hypochondriac

Their argument would be why do you get to decide who the nutters are. Many of them are expert scholars and can justify their actions with reference to the text. It's a problem you don't get to the same extent in other world religions. Only Islam has this problem to this degree and that's before you discuss bigoted and backwards views towards for example gays or women's rights amongst a majority of even moderate followers.

I'd increase military spending, push pro family policies to try to increase the birth rate, have much stricter policies around people coming here and adapting to the existing culture, I'd look to reduce the burden of immigration both legal and illegal and part of that would involve spending on immigration control. I'd reduce spending in other areas I consider to be less important in order to fund it.

It's a political choice what we spend our money on. We could if we chose to spend more on defence and immigration defence and make spending in other areas less of a priority than it is at present if we wanted to.

I didn't actually mention anything about Russia in my post I was responding to the question about how free speech is threatened in the UK. I would say it probably depends what you mean by threat. I don't feel particularly threatened by Russia on a personal level but certainly on the international stage they are undoubtedly a larger threat. The individual intimidated by the police or subject to arrest for a social media post probably feels a personal threat from the UK. I'd also say that the levels of immigration is a fairly large immediate threat to my way of life and the request by a majority to have that reduced has been ignored for years.

I can imagine he knew exactly how the speech would be received. That was most likely the point.

Off the top of my head: sending police around to social media users for content that is not illegal, non crime hate incidents, arresting someone for standing and silently praying, a man last week arrested for burning a quaran, labour supposedly adopting a definition of Islamophobia containing 'perceived Muslimness' which many people believe amounts to a blasphemy law, the online safety act that propose the removal of content deemed 'legal but harmful'. I'm sure there's more but that will do for starters.

I'm sure it's not all about the latter but enough of it is that it's a problem. Even where it's the former, that could very well be misguided anger at innocent victims. I think of things like Charlie Hebdo, the Swedish bloke killed for burning a quaran recently, Salman Rushdie and I can't see how any of that can be attributed to frustration about the treatment of 'their people'. Nonetheless whatever the motive, the effect is the same.

If its so staggeringly obvious, I'm surprised by the opposition and inventive thrown at those who have previously pointed that out.

Russia definitely have a problem with free speech. So do we. I'd say it's more important for the West to keep the values that make them the best places to live in the world rather than Russia who has never had freedom.

Precisely this. It's never ever been about all Muslims. I have Muslims in my family who are wonderful people. The problem is that the Islamic faith for whatever reason has a comparatively high number of nutters who follow it and it has some backwards views that some of its followers slavishly follow.

@sadoldgitI

Anyone else listen to the speech by JD Vance? His general points about clamping down on freedom of speech, paying more for defence and leaders not listening to the public about immigration were well made I thought and very difficult to dispute.

When it turns out that it was a terrorist act, will you return on this thread and apologise?

#bekind

Wow she got sacked by hbos. She may cling on but this has got to be difficult to survive.

You could say it for another three years. It doesn't make it less true as by far the most likely scenario.

The method of killing is also a fact. Probably best not responding to me then about "what the issue was previously" when that wasn't what the issue was previously at all. Method of criminality can in some cases be as much of an indicator as nationality that's just a fact and you can't view an assumption drawn from one as reasonable yet see an assumption drawn from the other as bigoted. As usual you make little logical sense.

In many cases, the actions of the perpetrator and how the offence is committed is as much a decent indicator of the motives as their nationality. You've previously stated that when the facts are known they can be discussed. So have you changed your stance on when a reasonable assumption can be made? You've also accused me of being too quick to blame Muslims. Is it now acceptable to state that this is more likely than not to have been a radical Islamist attack?

Heaven forbid that you make a prediction based on what the most likely motive is.

It certainly doesn't help with the perception that most of them are largely the same type of people. Politicians I mean.

Indeed. Why on earth should someone lose their job over a random accusation? Suspend them if necessary.

Israel currently demanding that Hamas release their hostages as agreed by Saturday or they will resume fighting. As usual, the ball is in Hamas' court regarding what happens next.

What a bizarre post to respond to after 6 months.

U secretary general has told Hamas to proceed with the deal as planned.

Indeed very unfortunate but sadly not unsurprising.