A Quick Drink With The Far Right by ‘Malatesta’
In 1999 or thereabouts, Combat 18 supremo Will Browning wrote a piece in his magazine Strikeforce called “They Ain’t Alright Just Because They’re White.” In it he categorised the various disreputable members of the far right scene, breaking them down into “Cowards, Inadequates and Losers, Faggots, Passing Trade, Sickos and Weirdos and Drunks.” It is an interesting and probably accurate depiction of many of those marginalised extremists who cling together in murky waters from someone who has “been involved in the so-called "right-wing" for a number of years.” It highlights problems that plague the BNP and other far right groups to this day. These groups give shelter to many of those on Browning’s list. There are many who are incapable of maintaining any sense of solidarity and endless factions occur over petty bickering, egos and alcoholism. For all their talk about Aryan supremacy the far right regularly fail to conform to any physical, moral or sexual supremacy and the criminal charges that accrue around members, councillors, would be MPs and leaders are plentiful.
‘Cowards’
The violent prowess of the far right attracts many to the ‘movement’ but it is more often assumed than asserted. The violence is also the reason many quit after having been bounced by anti-fascists once too often or having got too old to risk the more robust forms of physical disagreement. The popularity of the EDL is based more on the possibility of a fight with the cops or opposition than any legitimate political process. Many ‘hard-core’ fascists have proved to be not so hard when fronted by Red Action, AFA and Antifa. Of course, they always claim they were outnumbered but it is usually numbers that win most things be they football firms or fascist gatherings. The BNP changed their strategy after being booted off the streets by AFA subsequently pledging “no more meetings, marches, punch-ups” in 1994. The myth of Combat 18’s violence, much of it media parp, was dispelled by anti-fascist responses on occasions such as Hyde Park in 1989 and Waterloo station in 1992. C18 finally collapsed into bitterness and infighting following the murder of Chris Castle by Charlie Sargent and Martin Cross in 1997. As did the Wolf’s Hook White Brotherhood gang who were founded by ex-BNP members claiming “We are NOT interested in any 'in fighting' that sadly happens within some right wing organisations.” Then John Pakulski killed Mick Sanderson for canoodling with Pakulski’s semi-naked Mrs in 2006.
Fascism thrives on intimidation and control of the streets and we only have to look at the current tactics of Liverpool BNP against UAF to see this behaviour as endemic. Not all fascists see this positively: Joey Owens sees the LBNP’s behaviour as counter-productive and state-inspired. But there again he says that about a lot of people. And he is often right. The fascists do not understand the broad array of opposition against them, seeing everyone as simply ‘red’: Antifa, UAF and the SWP have very different tactics and reasons for opposing fascism. Often when the fascists harass UAF they think they are attacking Antifa which they are not.
Oswald Mosley once called fascism “this rough game” and violence is a continuous presence. Fascism has been and always will be met with physical anti-fascist opposition and vice versa so the internet is a good place for making anonymous threats: these do not need to be acted upon to be intimidating. However, with legal precedent following the Sheppard and Whittle jailings and the recent arrest of Trevor Hannington and ‘Wigan Mike’ Heaton for internet death threats the situation is now changing. These threats are too easy to make and cowardly by nature.
‘Inadequates & Losers’
British fascism has tended to attract people from the white working class who feel marginalised and neglected in favour of ‘immigrants’, be they Jews, Carribeans, Kenyan Asians, Pakistanis, Albanians, or the more ambiguous catch-all of ‘asylum seekers.’ Many see the BNP as a protest vote but they are most attractive to people who feel they have lost out to some form of ‘multicultural favouritism.’ Many white working class people feel alienated by the major political parties and one of the attraction of fascism is that it gives simple answers to complex questions: no jobs, no housing, global economic recession? Get rid of the ‘foreigners.’ Easy. But not realistic. However, there is a difference between hardcore Nazis and many BNP supporters who are not Nazi in the slightest. That there are a hardcore of ‘racial nationalists’, ‘national socialists’ or whatever in the BNP not in doubt and they are easily identifiable on the various web forums but it is disingenuous to claim all BNP supporters are hardcore Nazis - hardcore racists, maybe but that is not the same as a Nazi.
Justifying the holocaust or the extermination or mass murder of anyone is, to be blunt, psychotic but some of the more extreme Nazis enjoy the shock value of it. Hardcore Nazis like attention and one way of getting this is through fascist trappings, holocaust denial or violence. They have the mindset of the bully at school who needs the attention of the bullied in order to confirm their sense of worth and this method of attention keeps their low self-esteem at bay. For a while. John Tyndall wrote that far right extremists like C18 are “small time gang leaders, class warriors with huge chips on their shoulders, ambitious to build their own little back street empires.” The attention that the extremist pose affords gives frail and damaged egos a vital boost.
