Balls: we have to be more bigoted

Michael Booth

"Balls would be a catastrophe of Footian proportions as party leader"

Then lets hope he wins...

ajs

Yes, let's all puff the wind into Balls' sails. He should render Labour unelectable for at least a generation. Best of luck to him. Anything rather than Harman - except perhaps we should encourage Prescott to enter as a late (exact word) candidate.

Yow Min Lye

The man clearly has no shame.

Boudicca

I rather suspect those sections of the community who are a bit hot under the collar about immigration are less concerned by our Eastern European immigrants than they are about the ones which arrive from the sub-continent and Africa and had no intention of trying to assimilate. But he's not going to say that, is he.

I do hope Balls wins the poisoned chalice. His communication/media skills are only marginally better than Brown's and he is heavily implicated in everything the Moron did whilst in the Treasury and No.10.

Tarquin Superbus

To those who want another Michael Foot - are you mad? But for the Falklands War and the recovering economy, Foot could have won in '83, even with the SDP siphoning votes from the Right - they were ahead of the Tories in the opinion polls, and the FPTP system would likely have made them the government.

Besides, the last 20+ years have shown that government without strong opposition tends towards the dangerous - ergo we want a good, competent leader for the Labour Party.

CG

I don't know anyone who complains about Eastern Europeans. They work hard and speak English and don't scrounge benefits, unlike immigrants from certain other parts of the world. When immigration comes up, why is it always Poles etc who get castigated?

Verity

Boudicca - "I rather suspect (they) are less concerned by ... Eastern European immigrants than (about those who) arrive from the sub-continent and Africa and had no intention of trying to assimilate."

I don't think the lack of "intention to assimilate" is as important as the stupidity level and the religion (which may have something to do with the stupidity level, as islam does not encourage original thought o experiment).

In addition, Hindus are from the sub-Continent and I don't think I've ever heard anyone complain about their presence in Britain. In fact, everyone seems to be quite pleased that they're here.

Peter Crawford

Well said Boudicca.

The "problem" immigrants are not economic migrants from Poland or the Czech Republic. Anyone with a grain of moral or intellectual honesty knows who the immigrants we need to be "more bigoted" towards are.

However, because the likes of Ed Balls have no moral or intellectual honesty they have ensured that anybody who discusses this openly is liable to criminal prosecution.

Nice work from the Mother of Parliaments.

Kennybhoy

Boudicca,

Spot on!

If anything the Polish and Czech immigrants should be seen as latter day Sobieskis come to save us from the consequences of our own stupidity!

Jez

Let's waste some more time.

Balls admits there's too much immigration from Eastern Europe only.

He side steps anything to do with race, culture, religion by doing this.

The only people he will clash with are certain sectors of the business community.

But really it isn't them is it..... it's the Islamification of most inner cities. The complete rejection of the host culture by a myriad of gun toting 'Gansta's'. The utter replacement of one group of people by a newer, more vibrant, more diverse, more foreign (like the East End for instance).

You know, the Neathergate stuff. That Ball's was actually part of. About 7 weeks ago.

The BNP increased it's votes in many places and the Right (BNP, UKIP etc) really did well if you put their votes together.

So. Alas. Yet more bullsh*t from the machine i'm afraid.

What a bunch of w*nkers.

Dennis Churchill

Boudicca is right. Talk about Eastern Europeans is a diversion. I have never heard the type of complaints common about Muslims, in particular, aimed at Eastern Europeans.
I spent some time in Dagenham during the election and the bitterness among the local community is palpable but it is not against the Latvians and Poles but the Africans brought in from Westminster by Housing Associations.
Regardless of the fact that Labour held the seat I never expected to hear the accusations of electoral fraud that have been flying around since the election. That part of London is still not safe for Labour. Particularly if the postal voting system is changed.

David Lindsay

This does at least express the Brownite view of the EU, that the best thing to do about it is to ignore it and carry on as if it did not exist. No doubt also the approach of that other key Brown ally, Ed Miliband.

Will Balls now come to see - or, since he probably does see it, to admit - that the erosion of wages and working conditions, and that the intolerable strain on housing and other public services, are inherent in the Eurofederalist project itself and in the neoliberal economics behind it? Will the younger Miliband?

Balls's newly stated view is still not a patch on the actual voting records of Diane Abbott and John McDonnell, never mind John's nomination by no one who is not a fully paid up Eurosceptic, one of whom is active in Balanced Migration.

