The Revolution Will be Televised

I'll note, before any arsehole points it out, that citizens of the UK do have a right to freedom of speech. It's enshrined in Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

• Unlike the Fitwatch fiasco, you probably have heard about the Twitter Joke Trial. If not, a quick prescis (David Allen Green has the full details here):

Paul Chambers tweeted the following, in exasperation at finding out that an airport was closed when he was supposed to be flying to meet his partner:

"Crap! Robin Hood airport is closed. You've got a week and a bit to get your shit together otherwise I'm blowing the airport sky high!!!"

It was a joke. I'm aware that some folks from other countries may need to take my word on this, but to anyone raised in Britain, it's clearly not serious: a bit of hyperbole used to vent frustration, nothing more.

Someone at the airport saw the tweet, and passed it on—despite not believing it to be anything other than a joke. Yet charges were brought, not under anti-terror legislation, but under an old law designed to protect women working on telephone switchboards.

He was found guilty, and lost two jobs because of his criminal record. His appeal has since been thrown out, by a Judge who is clearly so backwards as to make me wonder if she has dared to use a typewriter, let alone a computer. This is a travesty of justice, the kind that destroys confidence in the court system.

Now, with that out of the way, let me point out another travesty of justice.

• The "English Defence League" are a band of vile Nazi cunts, who go around marching through cities inciting hate crimes and violence against anyone not sufficiently white, straight, and stupid enough to belong to their vicious little circle-jerk of bigotry.

Members of Muslims Against Crusades did something particularly dickish: they burned a large poppy on Armistice Day. Let me say right now: I do not agree with what they did. I think they are dicks for doing it.

The Sun—a detestable tabloid rag whose readers have a mental age slightly lower than readers of the Beano—printed "The Sun Finds Poppy Thugs". And on Facebook, the EDL went mental, digging up a name and address of someone who might have been involved. That link is NOT SAFE FOR WORK OR SANITY. Between threats of violence and racial abuse, it's pretty clear that (despite a couple of posters desperately trying to perform a face-saving action) the EDL exist to incite racial hatred, often against people who have not been proven to have any connection with events.

While "police are aware" of these comments—which are actually criminal—no action has been taken against the EDL at the time of writing.

One joke destroys a man's career. One group pours out racist bile and nothing happens.