‘Passing Trade’
It is not uncommon for potential BNP members to become rapidly disillusioned by the extremity of some of its supporters. Although they may harbour nationalist sentiment the extremism of holocaust-deniers, rabid racists and overtly violent types is hard for some to stomach. Nick Griffin has been trying to modify this with the suits not boots strategy but as long as he surrounds himself with dodgy types like Tommy Williams, Dave Howard and other security guards a change in attire is going to do little to change perceptions. For others, the BNP is not extreme enough, especially with the recent constitution amendment case, and the recent trickle of supporters to the NF is a result of this.
‘Faggots’
Far right extremists are known for their homophobia and intolerance of anyone whose sexual behaviour does not conform to the missionary position but a quick look at sexual preference on the far right gives a different picture. One of the more enduring and entertaining rumours about Nick Griffin is that he had a gay relationship with ex-NF leader Martin Webster – which Webster made public in 1999. Some opponents claim he is being blackmailed by the secret services to ‘wreck’ the BNP with this. Others see this sexual ‘misadventure’ as opportunism in order to rise through the ranks of the far right. Webster himself was ousted by the NF for ‘homosexualism’ in the early 1980s. John Howgate of Salford BNP is also allegedly gay and there are undoubtedly others who are keeping it quiet.
More heterosexually, BNP top rankers Mark Collett and Dave Hannam have been accused of attempting to seduce 2 underage girls at the 2006 Blackpool jamboree and Collett had done this type of thing before in 2005. That Nazis and BNPers espouse one thing and do another is frequent, particularly in terms of violence, crime and drugs. A cursory look over Unity’s Crap Councillors list confirms this.
‘Sickos and Weirdos’
We can start with David Copeland the ‘London nail-bomber.’ Sexual inadequacy and fears of being gay helped project this shining Aryan example into urban terrorism. Even C18 claimed he was a ‘nutter.’ Copeland is not alone in his convictions: Tony Lecomber was convicted for explosives in 1985; Robert Cottage was jailed in 2005 for possession of explosives; David Tovey likewise; and the excellently named Lambertus Nieuwhof dabbled with them in South Africa. There are other BNP members who have been arrested for weapons and explosives offences.
David Myatt is both sick and weird: his far-right activities go back to the late 1960s, through the British Movement and into Combat 18. He was also close to Victor Norris, a convicted paedophile. Myatt was also a Satanist and has changed religion several times. He is currently a Muslim. This kind of boat jumping is common in fascism when people get dissatisfied with the tiny groupings and move to another one, start their own or drop out. This frequent realignment creates mistrust on the far right and accusations of being a splitter, a ‘red’ or an informant are rarely far behind. We only have to look at the cases of Eddie Morrison, currently dividing the NF, and Sid Williamson, alcoholics both, who are regularly accused of being all 3.
It is perhaps John Tyndall who should end this section: Tyndall was hardly likely to gain electoral success and it was unsurprising when the ‘modernising’ Nick Griffin took over. Tyndall was all too typical of the fascist extremist having served a jail sentence for racial offences and been photographed in Nazi uniform, which are hardly the things that create voter confidence. His prickly character and general unpleasant demeanour was completely out of step with contemporary politics.
‘Drunks’
We only have to look at the ‘non-violent, non-racist’ EDL to see that alcohol is the principle fuel of the far right, giving them sufficient ‘bottle’ to get leery with the cops whilst attempting to ‘stop Islamic Extremism.’ The far right tend to meet in ‘friendly’ pubs or under assumed names for fear of landlords booting them out or being attacked by the opposition. And it is this pub culture that drags them down time and again. In a rare bit of self-scrutiny, some members of NWN forum wrote the following about it:
“With booze in their veins they put their hands up and volunteer for all the activities, but when those activities come around you can count the activists on one hand … Plenty of old folk would have come to meetings, but why should they sit there and watch a bunch of idiots talk bollox while getting pissed … I booked a community center and paid with a BNP cheque. There was Tea, Coffee and a buffet, but arseholes still wanted to know where the off licence was.”
Others wrote:
“The members themselves vote to keep it in pubs. I remember one meeting in a hall that I put on with a full buffet, tea and coffee. The morons had to go out to the offy and came back with beer cans up their jumpers … To have better you have to want better, and all they want is to drink.”
Cheers!
Conclusion
So Will Browning’s assessment of the far right would appear to still pan out: there are still plenty of “Cowards, Inadequates and Losers, Faggots, Passing Trade, Sickos and Weirdos and Drunks” still on the scene. Yet again, it looks like the key enemies of the far-right are themselves.
