Sadly the petition asking Nick Clegg to have Maajid Nawaz removed from the post of the Liberal Democrats’ Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Hamstead and Kilburn has a lot more signatures than the counter-petition – but then again it started sooner.
At any rate, the petition itself is interesting. Check it out:
I wish to raise a complaint against the Liberal Democrat PPC, Maajid Nawaz; candidate for the constituency of Hampstead and Kilburn.
The basis of the complaint is that Maajid Nawaz’s recent activity on social media outlets FaceBook and Twitter have been both disrespectful and offensive to the Muslim community in the UK and abroad and the Islamic faith at large. It is my assertion that through his posting and association with derogatory and disrespectful cartoons of the Prophet Jesus and Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon them) Maajid Nawaz is in breach of Article 3.1(b) of the Federal Constitution that states:
“As a Member of the Liberal Democrats, you must treat others with respect and must not bully, harass or intimidate any Party member, member of Party staff, member of Parliamentary staff, Party volunteer or member of the public. Such behaviour will be considered to be bringing the Party into disrepute.”
See what they did there? They draw up a bullying petition designed to bully, harass and intimidate Maajid Nawaz, and in so doing they accuse Maajid Nawaz of violating a rule against bullying, harassment and intimidation.
Ironic, isn’t it. Or something.
Maajid didn’t bully, harass or intimidate anyone. Not by any stretch of the imagination. Posting a cartoon image of two lightly-sketched guys saying hi to each other does not bully, harass or intimidate anyone. Those sketches would not be precise enough to use for a criminal identification, so how can they even be seriously considered “images” of the two long-dead men whose names or nicknames they share?
They can’t, and even if they could, Maajid’s posting them on Twitter still could not be considered bullying, harassment and intimidation. It’s blatantly, showily childish to treat them as such. It’s childish to take everything personally in that absurd way. It’s a recipe for making onlookers dislike Islam, while Maajid’s reasonableness – if only it could be allowed to flourish – is just the thing to persuade onlookers that Islam needn’t be petty and bad-tempered and involuted.
Bullying harassing intimidators want Nick Clegg to boot Maajid Nawaz. It would be laughable if it weren’t so revolting.
The problem I have with the current dispute in the Liberal Democrats over Maajid Nawaz is based on my political position. I agree that the anti Maajid Nawaz people are wrong in their attacks on said person but Anything which blows up the Lib-Dems and destroys the Conservative party poodle has to be a GOOD thing. I realise you may disagree Ophelia but you are not a UK citizen and do not live in the UK. Those of us who do, would in many cases, rate the Lib-Dem support of the Conservative Government to be a bigger problem than an intraparty dispute.
I’m with AndrewD. These past few years the Lib-Dems have revealed their true colours and guess what? They turned out to be bourgeois scum who, once in power, joined in with the Tory sport of sneering at the poor and placing their boots on the throats of the vulnerable. Frankly, a pox on them. Between this and groping Lord Rennard I hope this crap sinks them without a trace.
Third.
The Liberal Democrat party are a disgrace and I hope they implode long before Maajid Nawaz has any chance of standing in a general election.
It’s difficult to summon up support for someone who has decided to stand for that awful party, but I guess one must hold one’s nose in this case.
No, fair point, I did rather brutally ignore that whole aspect of the question, because being in the US I don’t have it forced on my attention all the time.
@ 1 & 2
I disagree,as a British citizen and someone who feels betrayed by the liberals.This is not (or should not be) a party political issue.
There are plenty of muslims who have the same attitude as Maajid Nawaz but the media ,especially the right wing press,are only interested in drawing attention to the more extreme muslims so they can supposedly prove their point about those foreigners*.
Nawaz should not be silenced,muslims are not the borg and we should care about this being reflected in the media.
*yes many are born in Britain but i don’t think this makes any difference to the daily mail/express.
Nos. 1 through 3.
Maybe one of you three gents could stop announcing your hatred of the Conservative coalition long enough to remind us of Labour’s fabulous track record on free speech while in office. You can start by explaining your Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006, which (in a great irony) your archaic, unelected, more religious, more conservative House of Lords had to modify in order to make it less of a threat to free speech on behalf of religion.
As far as I can see your entire political establishment is an enemy of the liberal tradition when it comes to free speech and a free press. You have nothing to stand tall about in this shameful spectacle.
I would add the entire mania for ‘hate speech’ laws is primarily a leftwing phenomenon, when the left began to diverge from traditional liberalism after the 1960’s.
tiko
“This is not (or should not be) a party political issue.”
followed closely by
“especially the right wing press”
Really? Practice what you preach. Yesterday I posted results from a poll of British Muslims by CBS News that showed in 2006:
Add to that Nawaz’s own comment that he is a “minority of a minority” and your accusations of xenophobia (“foreigners”) is just empty denial. Stow the Daily Mail/EDL rhetoric and deal with reality.
@7
There is such a thing as a significant minority and I think 22% is one.
I’m not saying the press stop reporting on extremism (there is a difference though between reporting and stirring up hatred) but those who express views like Nawaz or those who are against death threats and pro free speech should be supported and given more coverage.
[Name of your deity of choice, each syllable drawn out and tongue-twisted]!
So neither the UK nor the US have a party worth giving the time of day to now?
If the Liberal Democrats truly cared about liberal or democratic values their support of Maajid Nawaz would not even be in question. However, being politicians they will likely ditch him for the sake of garnering the votes of a few angry Muslims.
It’s the political status quo, principles and practicality are tossed aside in favour of cynical scrounging for votes and funds and party-manoeuvring.
And I see some commenters here doing the same thing. Hate the LibDems and Tories all you want, I know I do. But standing aside or cheer on as religious bullies turn on a man who is trying to stand up for secular values, even against the rage of his own “brothers and sisters”, is just as low as anything they do in Westminster or Washington DC.
So neither the UK nor the US have a party worth giving the time of day to now?
No; they are both gerrymandered fake democracies run by corporate oligarchs.
The corrupt, right wing, elitist, hypocritical liars of Westminster are the reason Scots are having an independence referendum. The Lib Dems jumping into bed with the Tories killed the idea of a UK government for us up here. Westminster is for London alone.