polentapies by being liberal - all to often, people who describe themselves as being "liberal" end up being totally illiberal about the things they despise: this is the main issue with the Guardian, in fact. By being liberals, we must speak freely and openly about these things, uncomfortable as they are, and not brush them under the carpet. It's like the Far Right- only by shining a light on their activities do you allow people to realise the full extent of their idiocy. So we need to speak up and not worry that the Far Right will manipulate this incident - because otherwise, we become complicit in wrongdoing through our own silence. The EDL and other such nutters are always going to find an excuse to demonise the Other: by talking openly about this, we're not telling them anything they don't already know, or giving them opportunities that didn't exist already. Instead, we are creating a space whereby really important issues can be discussed and dealt with appropriately, instead of in total polarity.
And like it or not, this particular set of male behaviours is a direct result of certain cultures' attitudes towards women. There will always be men who are violent to women, irrespective of culture - but this particular issue goes deeper than an un-nuanced male/female dichotomy.