‘Malatesta’
Comments
Hide the following 12 comments
TOO TRUE
30.12.2009 17:34
Alot of the people who are in the right wing would not cross the street for their 'beliefs' unless there was a beer in it for them and I am sure the security services/special branch have no trouble recruiting them when they dangle cash or the offer of a jail sentence dissappearing in front of them.
No morals, no principles, no loyalty and no idea. It is no wonder the right wing continues to implode.
Danny
erm...@ danny
31.12.2009 14:08
doesn't that make you "passing trade" according to the article you felt compelled to comment on? ya suspect mate. being an ex right winger is not something one should readily admit.
so what are you now? left wing? ultra left? wait, i bet you're an anarchist now, eh? how long will you stick with anarchism? until you read communism? or nihilism? or christianity?
i think you're lost mate. but even if ya not, id keep you're right wing history quiet if i were you.....
@ maletesta : a good article, one of the more articulate ones about BNP/NF/EDL that we've seen these past few months. thanks for the effort.....
fran
Very good but..........
31.12.2009 14:53
Like this shit.
eurelous
@Fran
31.12.2009 18:25
Anyway, rejecting someone because they are honest enough to come clean about their sketchy past is no way to create an inclusive movement dedicated to social change and working class struggle. Alot of white working class people are currently siding with the BNP, aswell as attending EDL demos. Not all of these people are scum of the Earth fascists but, instead, normal people that have been fucked over by politicians time and time again, and lets face it, we haven't seized the initative from this disillusionment with the political system but the BNP have, they are an easier option to turn to than the anarchist or left movements in Britian at this current time.
Yes, we should be cautious about who is involved and who knows what, but rejecting outright someone based upon previous political affiliations, BTW have you been an anarchist all your life?, isn't the way to go about things in a productive manner.
Hoods&Masks
@ hoodsandmasks
01.01.2010 02:05
fran
@Fran
01.01.2010 11:42
'Yes, we should be cautious about who is involved and who knows what.'
Hoods&Masks
@ hoodsandmasks
01.01.2010 13:56
i think you're trying to be TOO inclusive, which i think there is such a thing.....I want to be part of a movement that is really revolutionary, a mevement that would ultimately come to blows with come to blows with danny's "hard working, law abiding and decent " ex BNP chums....so what the fuck are you really saying? that we should let everyone who thinks they are an anarchist in to our circles, even when they admit there are "decent, law abiding and hard working" members of the BNP?
for fucks sake....im getting sick of people coming on here and making activists such as myself feel bad for having views that may exclude some people. well, here's some news, not everyone wants to join us for the same reasons, some want glory, or romanticism, or to hang out with hunt sabs or antifa or doss around in squats or drink shit beer at the sumac - BUT I WANT A FUCKING REVOLUTION, by any means at our disposal.
what do you think "decent, hard working and law abiding" danny wants to do? be all peaceful and law abiding and decent? revolutionaries cant be both at the same time.you probably dont know danny, so why stick up for him? let him argue for himself......and yes, in one shade or another, i have always been an anarchist. when i was a baby, i was on an anarchist commune protest site, and have never looked back.............
what about you,whats your "credentials"? not that that should be important, but yes, id like to know.
also, ok ok, i admit, again, that it is great when former bnp'ers come round to our ways "of thinking" and it would be silly of me to dis someone who wanted to genuinely be an anarchist, etc. but you dont know that danny is or wants to be, all he did was admit to being a bnp member before. i still think he's suspect, thats how i operate. if i met you, id probably not trust you either. thats how it goes for us real revolutionaries..........its built into our system, to always be suspect of people. like i said before, im sorry if that offends some of you.
But i still think its not clever to admit former BNP membership, however you want to call it.
fran
@Fran
01.01.2010 15:10
Where did I claim that the BNP membership is OK? C'mon! That's just a purposeful mischaracterisation of my remark- that people with politics shady pasts shouldn't be offcast out of hand for this. I also use the fact that atleast a few militant antifascists have been in or around far-right politics, but if you're as clued up and informed as you seem to be insinuatating, then you'd already know that. Also, not all of us come from radical/anarchist stock like you, and this has meant involvement with other groups all over the political spectrum for some individuals. So, it appears that alot of your objection seems to be based around a sheltered ghettoised bias.
Over inclusive? Did you not read my last post, which was a quote from my prior post?
'Yes, we should be cautious about who is involved and who knows what.'
Quite where you think that I'm saying that the anarchist movement should be overly inclusive, I don't know. What I'm saying is that anarchists/the left has failed to provide a decent alternative to working people- which is one of the main reasons for the grow of the far right, would you not agree? And to create this revolution you claim to want oh so badly, it's going to have to incorporate the disillusioned, which includes those currently turning to the likes of BNP.
