity” has any place in his bigotry. I tend to agree that the BBC was mistaken to give the BNP such prominence. To use Margaret Thatcher’s phrase, it was the “oxygen of publicity” that propelled the insignificant and undeserving party into the Big Time. The BBC’s Director General errs in arguing that in a democracy all views should be heard. The views of the BNP are not simply false, they are dangerous, indeed irredeemably evil.

Nevertheless, ‘Any Questions’ DID expose Nick Griffin’s views to public scrutiny. What we saw on our screens was a 21st Century pipsqueak heir to Hitler and Mosley. If the public believed beforehand that support for the BNP was a protest vote against remote or out of touch politicians, they were proved wrong. The BNP leader was unveiled as a sly, shifty figure who would hide unpalatable truths, and cynically spin regardless of the truth, for the sake of votes and funds.

Quite so.

Edmund Standing

Tell us BNP, who are these "critics"?

A typically ignorant piece of race-baiting published on the BNP's website in August 2008 is in the news today. The News of the World has dusted off the piece, about the sale of replica Victoria Cross medals and comments about recent recipient of the honour, Lance Corporal Johnson Beharry VC, and reported it in an article as part of a campaign to remind voters what the BNP is really like. In all honesty it is a clumsy article by the News of the World beause Jamie Lyons opens his article by saying:

BRITISH National Party cowards have launched an outrageous attack on a decorated Iraq war hero - claiming he only got the Victoria Cross because he is BLACK.

The fact is they did not say that explicitly. It is blindingly obvious that the BNP's subtext was this is what they believe, but they deliberately avoided using those actual words. By doing so they would hold a plausible deniability card - which they have played today as expected thanks to Lyons' sloppy generalisation.

However, in its attempt to devalue the bravery of L Cpl Beharry VC, the BNP repeatedly cites "critics" who have supposedly said Beharry of "that all he did was drive away very fast from a combat zone"; pointed out that "the VC was normally only awarded for gallant acts of bravery such as the Defence of Rorke’s Drift, head on enemy attacks such as in the trenches of World War I and so on - and that driving a vehicle through an ambush hardly compares to any of these deeds" ** see footnote below and suggested "that the only reason that Beharry was singled out for a VC was because of a made-up “positive discrimination” directive by the PC-mad government" - in other words only won the VC because he is black. So given all this, the questions the BNP should answer are:

• who are these "critics" cited in the BNP piece?
• where are the links to these assertions so we can verify them?
• what evidence is there that Beharry only won the VC due to positive discrimination?

Apart from the usual BNP sockpuppets who will leave comments trying to i) deflect attention from this by attempting to change the discussion to something entirely unrelated such as immigration and what 'British' means in their view and ii) do anything but answer the questions in the hope people forget the point being made, rest assured we will hear nothing.

I have no doubt that these "critics" are either BNP supporters furthering their racism in the usual anonymous fashion of the coward, or more likely, that these "critics" do not exist and were created specifically to enable the BNP to slur L Cpl Beharry VC (while retaining their deniability card) for no other reason than the fact he is not white British and was quoted in an article criticising the BNP trying to make money by selling cheap replica medals.

If I was serving in uniform and given a choice between having a BNP keyboard warrior alongside me in my section, or a courageous, determined and reliable squaddie like Johnson Beharry, I would want Beharry every time. The man chose to serve the Crown, he put his life on the line, he saved the lives of his brothers-in-arms and he is, without any doubt, a true hero.

** For the record: The BNP is keen to repeat on its website that all Johnson Beharry was recognised for was "driving a vehicle through an ambush". The ignorant morons are clearly incapable of reading, or just simply determined to hide the truth as part of a determined attempt to undermine him for not being white British. Beharry's citation makes clear:

Despite this harrowing weight of incoming fire Beharry continued to push through the extended ambush, still leading his platoon until he broke clear. He then visually identified another Warrior from his company and followed it through the streets of Al Amarah to the outside of the Cimic House outpost, which was receiving small arms fire from the surrounding area. Once he had brought his vehicle to a halt outside, without thought for his own personal safety, he climbed onto the turret of the still-burning vehicle and, seemingly oblivious to the incoming enemy small arms fire, manhandled his wounded platoon commander out of the turret, off the vehicle and to the safety of a nearby Warrior. He then returned once again to his vehicle and again mounted the exposed turret to lift out the vehicle's gunner and move him to a position of safety. Exposing himself yet again to enemy fire he returned to the rear of the burning vehicle to lead the disorientated and shocked dismounts and casualties to safety. Remounting his burning vehicle for a third time, he drove it through a complex chicane and into the security of the defended perimeter of the outpost, thus denying it to the enemy. Only at this stage did Beharry pull the fire extinguisher handles, immobilising the engine of the vehicle, dismounted and then moved himself into the relative safety of the back of another Warrior. Once inside Beharry collapsed from the sheer physical and mental exhaustion of his efforts and was subsequently himself evacuated.

Tony Sharp

BNP cover-up

AN OFFICIAL handbook for BNP activists reveals how they plan to cover up the LIES and DECEIT behind their election campaigns.

It shows how the far-right party has drawn up schemes to smear Labour and the Tories in June Euro elections. And it has advised members how to make sure plots to stir up violence stay secret in an attempt to con voters into thinking they are respectable.

The Activists' & Organisers' Handbook tells them to:

• USE internet blogs to put out damaging stories about rivals.
• NEVER advocate violence in emails-in case they are leaked.
• ENSURE supporters wear hats over their skinhead haircuts when out campaigning.

The guide's advice on using the internet suggests setting up blogs that do not appear to be BNP sites to help them collect information for smear campaigns.

Party thugs are told not to even mention violence in emails in case they get out. The guide says: "Don't use it to express extreme views or advocate violence. Your emails are probably less secure than you think."

Activists are also told to refer to the party as the British National Party not the BNP because it sounds "much more reasonable and comfortable".

And members of the party, led by Nick Griffin, must not dress like thugs when campaigning. The guide states: "No naked torsos in summer, unshaven scruffs or skinhead haircuts (put them in caps or hats)."

A spokesman for anti-racist group Searchlight, which uncovered the book, said: "This booklet exposes the reality behind the BNP mask of respectability. What other political party feels the need to ask its senior organisers to be careful not to get caught discussing their plans for violent behaviour on the internet? This shows they are the same old extremists, with the same agenda of hate and division."

The BNP has revealed it is collecting masses of data on its opponents' sexual orientation ready for character assassination campaigns if they criticise the party. Its official declaration on the Data Protection Register shows information about "relatives, guardians and associates" of any critics is also being gathered.

News Of The World