To ask if it's a good thing that London has a Muslim mayor

[DoesFlossfloss]

Because my London based in-laws are not happy and I've not been following the campaign as I'm not in London so don't really care. However, we're seeing PILs this weekend and it will be up for discussion.

Looking at the comments above although a majority of London voters were able to see through Zac Goldsmith's weaselly and racist dog-whistles he did manage to fool a number of posters on this thread.

I liked a comment I saw on the Guardian website earlier: "dog-whistle politics in a city with no dogs". There are a few dogs but thankfully most of us seem to be human.

So what did your PILs have to say in the end, OP?

I'd love a flying spaghetti mayor.

I think it's a good thing London has a Labour mayor.

I think it's a good thing London has a Labour mayor.

It's not that revolutionary though is it, if your trying to infer that it's a push back against those 'evil tories' then you forget that a lot of the Corbyn vote was ironically against the London elite.

Another poster

Tell your in-laws from me that they are racist wankers and London doesn't want them

Disregarding the irony in your post, wilfully using his religion as some kind of justification to beat the other side with, is kind of belittling in your point scoring excersise.

Damnit

kind of an own goal

Has the religion of any other mayor ever been mentioned? Just because he has a different imaginary friend to the christians

I am guilty of not reading all the thread so may have misinterpreted this. But I do so hate talk of imaginary friends and sky fairies when applied to people who seem eminently sensible, like Sadiq Khan. I presumed he was a secular Muslim, but if he did believe, so what?

I am a secular Catholic but do not believe in God. I voted for him and made a wish in the booth and then did a little victory dance when he was sworn in, in Southwark Cathedral, an Anglican place, with a Jew wearing a yarmulke among the people behind him.

Too many of us have backgrounds where we have been, or our ancestors have been, marginalized in the past and called terrorists so we know all those dirty tricks and attempts to turn us against each other and impoverish us (literally or economically). They've done it to so many people we all know what they're up to. Khan sounded decent enough on the radio.

Has the religion of any other mayor ever been mentioned? Just because he has a different imaginary friend to the christians

I know the discussion's moved on a bit from here and this isn't really the point of the thread, but I'd just like to say that, technically, Christians and Muslims have the same imaginary friend. Both being Abrahamic faiths and all.

As you were.

Also enjoyed my autocorrect changing Muslims to muffins

Oh, and, Khan over Goldsmith every time. No contest.

We have a Mayor who will be a full time Mayor, who is a person of faith, and remembers what it is like living in a family with a low income. All a step forward from the previous Mayors.

"who is a person of faith"

Is he a "person of faith"?

We have a new mayor. Stop the press.lets see what he actually does.

All this mention of what religion he is and how it will affect his job is actually discrimination and ridiculous.

If he does a bad job (like that prick zack would have done) then he goes. Don't forget he doesn't have complete autonomy over everything

I'm looking forward to seeing SK stab Corbyn in the back. I'll worry about his religious or political affiliations when he starts behaving like Lutfur Rahman and not before.

His religion is immaterial. He is a politician first and foremost, it shouldn't matter what religion he is.

Hissy

If he does a bad job (like that prick zack would have done)

Well, I wish I had your crystal ball, though happily not your manners.

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Alfieisnoisy and others

His religion is immaterial. He is a politician first and foremost, it shouldn't matter what religion he is.

It's naive to suggest it doesn't have any bearing whatsoever. His upbringing (and religion is a part of it) will have an effect on his views and therefore how he acts politically. For example, the Tories have brought in marriage for gays but Blair didn't. Perhaps to do with his Catholicism?

Most religions are as bad as each other.

Kahn being a Muslim may work in his (or our) favour as there are massive problems with Islam in the world. I'm not saying all Muslims are bad or anything remotely like it, but the most well known or well reported problems in the world at the moment are from people calling themselves Muslims. If he does well as mayor then perhaps changing attitudes towards Islam is possible.

as there are massive problems with Islam in the world

Actually, there are massive problems with people believing that complex conflicts and issues have pat, soundbite causes and not bothering to educate themselves further.

Mainly because while they can see the West as complex and nuanced, they consider vast tracts of the world to be populated by lesser folk, who are only capable of carrying a single thought in their head.

If you think that the conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Libya are the fault of Islam, then you are hugely ill-informed about all three.

Even the rise of IS is far more politically complex than you are probably aware of (clue: IS in Iraq is largely led by people who were formerly commanders in Saddam's army and leading figures in the Iraqi Baath party. Why might that be? The rise of IS in Syria was greatly helped by Assad. Why might that be?)

Therefore it is hugely unfair to place any burden on Sadiq Khan, or any British Muslim to change your attitudes towards Islam, rather then addressing your own ignorance concerning what is actually happening in the wider world.

as there are massive problems with Islam in the world

As a direct result of the non-muslim World's ill-considered interventions in undermining government stability to impose "democracy at any cost" with quasi religious zeal.

Oh and I really have difficulty following the logic of ascribing conservative Muslim views to a child of a Pakistani immigrant who came to the UK to get away from the India / Pakistan partition along religious lines

As a strong supporter of a completely secular state I have no problem with what religion he chooses providing he doesn't let it affect policy, and I certainly don't care about his skin colour; what I do worry about is the support he's appeared to give to certain groups in the past

Of course he now tells us he's moved away from this - "well he would say that, wouldn't he" as someone else once said - but time will tell, and in the meantime it seems only fair to give him the chance to prove himself

Not Londoner but I'd be happy to have a mayor who ignores death threats to vote for what he thinks is right.