If Rushdie deserves free speech, why not Harry?

ian skidmore

I am not a royalist and rarely share your point of view. But this week you are bang on the same target.
If I were one of the Prince's superior officers I would be much more worried that one of my officers is so deaf to honour that he shops a comrade for money;

Kevin

"These are the dark little secrets not widely known outside Asian communities."

That's the money quote here. That's what stinks about this whole affair - the air of one-upmanship, whether practised among English people or against them. The fact that this video is three years old - is this designed to distract attention from something more important?

Once again Gordon Brown rides unnecessarily to the rescue of a subcontinental, following on his defence of the fabulously wealthy and in no way imperilled Shilpa Shetty. Where's the PM when people throughout the continent of Europe and in the United States are shouting "Death to the Jews" - and actually meaning it?

Herbert Thornton

My previous comment having perhaps being found too strongly worded, I try again by observing that merely because Prince Harry used a four letter word, all hell breaks loose.

This is not so much a matter of free speech – which concerns substance – but one of mere form. It simply demonstrates that as a society we've evolved hardly at all from the primitive mindset that has the urge to make some things "Taboo".

50 years ago, the busybodies in our society would have caused just as loud a commotion if they had heard quite different four letter words spoken on the radio.

Now the busybodies have abandoned those particular taboos and substituted more fashionable ones. One of them is this silly taboo on the word Paki.

My sympathy lies entirely with Prince Harry. I think it's a pity that he isn't allowed to tell his critics to f-off.

David Short

How many 'gaffes' does it take before people realise how awful the 'ruling class' is?

Pity we can't do something about it.

Grant

And anyway, just how is 'our little Paki friend' any different to 'our little Kiwi friend', or Aussie, or whatever.

richard

there was a black boy in my 11 year old sons rugby team his nick name was a chocolate bar, I can't remember what, but a black chocolate bar. One day I was watching a match against another school when all hell broke out in the scrum and two of my sons team were seriously told off by the ref, "but sir" said one of them "he called Snicker (if that was his nickname) a black bastard!

Shrinath

Wonderfully written. It is about time to look and take things in context rather than employing in mindless spouting of words just to sound politically right.

Mark Darey

We should ignore these hypocrites who cynically jump at every opportunity to take offence at some unguarded remark from a public figure. They are beneath contempt. It was a harmless piece of army banter, that's all.
The most important thing Harry should learn from this is to choose his so-called friends a bit more carefully. All the rest is just so much PC cant.

Martin

What is the big Huh-Hah here. A Paki is a Paki, or isn't he??
How about Limey, or Paddy?? Is that taboo, too??
Why should the Prince apologize??

A. MacAulay

Would that Lenny Bruce were alive today!

Daibhidh MacAdhaimh

Linguistically speaking, PC and its thin skinned, self-righteous albeit inconsistent advocates have rendered us all Harrys. PC imposes its bland lexicon the rest of us. We're no longer allowed to control the meaning of our words and sentences. By virtue of simply uttering a shortened nationality title, we're automatically deemed 'racist' (yawn!)I speak as a thick skinned 'Jock', 'Sweaty sock,' or 'Tight Scots git' or whatever refreshingly delightful non-PC epithet folks care to label me.

Verity

Herbert Thornton, what a witty and ace post!

Verity

Shrinath writes: "rather than employing in mindless spouting of words just to sound politically right." A reasonable, fair-minded man. As is the British tradition.

Mark Darey opines: "The most important thing Harry should learn from this is to choose his so-called friends a bit more carefully."

I believe one does not get to "choose" one's comrades in arms "carefully" or otherwise. They're a bunch of fighting men thrown in together. Clearly, you have never been deployed in defending our nation, Mark Darcy. Thank God.

These are words not "mindlessly spouted". These are words used as weapons against the right of free speech as per our ancient bill of rights.

There was a curry house in London in Thackeray's time. Yes, in the 1800s, (200 years ago for the numerically illiterate) the posh people in London went out for a curry on cook's night off. No one thought a thing of it.

Verity

David Short writes: How many 'gaffes' does it take before people realise how awful the 'ruling class' is?

"Pity we can't do something about it."

But you can, darling! You can emigrate! To a country that would accept you!

.... oops! I share your despair ...

Strauss

A considered and well written piece, thank you. A minor, probably pedantic point: how is it relevant that another event (the Satanic Verses crisis) occurred exactly twenty years ago, and further why should one speculate why that is so?

It is perhaps entirely coincidental, but it is exactly 20 years since The Satanic Verses crisis, when angry Muslims in Bradford burned copies of Salman Rushdie’s novel.

Jak

Three years after the event, coinciding with the massacre in Palestine and British complicity (2.6 billion of sales last year) - sounds fishy!

Fergus Pickering

There is a poem by Wiliam Dunbar, freely available in bookshops and libraries that contains the offensive line, 'Then think I hiddowus Mahowne hes me in armes', which, being translated is 'Then think I hideous Mahomdet has me in his arms'. Ther is a novel by Ronald Firbank, freely available etc, called 'Prancing Nigger'. Of course, both Dunbar and Firbank are dead, but that's no excuse. What is to be done?

Mark DAREY

Verity,
you're absolutely right, I have never been deployed in defending our nation,though why you should feel the need to thank God for it is a little beyond me. My comment was not at all meant as a criticism of Harry, who has my fullest sympathy, but was rather directed at the weasel who leaked the video to the press (and the even bigger weasels who jumped on the bandwagon once the news was out). He knew exactly what he was doing, and what the consequences would be.It's just a shame he won't get the punishment he deserves, because he deserves a righteous kicking. And so do you, for doubting my patriotism!

Straight Talk

Not forgetting the degrading term Dhimmi used by Muslims (as per Sharia Law) to refer to non muslims. Dhimmis have second class status in Islam, with the freedom to practice their religion, display their symbols, repair their buildings etc being severely restricted.
In addition the testimony of non muslims is less than that of a muslim, they also cannot rise above muslims in employment status and must pay extra taxes.

Listening to the Ramadhan foundation criticising Prince Harry is laughable when you consider that they believe in a 1300 year old legal system that actually instituionalises discrimination against non muslims.

Don't take lectures from these Islamist hypocrites

Lydia P Troyer

I, too, would like to know 1> who was the sneak who sold his brother officer out to the gutter Press and 2> why is Lt Windsor's father still a commissioned officer when he openly & notoriously engaged in adultery with a brother officer's wife? same regiment I believe.
Just curious.

Malc Dow

Certainly does!

>> Jak
January 19th, 2009 11:05pm

Three years after the event, coinciding with the massacre in Palestine and British complicity (2.6 billion of sales last year) - sounds fishy!"