If you ever want a laugh, read the websites of Britain’s collection of far-right political groupings. It is worth doing so if only to remind yourself that the “threat” from right-wing extremists is often rather exaggerated. These people’s relationship with reality is neither firm enough to threaten public order nor coherent enough to win them more than a (relative) handful of deluded followers. Keep an eye on them, by all means, but let’s not make them out to be more than they are.
After all, whenever the far-right does enjoy some success that success quickly evaporates. The public, when it has a chance to see these people for what they really are, tends to disapprove of the cut of their respective jibs. And rightly so. Because, for all that one reasonably despairs from time to time, the British people are, collectively, a pretty decent lot capable of frowning upon and then rejecting extremism.

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