The British Empire, Far Right And Press TV.

News just in, the British conquered most (or at least tried to) of the world!

Rather fittingly the Torygraph informs its readers that:

“A new study has found that at various times the British have invaded almost 90 per cent of the countries around the globe.

The analysis of the histories of the almost 200 countries in the world found only 22 which have never experienced an invasion by the British.

Among this select group of nations are far-off destinations such as Guatemala, Tajikistan and the Marshall Islands, as well some slightly closer to home, such as Luxembourg. “

I can’t say I am surprised. Anyone familiar with British society can tell you about the low level of jingoism that permeates it. Not as stark as it once was, but it is still around, lurking in the corners.

Which brings me nicely to the creation of yet another racist group in Britain, True Brits.

Run by one time BNP MEP, Andrew Brons this motley gathering of cranks and neofascists is not a pretty sight as HOPE, not hate shows:

“The new party will include some of Britain’s most hardline racists, antisemites and Holocaust deniers. It will be BNP mark II but even more toxic. It will be TB in name and equally dangerous.

The new party will be led by Peter Phillips, a former BNP member who in 2006 stood for election as President of the Royal Institute of British Architects. Andrew Brons will become its President. Newcastle-based Kevin Scott is acting as the Secretary of the Steering Group and Andrew Moffat and Ken Booth its deputy chairmen.

Around them will be former BNP organisers and activists, people drawn from small and hardline groups such as England First and the Democratic Nationalists and a number of former National Front activists who were prominent in the 1970s and 1980s. “

The list of key backers includes: Peter Phillips, Ken Booth, Andrew Moffat, Adrian Davies, James Lewthwaite, Peter Rushton, Ivan Winters, Martin Wingfield, Bob Gertner and Richard Edmonds.

There is an almost interchangeable group of white nationalists, Holocaust deniers and neofascists that inhabit the wastelands of the Far and Extreme Right, as Searchlight has established.

What is particularly galling is how these extremists have wormed their way into parts of the media, notably Press TV and Russia Today. Long term associate of David Irving, Lady Renouf, was a regular on Press TV. Nick Kollerstrom‘s revolting The Walls of Auschwitz was published by Press TV without a murmur.

The constant drip-drip of antisemitism at Press TV is acknowledged by most objective observers, however, Russia Today tends to evade such scrutiny even though it is reasonably neofascist friendly.

Peter Rushton, a regular on Press TV, long term neofascist and member of “True Brits”, is a contributor, although Russia Today promotes him as a supposed ‘political analyst and historian’.

As HOPE, not hate stated:

“Rushton is one of Britain’s leading Holocaust deniers and has links to nazi groups across Europe and antisemites in the Middle East. He was previously involved in the BNP but was expelled by Nick Griffin in 2002. He is currently deputy editor of Mark Cotterill’s magazine Heritage and Destiny and regularly speaks at National Front, British Movement and RVF events.”

So, over the passage of time and with the connivance of Press TV and Russia Today, British neofascists have gained access to the airwaves.

They would gladly, for the sake of their neofascist ideology, reconquer those old imperial spoils and plunge the world into barbarism, if they could.

And that is something worth remembering, when next you hear someone singing the praises of Russia Today.

Update 1: A reminder about Peter Rushton, activist in the British People’s Party (a motley bunch of ex-C18, BNPers, NFers & weird white supremacists).

The fringe of the fringe by Searchlight magazine explains the background to these hideous neofascist gangs.

Lancaster Unity covered the BPP about 5 years ago:

“The so-called ‘British People’s Party’, currently led by the odious Kate McDermody, has until recently been content to confine itself to the twilight world of British neo-Nazism. Elements of the party leadership though have long nursed fantasies about what McDermody (or ‘Dermody’ as she prefers to be called) terms “Racial Holy War”. Kevin Watmough, McDermody’s boyfriend, and still (despite all evidence to the contrary) supposed “National Organiser” of the BPP has been a cheer-leader of would-be Nazi terrorists for decades, but the BPP’s flirtation with outright terrorism has not gone well.

Earlier this year, Martyn Gilleard, the BPP’s ‘Goole Organiser’ was sentenced to 16 years for possession of nail-bombs and plans to blow up local mosques, along with nearly 40,000 images of the worst child pornography. While Gilleard, who earned the BPP the sobriquet the ‘British Paedophile Party’, was quickly dumped because of the bad publicity surrounding his child porn collection, the BPP were happy to support him in his plans to start the much talked about ‘RaHoWa’ (‘Racial Holy War.) Nor is Gilleard the only BPP member to go to jail on terrorism charges.”

So when next you watch Russia Today ask yourself the question, what possible common ground could an old neo-Nazi and that TV channel share?

You won’t like the answer, if you have any sense.

Remember the imagery that the BPP wish to convey and why.

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