You're right, I don't know Danny, nor do I have mates in the BNP and their ilk, but the reason I am making this arguement is actually create notion of effective antifascism, as it appears that not even many of the converted know how to do. Hopefully people will take note of the recent Antifa and FashWatch statements that have been spot on. So that is why I'm arguing, so we can be effective in combating fascism and creating a revolutionary anarchist movement.
What are my credentials? My credentials for what? But what I can say, which should be already known by 'real revolutionaries' like yourself, that if you wanted to get involved in various activities and were previously involved on the far right then it wouldn't remain a secret for long, whether you admitted to it or not.
Hoods&Masks
ex-Far Right guys
01.01.2010 15:18
It's also wonderful to hear first hand what people who were actually close to him think about that veritable Saint of British NeoNazism, Ian Stuart Donaldson. Remembered kindly by very few of those who actually knew him it seems! His memory does evoke appalled pity among the more charitable of his ex-associates.
...
@Georgie
01.01.2010 15:29
Have fun on your strolls in the New Year ;-)
Hoods&Masks
A Far Right Past
01.01.2010 20:35
Yes, there is always an element of danger in trusting people. The Far Right have cultivated connections for about a decade in getting people to trust them. Regardless of impeccable anarchist credentials, there is always a necessity to be careful - as Malatesta implies, Danny clarifies and Fran demonstrates.
For some in the Far Right there is nowhere to go. The EDL did not "arise spontaneously" from an indigenous anti-islamic sentiment but from the crisis that is developing in the Far Right. A crisis whereby the leaders no longer understand their followers. The kind of "Night of the Long Knives" that regularly provokes hilarity - where the "Enemy Within" is expunged and the "Long Struggle" is strengthened. There are too many people who have been lured to the right - even the so called centre right - by all sorts of bizzare circumstances.
Remember how the scandal of the BNP finances presaged the scandal of the MP's expenses? How for every attack on the BNP, a similar scandal arises in mainstream politics. It is not only the Far Right who have people with nowhere to go. The centre right has a large and growing enemy within. Unless people such as Fran are canny enough to consider which is more important, 2010 and beyond will only get harder for the left and for anarchists.
Nick Griffins Accountant
@hoodsandmasks
02.01.2010 17:38
Ultimately, i dont wanna argue. i accept i jumped on it maybe a bit heavy.
also, about credentials, that was bollocks, too. i just get shirty when people accuse me of sounding overly fascistic. i suppose, also, that "extremists" on all "sides" exist, and if the title was ever labeled at anyone, i would be the first to admit it could be me. On the other hand, im not afraid to say that i think we should over throw our enemies, the upper classes, the aristocrats, super, filthy rich and elitists, yet also the right wing will always need to be watched,as it were, to ensure no quick "rise", a rise that could see more police, soldiers and other "workers" being "wrongly" radicalised and more of a return, under the tories next year, of the "smash em now" copper tactics of old - regardless of ian tomlinsons murder. Not just those workers could be effected by a sudden "rise"in the right, by a rise i mean, street clashes away from the police, basically civil war without the tanks and troops, between the "people", but other workers could be effected and then its kids, students, youth with nowt to do and then lots more and more alienation for "ethnic groups" and more resentment and then eventually it will boil over and more violence against minorities will happen and so on and so forth. its happening all over europe and the world and recent television programmes, undercover ones at best, have shown blatant violent and extreme racist attacks in the UK. this we have known for ages, but we need to watch and be ready. look at greece, it was one police murder, this time of a "ultra left wing" young man next, in this country, it could be a "casual united" leader, or youth with EDL connections. thus causing more than scraps here and there and more open and vicious violence: what the state would call terrorism.
britain is no way as tolerant and open as people make out or think, and so that's why i trust no one, because we never know when anything big could erupt between different "sides". In Glasgow, its fucking sectarian war between gangs of youth and older football thugs. they only need a few horrible attacks to get them going. a priest was stabbed on his doorsteps not long back just for being a catholic. they have laws especially used in hundreds of cases when sectarianism gets on to the streets. there are literally hundreds of sectarian attacks in scotland every year. northern ireland violence is at its highest for years, the threat level high too. "extremism" on all "sides" is gearing up, we're all talking the fighting talk, but where's the actual battle field?
it will be the streets. eventually.
ok, suppose to sum up my ranting, im saying, be cautious, and when the time comes, if it ever comes, be fucking ready, because its former bnp that could swell their numbers, danny included.
and if im wrong, danny, well, im wrong.
Fran