Josie Long - we are more at risk from right wing extremists than Islamic extremists

[Goodluckjonathan76]

A friend just posted a link to Josie's rant on her Facebook page. I honestly felt sick watching it. For a start, in terms of numbers of deaths, we are looking at 2 deaths (Jo Cox and man at Finsbury Park mosque) (please correct me if I am wrong) compared to multiple deaths in Manchester and London Bridge, not to mention the attacks in Paris, Nice and Brussels. Firstly, how is this the time to be comparing which is worse, and secondly, if we must compare then Islamic extremists pose a far greater risk in terms of loss of life. Am I missing something? Or has the world gone mad.

Thanks Pigeon. I am already quite well educated, thanks, not that being educated should be a pre-condition to having an opinion.

Not fearing attacks from right extremists has nothing to do with white privilege (utter nonsense) and everything to do with they simply don't happen very often. Two people dead in the UK in the last few years.

And yes, the world has gone mad, and this country, particularly.

This article by Brendan O'Neill is good on the different way the Finsbury Mosque attack is discussed to Islamist attacks by many.

www.thesun.co.uk/news/3846217/why-do-lefties-say-london-bridge-attack-was-an-incident-but-finsbury-park-mosque-attack-was-terrorism/

The same people who insist we treat Islamist attacks as acts of individual violence, which tell us nothing about society more broadly, are citing Finsbury as proof that Britain is in the grip of hatred.

After Islamist attacks, leftists always balk from naming the ideological problem. Sometimes they even refuse to use the T-word.

Labour MP Diane Abbott referred to last month’s Manchester Arena bombing, in which 22 souls were wiped out by Salman Abedi, as a “horrific incident” — making it sound like a traffic accident.

But she swiftly applied the T-word to the Finsbury assault. This was a “shocking terror attack”, she said on Twitter, even before all the facts were known.
...............

To get a sense of the double standards at play here, just imagine if a politician went on TV after Manchester and said: “There has been an increase in Islamist prejudice all over the country.” They would be shamed, ridiculed and possibly sacked.

Left-leaning publications which insist Islamist attacks are isolated acts by individuals hypocritically claim the Finsbury attack is the product of a bigger hatred.

This attack confirms that we have “allowed Islamophobia to flourish”, says the New Statesman. It shows how “normalised” anti-Islam prejudice has become, says the Guardian.

Not fearing attacks from right extremists has nothing to do with white privilege (utter nonsense)

This is an even more white privilege thing to say

Jesus Christ imagine using the Sun to back up your point.

Anders Breivik didn't target BME people, but he was an anti-Islam right wing extremist, and "I don't fear an attack from right extremists in the least" could only be said by someone with un-self aware white privilege

Could you give us the figures for murders of BME people by right extremists in the UK since, say 2010, or any other date? And in Europe perhaps. Then we could compare to the number of murders at the hands of Islamist extremists in the UK and Europe and see whether talking about "white privilege" in this context is really appropriate. Did the children blown up, and terrorised at the Manchester Arena have "white privilege" ?

I bloody love Josie Long. I haven't seen her Facebook rant though.

IMO one of the the biggest risks that far-right attacks pose, if we're simply measuring it in terms of numbers of casualties, is that is pushes those who might be on the fringes towards Islamic (or other religious) extremism.

Far-right extremism and Islamic extremism (which I'd also class as far-right TBH) unfortunately fuel each other. I don't think they're opposites; they're the same thing. Extremists (on both sides) don't really discriminate when it comes to good and bad - they just see an ideology they disagree with, and those who appear to adhere to it as the enemy.

Could you give us the figures for murders of BME people by right extremists in the UK since, say 2010, or any other date? And in Europe perhaps. Then we could compare to the number of murders at the hands of Islamist extremists in the UK and Europe and see whether talking about "white privilege" in this context is really appropriate. Did the children blown up, and terrorised at the Manchester Arena have "white privilege" ?

Why, what's wrong with your internet connection?

And yes, obviously, they did if they were white.

imagine using the Sun to back up your point

Yes, far better to slur the source than actually discuss the content Perhaps as well as a list of acronyms we need to know to discuss the terrorism threat facing our country, you could give a list of acceptable sources of news and comment?

Why, what's wrong with your internet connection?

