Where were they?

In the run up to the QT circus there was an unknown factor that kept police, the BBC and the BNP on edge: how many crazed left wing fascists would show up outside screaming that even putting Nick Griffin into a meat grinder of a television show was giving the BNP too much dignity?

The word went out on the internet to all the far left fascist sites. The terrorist group “Antifa” [sic] claimed that they would make an appearance and show the university students assembled by the SWP how to really crush free speech. The universities themselves were covered in posters advertising the coming riot. Discussions about the riot went on in the national press, helpfully giving the time and place to any red fascists or Islamic fundamentalists who might feel like showing up.

At a previous protest against the fact that voters had seen fit to give the BNP a dearly earned GLA seat with much less publicity 5000 interested marchers had come out to listen to the crazed rantings of the red fascist scum. With the extra publicity more were expected. The creatures who lead this outfit of taxpayer and union due payer funded thugs made proud statements in the media openly proclaiming that they would have the numbers to stage an illegal blockade. The police of course made no public comment. Planned riots against the BNP are officially approved, even if front line police get injured in the process.

The riot gear was dusted off, the press photographers and cameramen began to dream of Pulitzers and the television reporters “from the scene” practiced their serious face and solemn voice. The press was drooling, barely able to contain its delight.

At the Battle of Lewisham on 13 August 1977 there had been next to no publicity or advertising compared to this. The red fascists on that day had managed to gather 10,000 foot soldiers, some armed to the teeth. With the money, the legitimacy and the support from the establishment and the media that the UAF today enjoys it was considered almost certain that the Question Time riot would see even more useful idiots from amongst the urban upper middle classes come out to support the cause that they love most.

But as the day dawned and the noticeably disappointed news reports came in it was clear that this had not happened. The media, the establishment and the police had given the young and not so young of the political classes a green light to riot and yet most had stayed at home. The Daily Mail, that bastion of the Conservative party gave the highest estimate of the crowd at 1000, but most media outlets were more honest. 500 to 600 at most answered one of the most widespread and well supported calls to self righteous rioting in the history of the city of London.

It wasn’t through lack of interest. The ratings for QT were through the roof, 8 million perhaps. It was easily a record audience for the political program. The public seemed interested in what the leader of the BNP had to say, rather than being interested in rioting to stop him.

In a previous article I argued that the Far left was dying by means of respectability. Many on this site kindly suggested that I was being optimistic. The evidence of the paltry crowd that turned out when the establishment called proves, in my mind at least, that if the far left is not dying, it is certainly very sick.