And Balls is still signed up to Turkish accession. Bringing with it the IHH, which the neocons might consider is entirely a product of their beloved dismemberment of Yugoslavia in the Islamist interest.

M. Rowley

"Balls would be a catastrophe of Footian proportions as party leader."

Bring it on.

Phil

In the land of the blind the one eyed man is king or in this instance his erstwhile most fervent supporter.

Beer Moth

Boudicca shows that there is a lot more thinking and comprehension going on in the minds of ordinary people, than in Westminster.

The problem will not go away. It will get bigger and more pressing, and one day, those in power and those whose job it is to inform of their antics, will have to face the truths told them by a public driven to despair by what they see developing across the country.

An alien culture and religion is being planted on Britain. We all know this, and yet here again, we have the obfuscation which portrays any comment on this, as an attack on Polish plumbers.

It will not go away, this problem, and when the critical mass of concern is reached, then the real suffering will begin.

'What did you do before the civil war Daddy?'

James Haley

What is 'assimilation' ? All this talk about 'assimilation' is nothing but a shallow and emptyconcept. Does it mean getting pi**ed on Friday nights, having a good old fight with other drunkards. Does it mean forcing yourself to go to the pub and having pie and chips ? Does it mean wearing nothing but jeans, trainers, shell bottoms and t-shirts ?

It's easy to muslim bash because they are an easy target. The reality is the vast majority of british muslims are just as normal as me or you. In every aspect of British life you will see muslims integrating themselves - politics, medical, business, civil service, police force etc. I challege any of you to go to any hospital that hasnt got muslim medics. Or go into any superstore that hasnt got muslim working. Or any pharmacy in your local area that hasnt got any muslims pharmacists.. same for dentists....teachers...businesmen.. shopkeepers.. and the lise goes on.... they are contributing to the economy and society... so what do you want them to 'assimilate' ?

The comments eminating from this forum is so akinned to the moronic views of the BNP faithful. Everything and anything that is wrong with the UK is the fault of the muslims according to their followers. Well the fact is, and thankfully so, the greater majority are not falling for such hate filled rhetoric as proven in the abysmal failure of the BNP in the past election - such rhetoric failed big time. The good old British public saw through such rhetoric for the racism it was.

Andrew Cadman

Its long been a tactic of the lying left to harp about Eastern Europeans. Polly Toynbee used to spin this line on Question Time years ago.

Firstly Eastern Europeans account for only 30% of immigration. The real issue is the culture war taking place with the Islamification of our inner cities, and the thousands of arranged marriages every year that ship in more and more unskilled immigrants from rural Pakistan and Bangladesh who dont even speak English and live in their own ghettos in many big Northern Cities.

ALSO, if the marriage subsequently breaks down they can remarry someone in the same way and bring another immigrant + a.n.other family member over.

Cameron must make good his promise to stop people coming here for marrying under the age of 24, a law that worked well in Denmark to stem the flood: it allows for legitimate marriages but stops the parental pressure for arranged marriages which affects young Asian men and particularly women in their teens and early twenties.

Dirty Euro

I dissagree with Balls. Mrs Duffy was an idiot hypocrite. She lives in Spain and then blabbers on about immigrants to this country. Well she is an immigrant is Spain. Idiots tend not to vote anyway. ,

Dennis Churchill

James Haley
And the postal voting system helped.

neilmack

So Ed the psychotic Teletubbie thinks Eastern Europeans are the problem? Presumably because they're white, Christian, educated and work for a living? What would Labour want with folk like that? He's nothing if not consistent.

Those last three words were redundant.

Jez

Hi James Haley,

Do you feel there is no problem?

Occasional Ostrich

Of course, Goolies has identified the one area from which, as EU members, we'll be able to do sod all to reduce immigration.

And he thinks WE'RE thick?

Graham Booth

James Haley; 'I challege any of you to go to any hospital that hasnt got muslim medics.'

Like Glasgow for example...

Will J

The BNP had a limp showing in May? Really?! If you call gaining nearly 2% vote share - more than the Lib Dems and UKIP put together - a limp showing. Yes they lost their council seats, but that's surely just because it coincided with a general election, which doubles turnout. I really don't think we should disregard them so glibly.

