Should we be following Turkey?

From: David Quarrie, Lynden Way, Holgate, York.

THERE have been large scale public protests and demonstrations in the Turkish cities of Istanbul and Ankara and various reasons have been stated as to why this is taking place.

Some have tried to call it another “Arab Spring”, while others see it as a religious conflict (Sunni versus Shi’a), and others say it is a move to stop Turkey losing her secular status and becoming more Islamic.

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The current Turkish government has been in power for over 10 years, and the Turkish people, especially their middle class, resent the ever more authoritarian policies, and they feel unheard, not represented, unable to speak their thoughts without fear. They are being obliged to accept opinions of others which they do not share, especially as regards the dismantling of long established traditions, customs and way of life. A similar thing has been happening in Sweden, with people out in the streets saying basically to their government that “enough is enough”.

I firmly believe that almost exactly the same feelings exist in many parts of “Middle England”.

Regrettably we tend to keep our thoughts bottled up, whereas others are much more openly expressive. We have a coalition Government which seems only to excel at infuriating more and more of us.

From: John Watson, Hutton Hill, Leyburn, North Yorkshire.

DAVID Cameron has, at last, decided to declare war on extremist preachers. Not before time! This country has for centuries, since the Romans and the Vikings, survived attacks from sea and air and have still been able to maintain our freedom and independence. Until now! Why do we have to open our shores to such individuals whose dirty deeds have been manifest last week on the streets of London?

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A young father was slaughtered because he was a representative of the British Army whose peace-keeping activities over the last 20 years mostly included protecting and saving lives of Muslims in Bosnia, Iraq and Afghanistan.

I am sure most of the Muslim fraternity in the country are peace-loving and only want to settle and make the most of living in their new home.

On the other hand any who are charged and convicted of aggression against the state – their state – should be deported immediately. Never mind the Human Rights brigade, Europe, or the liberal elite.

From: Aled Jones, Mount Crescent, Bridlington.

WHAT on earth does the Establishment think it’s doing on creating this “Multi-cultural Britain”? Islamic terrorists who hate everything we stand for are easily acquiring citizenship of a once stably homogenous society.

Liberals and censorship

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From: Jack Brown, Lamb Lane, Monk Bretton, Barnsley, South Yorkshire.

NICK Clegg (Yorkshire Post, May 30) debates censorship issues as if Parliament was still as principled as it was when John Stuart Mill inspired legislation with On Liberty.

Clegg and his party rode with Labour’s politically correct cavalry as it trampled Mill’s unanswerable arguments against censorship into the dust. Ironically, the only sect Mill considered denying freedom of speech was the “Musselmans”.

Every day of the week British citizens are either charged with hatred or have sentences increased because of hatred while pseudo-liberals defend Muslim preachers of hate.

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When the Chief Constable of South Yorkshire began criminal libel proceedings against a Barnsley independent newspaper in the 1970s, nobody could remember its last usage.

Today, although legal suppression of speech is worse than it was after the Napoleonic Wars, no newspaper dares to run the headline “Get Stuffed Leveson”. Where is the free press whose martyrs like Peter Finnerty, John and Leigh Hunt, Henry White, Daniel Heaton, Daniel Lovell and Thomas Wooler suffered imprisonment rather than obey laws that would silence them? Where is the public outrage when a tweeter or a blogger is prosecuted for simply saying what he thinks?

Mill’s warning about suppression of speech – that you cannot suppress thought and if you suppress the media for thought you cannot argue against – is the foundation of political education.

As a leader of the Barnsley Labour Party, I threw Enoch Powell’s Tiber speech onto a college table and said: “Find me a racist remark in that.” Direct action of the mosque graffiti and firebomb variety is only the beginning of frustrated reaction against suppression of oral and literary expression of thought.

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A true liberal would not silence believers of any kind – including today’s musselmans, sodophobes (change that to homophobes and you are as bad as them), racists and misogynists – he’d have them all say what they think and join in the arguments.

Safer driving?

From: Terry Duncan, Greame Road, Bridlington.

MY experience of motorway driving, especially on the M1, is that it is more dangerous to weave in and out, from the centre lane to the inner lane, usually chock a block with lorries from many countries, many of which are fitted with speed restrictors.

I feel happier sticking to the central lane and let those who travel at high speed to pass me by flying along the third lane, 
and that includes white van drivers.

The only time I use the third lane, is if there is some kind of hold-up, or an old geezer creeping along the road at 40mph.