Nothing, but I am not claiming that BME people are more at risk from far right extremists than everyone is from Islamist extremists. I think if you are going to make claims like that, you need to back them up with facts, to be credible.

And yes, obviously, they did if they were white

Shame on you for that comment

White privilege counts for nothing if you are caught up in an indiscriminate attack such as a bombing. It does give you protection against a targeted attack such as the murder of Lee Rigby or the recent Finsbury Park attack

Nothing, but I am not claiming that BME people are more at risk from far right extremists than everyone is from Islamist extremists. I think if you are going to make claims like that, you need to back them up with facts, to be credible.

Reading again, I see this isn't exactly what you are claiming, apologies.

"I don't fear an attack from right extremists in the least" could only be said by someone with un-self aware white privilege.

I'm not sure where you think our 'white privilege' gets us when it comes to terrorist attacks though, anyone can be caught up in them regardless of the intended target. I'm sure there were white Muslim worshippers at Finsbury Park that night just as there were BME victims of the Islamic terrorist attacks so I'm not sure white privilege applies here.

White privilege doesn't only apply sometimes

Jeremy Corbyn's reaction for another. Shedding tears over the loss of one life in Finsbury Park. Did he shed tears at London Bridge, in Manchester?

Since you live in Finsbury Park it has presumably not passed you by that Jeremy Corbyn is your local MP and lives in this very community? I would imagine this attack felt very personal to him in a way that the other attacks might not have done, as terrible as they were.

Also, as a resident of Finsbury Park, I'm sure you are also acutely aware of the unique cultural make-up of the local area - from the Turkish-Cypriot diasporas, to the large Ashkenazi settlement, plus the usual multicultural mix found in any major city - and not feel it hurtful that one person from Wales can arbitrarily decide to take offence to a community functioning some 150 miles away from where he lives.

Sounds delusional.

Who is she?

Well, for a start, please stop calling them Islamic Extremists, they are nihilists, just like the fella in the Finsbury Park attack. None of the so-called "Muslim" terrorists either here or abroad have been known for prayer and study, more like drink, drugs and petty crime.

And from what I read, apart from the direct victims, Muslims, particularly Muslim women, are the long-term victims of Islamic Extremists with the rise of hate crimes in the wake of these murders.

White privilege doesn't only apply sometimes hmm

It's irrelevant here, no one is immune from terrorist attacks.

Well, for a start, please stop calling them Islamic Extremists, they are nihilists, just like the fella in the Finsbury Park attack. None of the so-called "Muslim" terrorists either here or abroad have been known for prayer and study, more like drink, drugs and petty crime.

I believe the links between Abedi, the Manchester Arena bomber, and the Didsbury mosque are fairly well established so I think this is untrue.

And from what I read, apart from the direct victims, Muslims, particularly Muslim women, are the long-term victims of Islamic Extremists with the rise of hate crimes in the wake of these murders

Actually, I think we are all the long-term victims. We are all having to live in increasing fear of, and risk of these Islamist terrorist attacks.

What a load of rubbish. Another example of the the fascist left.

The Didsbury mosque that booted him out for his extremism?

And FYI if you're white non-Muslim then no, you're not a long term victim of anti-Muslim hate crime/terrorism 🙄

Josie Long is a comedian. She's entitled to her opinion, as you are to yours. The fact I think your views on the risk posed by the far right are breathtakingly privileged and naive doesn't mean the world has gone mad though, or that we're 'spreading division'. It just means we disagree.

Mackerel, why on earth would I feel more offended by what happened in Finsbury Park (0.5 miles from where I live) to what happened in London Bridge (4.5 miles from where I live) to Manchester, where far far more people died. TBH, I looked at news and through one man in his fifties dead. No great but a lot better than 22 young people dead in Manchester or 8 dead in London Bridge. Why should people in Jeremy's constituency matter more to him given that he wants to govern the whole country? And isn't one of the points the left bang on about is that we are supposed to feel equal outrage to things happened in the Middle East as we do when these events happen at home. Every time we have an attack at home, there is always without fail, left-wingers saying we should feel the same remorse for those aboard.

Love the way that "white privilege" is now used as an excuse for everything.

And Mackerel, by the same logic, far left extremists push people who might be moderate towards extreme views as well.