Edward Sutherland

James Haley @ 10:32. Yes,as you point out, there are shameful aspects of British life that I would not wish any immigrant to copy. But all immigrants need to accept that the common law of England and a philosophy of life based on Judaeo-Christian ethics and the ideas of the the Enlightenment are the predominant culture- along with loyalty to the state and its armed forces. Huguenots, 19th-20th century Jewish immigrants and most 20th century Commonwealth immigrants seemed to have no problem with any of this. But it is evident that some, more recent immigrants do have a problem accepting the mores of our society.

Verity

James Haley, I am sure aka Omar Saud, "In every aspect of British life you will see muslims integrating themselves - politics, medical, business, civil service, police force etc."

Name one, Omar.

BTW, you didn't mention the health service, where hairy-armed muslim "nurses" are refusing to uncover and wash their hairy, germ-laden arms. So the cowardly NHS has bought disposable sleeves for them? At what cost to the taxpayer? How much does this cost the taxpayer pre sleeve? And was this sleeve industry in force before the NHS encouraged its creation? And cui bono?

Manufacturers of bizarre temporary sleeves. Anyone know the names of the companies and shareholders that supply these temporary sleeves? They must be quite new companies, surely?

Who is backing them?

I call it pig (sic) ignorant.

AF

James Haley,
It must be those "honour killings" that warms you to your beliefs.

TomTom

Die Welt today has research in Germany showing the more Christian a schoolchild the less criminal intent; yet the more Muslim a child the more propensity to violence and non-integration especially when in contact with imported imams

Michael Booth

@James Haley

It's worth repeating that a muslim can be of any race and Islam is a religion with specific political aims: ergo, to oppose the mores and values of Islam is categorically NOT racist.

Roger Davies

I would like ~2m well educated, hard working East Europeans to swap passports with ignorant, lazy welfare scroungers.

Liz

The first thing that struck me about this article was that it wasn't Ed Balls' failure to mention the cause of the real immigration nightmare in Britain - I mean, he wouldn't would he - but David Blackburn's.
To 'James Haley' I would say this - it's not full-blown assimilation that people want, it's respect for the laws and institutions of the host nation. There have been many communities in Britain who have lived within the parameters of their religious and/or cultural beliefs and yet harmoniously within the country at large. The difference is that the communities to which I am referring were not hell-bent on achieving a global Caliphate.

Naomi Muse

Balls is floundering and will chase any possibility of rewriting history to give himself a platform.

Nothing new there.

Balls has nothing to offer anyway and the more he harps on and retrospectively resents those from Eastern europe, the more he underlines the misjudged handling of the Eastern EU states accession which led to the flood of such workers to the UK.

anne allan

I'm not worried about East Europeans - they work, they share the same cultural background.
It's the towns and cities of this country that are being turned in ghettos that bother me. East Europeans don't try to blow us up or subvert our society.
Usual Labour mealy mouthed witterings: Bradford, Birmingham etc... return Labour MPs. Poles and Lithuanians can only vote in local elections and therefore can safely be picked on.

old fogey

Whilst I share the general disregard for Islam that other contributors express, I also feel that the Slavic invasion since 2004 has had a mostly unfortunate effect on our national life; not just in terms of the pressure placed on schools, public services, but also on employment. Some three years ago I was forced out of a part time job ( not sacked, but if a private employer wishes to get rid of someone, it will make life very unpleasant for him ), along, along with twenty or thirty others. I was lucky in that I had another job, but some of those who were once my colleagues, haven't worked since. We were replaced, mostly, eventually, by Poles and Czechs; at lower rates of pay obviously. Because metropolitan circles mostly see the advantages of low wage immigration ( domestic cleaners and the like) attention is not paid to the general wage level reduction and lack of job opportunites in areas such as distribution and general factory work. And when attention is paid it is usually in a way that suggests that the indigenous work force, especially the younger element, is idle, ignorant and ineducable. Believe me, the east europeans that I worked with were not much better--and rather more aggressive.

Geoff Miller

Dear CG
June 6th, 2010 7:19pm
You said:-
"I don't know anyone who complains about Eastern Europeans.... When immigration comes up, why is it always Poles etc who get castigated?"

It is because they are white, Christian and decent. Therefore they can be attacked. No-one will protest or threaten "death to the infidel".

Ask anyone with a problem about immigration and it is rarely about fellow Europeans.

What people really abject to is the millions of Third World immigrants clogging up our schools, social housing, hospitals and sucking our benefit system dry.

