Breivik

Anders Breivik has been found to be mentally competant during the vicious rampage he carried out last year. He wanted to be judged sane, and smiled when the verdict was announced. Despite the urge to confound the nazi bastard, it is right that he has been judged responsible for his crimes. 
 
Now begins the job of making sure something like this never happens again. It starts with why it happened in the first place. 
 
Breivik is a fascist (amply demonstrated here). That was his motive behind killing 77 innocent, defenceless people, many of them children. Judging him criminally insane would have depoliticised the atrocity, turned him into the 'lone wolf' he is sometimes portrayed as. Even if he somehow managed to fund, plan and carry out his atrocity all by himself (he didn't) Breivik emerged out of an environment of mainstream racism and bigotry, which, on its fringes, has grown ever more violent (in rhetoric) as the years have passed. Breivik simply transformed words into action.
 
We must take on the racists and the fascists wherever they emerge. In Britain they are currently gathered round the EDL, an organisation Breivik says he admires. On September 1st the EDL want to riot in Walthamstow. Be there to stop them.
 

In case you forgot...

The Breivik trial lumbers on. Yesterday there was a psychological report. It turns out Breivik had a troubled childhood. He was aggressive and withdrawn, lacking in spontaneity and elements of joy and pleasure, appearing to avoid emotional contact. He now suffers delusions of grandeur and an inflated sense of his own self-importance...

Yes, and fascism. Got to get that in there somewhere: THE FASCISM.

Fascism and anti-fascism: mini-roundup

The headline news is of course that one in five French are nazis, a grossly unfair observation no doubt, but a national fascist vote of 18-20% is a matter of shame, it is also a matter of urgency... we have been here before. It's often noted how the French left is weakned by a dogmatic attachment to Republican ideals, it has failed to tackle state-led islamophobia (although the Mélenchon campaign was maybe the start of something different). Could this also be a long-term result of half-hearted denazification, which was known in France as Epuration Legale, which saw many collaboration politicians and civil servants granted amnesty under the Fourth and Fifth Republics? Whatever the background, the French labour movement is capable of making sharp upturns, even scoring major victories. This can be turned around.

Meanwhile in Norway, fascist child-killer Anders Breivik is still turning his trial into a grotesque circus. The court has paid far too high a price to get him to talk about what he actually did. He does seem to have offered a bit of leverage, he will aparently do "anything" to avoid being committed. His sanity is questioned apparently to discredit him, and maybe it does to some, but then I would guess most people are against mass murder already. Breivik is sane. Questioning his sanity actually lets him off the hook, lets the whole system of state racism off the hook and denies what should be the obvious fact: he did what he did because he is a fascist. His brutal rampage was fascism in action.

But a bit of good news from Britain to end on. The BNP is in turmoil and probably irreversable decline. The EDL meanwhile is going through serious doldrums. The nazis attempted to hold a demonstration in Brighton this weekend. Though they had heavy police protection (including horses and tear gas) they had a miserable day, outnumbered 10 to 1 and hounded every step of the way. Well done to all involved.

Alert

It's only one poll, almost equidistant between general elections, but for the time being the UK Independence Party has replaced the (fast disappearing) Liberal Democrats as Britain's 3rd party. These voters are being attracted overwhelmingly from the Tory party. This means one thing. There are several million people in Britain for whom this government is not right-wing enough; there isn't enough union bashing, not enough service cutting, too many kids in education, employment or training, grannies are too warm in the winter, the sick and disabled are getting too much care. 


This is also probably a Breivik bounce. The normally not-great Jonathan Freedland of the Guardian has got it spot on here, about the unfolding catastrophe of the Breivik trial:

My Guardian colleague Vikram Dodd, who covered that London trial, was struck when he heard a Radio 5 Live phone-in this week that was regularly interrupted by snippets from Breivik's statement. "The grammar of the coverage was as if this was the chancellor giving his budget," says Dodd.More than one caller to that programme, while quick to insist they disagreed with Breivik's methods, did rather think the Norwegian had a point about multiculturalism run riot. "I can understand where this guy's coming from," said Tom from Dover. Several readers of a Guardian article sought to post comments in the same vein, calling for "a complete stop of immigration from Muslim countries" and suchlike. To listen to it, you'd think Breivik had simply wanted to start a debate, that he'd perhaps written a provocative pamphlet for Demos, rather than committed an act of murderous cruelty.

This is the backbone of (potential) British fascism beginning to flex (a fascist party in Britain will come, if we are not vigilant and active, in part from a party like the UK Independence Party lurching rightward). I warn you, there will be mass-murdering fascists in Britain soon.

Two trials...

One just ending, one beginning. Coming to a close the trial of Alfie Meadows and co. In my opinion reading the court reports you can see the defence has been excellent. This is a most important case; aggressive and egregiously political policing was used against the student movement of November/December 2010, the first mass movement against enforced austerity, a movement which was causing the government to falter, the coalition to come apart.

If the imprisonment and battery of children and young adults is allowed to stand, if it is deemed to be 'proportionate policing', as the Commander on the day described it, it will be a dark day for us all. I fear for the people on trial. The business end of the state urgently needs to sweep through London, make it a happy place for capitalists of the world to enjoy their Olympics. The state would think nothing of sacrificing young lives to this end. In my opinion if Alfie Meadows is found guilty we will all have to watch out for each other. If Alfie Meadows, who nearly died at the hands of the police, can be sent down for violent disorder, they can come for any of us.

Just beginning, the trial of fascist child murderer Anders Breivik. He did it. He killed 77 people, mostly teenagers at a youth camp. He does not deny it. If he is allowed to turn the trial into a political exposition, if his 'self-defence' argument is given any credence we will be in deep trouble. This is an important political event. There is great responsibility on the prosecution. If they get it wrong we could be facing the prospect of Breivikite attacks across the continent.