Add to that Islamic terrorists, knife and gun crime, disease, people trafficking, race attacks upon indigenous Britons and the whole failed multicultural experiment and it is plain to see where the problem lies.

But, yet again, our politicians deliberately miss the point.

There are too many votes for Labour in mass Third World immigration for them to stop it.

Any other politician who speaks out will be torn to shreds by the BBC and left wing media as well as "equality" quangos and Liberty.

MikeF

Oh for heaven's sake - can't we have a discussion about immigration without the invocation of the word 'bigotry'. It is just a label used by the left to try to intimidate anyone who expresses an opinion they do not like or questions their policies, as Mrs Duffy did of Gordon Brown. If I wanted to see the word used in this way I would read The Independent. It has no place in The Spectator.

David Blackburn

Mike F:

Do give me some credit, the title is clearly ironic. Balls is using immigration to peddle a cut versus investment leadership ticket.

Marcher Baron

"When immigration comes up, why is it always Poles etc who get castigated?" Because, CG, they are white and, being European and mainly staunch Catholics, share our culture. As such, they are fair game. Of course, as EU members, we couldn't do anything about them, even if we wanted to unless we woke up and cededed from the undemocratic Empire, so it's just token posturing as well. What we need is not more bigotry, but an end to multiculturalism in favour of prioritising the indigenous culture and an end to providing translation services (on the grounds of cost and because people settling here should speak English or provide their own interpreters as is expected abroad). Anybody who doesn't like that can find another country that suits them better.

Stuart Seacole Smith

Many posters have hit the nail on the head: Balls is just seeking to deflect genuine concerns about islamification towards the soft target of hard working white christian east europeans. Labour prefer their immigrants ignorant, brown and beholden. Cynical and cowardly stuff, which also entails an astronomical social and financial "cost-per-vote".

As for James Haley 6/6 10.32 commenting that islamist muslims are somehow an "easy target". Well, maybe they are in whatever fluffy-clouded alternative reality you live in mate.

Then there's the UK position on EU membership: support for Turkish entry (why? wonder what that could mean for muslim immigration? Doh!); while Balls and co try to turn attention to immigration from existing eastern european EU members (over which our govt has virtually no say anyway).

Smoke and mirrors self-interest coupled with howl-at-the-moon self-destructive madness seem to be the order of the day.

Still, one positive recent thing is that despite the UK's barmy position on Turkey, the Turks themselves have managed to scuttle any chance they might've had of joining the EU for the forseeable future with their islamist rants over flotilla-gate.

And I for one am grateful to them at least on that one particular point.

MikeF

David - my point is that the constant misuse of the word by the left puts it beyond parody or irony. Frankly this is a subject on which the likes of Ed Balls are totally immune to the use of such devices because they are so totally immersed in their own sense of self-righteousness. As such the term needs to be be junked entirely - it is tainted beyond redemption and any use of it just gets in the way of reasoned debate.

Edward Sutherland

S Seacole Smith. For the Poles, there must be a certain bitter irony over the likes of Balls castigating their migratory habits. How many people in this country are even remotely aware that it was an army of Poles under John Sobieski that in 1683 defeated the Ottoman Turks besieging Vienna, leading to the long decline of Turkish power in Europe. Or that over 150,000 Polish troops fought in the British army to help defeat the Nazis and were then unable to return home because of the Churchill- Roosevelt surrender at Yalta? Obligations aplenty to the Poles, not to the Turks!

Beer Moth

James Haley

Bashing? People object to the takeover of their country, and that's bashing?

Go wake yourself up somewhere will you?

quiet integrity

What struck me most recently, with the remembrance of Dunkirk, is that the mass immigration we've witnessed over the past 13 years has rendered the 2nd World War meaningless. What must those men feel who saw their friends die to protect our nation's identity! Why did Labour feel able to be so cavalier over our borders that so many people had made sacrifices to defend just 70 years ago?
If Hitler had defeated us, we'd be in a better situation as a nation than we are now. It occurred to me, driving through a rural village, with its 1000 year old church, that within the next 50 years, with demographic change, we're likely to see mosques disrupt our pastoral landscape.
There's always a lot of talk about the disadvantages multiculturalism has brought but seriously, what can we do now to prevent complete submersion of our Anglo-Saxon-Judaeo-Christian heritage?