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| London is not cowed ~ neither should we be |
On Wednesday, 23 March 2017, the Scottish Parliament was debating whether to seek a second referendum on independence, with the vote due to take place at 5.30pm that day. At approximately 2:40pm the same day, the driver of a car in London deliberately mounted the pavement on Westminster Bridge, mowing down pedestrians, before crashing through railings guarding the Houses of Parliament. He then jumped out of the car, stabbed an unarmed police officer, and ran towards a Parliament cafe before being shot by undercover armed police officers.
Two pedestrians and the police officer, Police Constable Keith Palmer, died of their injuries. The attacker later died of gunshot wounds. 40 others were injured.
As news of the attack reached Edinburgh, the decision was taken to suspend business in the Scottish Parliament for the day. It had been decided earlier that the debate would continue, however Presiding Officer Ken Macintosh took the decision to suspend the sitting, stating "The fact that our sister parliament has had a serious incident is affecting this particular debate."
SNP Brexit Minister Mike Russell MSP stated "Any attacks on a parliament are an attack on all democracies. It looks very serious indeed, so it's the right thing to do and I think people would have expected it to happen."
Whilst this was the prevailing view in Holyrood, there were a few MSPs thought that the debate should have continued and that suspending parliament was giving in to terrorism. There have also been some individuals saying as much on social media, and even some callously suggesting that what happens in Westminster was of no consequence.
Mike Russell hit the nail on the head; it was the right thing to do.
Whilst we Scots Nats wish to sever our ties with Westminster, no-one can deny that it is a democratic parliament. As such any attack upon Westminster is an attack upon democracy and an attack upon decent-minded people across the UK, and around the world.
Okay, I don't see Westminster as the mother of parliaments - and if it is, it's just a bloody shame they never found out who the father was. But it is a semblance of democracy, and in a world where the vast majority of countries do not have democracy, that makes it all the more important. Let us also not forget that when we talk of Westminster, we talk of those who serve there. That includes 59 Scottish constituency MPs, 56 of whom represent the SNP - Alex Salmond was the first MP to speak to LBC Radio about the attack shortly after it happened. There are also MPs of Scottish birth or background who represent English constituencies, Scots lords, Scots civil servants and other workers in the Palace of Westminster, Scots police officers who have taken up careers in the Metropolitan Police, and of course the enormous number of Scots who live in London.
Even the most ardent Scots Nat who wanted business to continue in Holyrood cannot deny that what happens in Westminster, London, or England as a whole, affects us all. Many of us have friends in England, many indeed have family.
Not that the fact that there were Scots caught up in the attack should be the only driving factor. There were many nationalities and ethnicities caught up in the attack. A group of French schoolchildren were on Westminster Bridge, three of whom were injured. Of the two dead pedestrians, one was a Spanish school teacher and mother of two, Aysha Frade. The other was 53-year-old American Kurt Cochran, in London to celebrate his 25th wedding anniversary. His wife is in hospital in a critical condition. London truly is a metropolitan city where many cultures meet, visit, and live, and that is why an attack upon London is indeed an attack upon the world.
Putting it all together then, it was only fitting that the Scottish Parliament should be suspended. It was indeed "the right thing to do", to show solidarity with and respect to the peoples of London and of the world caught up in this atrocious act.
The First Minister later stated "My thoughts, as I'm sure the thoughts of everybody in Scotland tonight, are with people caught up in this dreadful event. My condolences in particular go to those who've lost loved ones. My thoughts are with those who've sustained injuries and we all feel a sense of solidarity with the people of London tonight."
As ever, Nicola Sturgeon speaks with the values which so many of us in Scotland, and across the world, share.
But doing the right thing goes further than showing respect and compassion for victims of terror attacks. It is about respecting others. Even as the story was breaking, social media was ablaze with accusations of Islamist attacks, fingers being pointed at the Islamic faith, and even some seeing it as an opportunity to blame immigration and refugees. Notice there how it very quickly went from blaming one particular interpretation of a religion, to blaming that religion, to blaming individuals. I saw one comment on Facebook stating "This will soon come to every street in Europe." Yeah. I'm really scared that a Muslim is going to crash a car through my garden fence and try to stab me.
Yes, we now know was Muslim who had previously been investigated by MI5, but was currently not under investigation. We also know that eight people have been arrested. It is also now reported that Islamic State are claiming responsibility for the attack. And of course, the bigots are jumping on this immediately. Only a few points here; we also know that the assailant was British-born, arrest does not equal complicity in a country where you are innocent until proven guilty, and IS now have their backs so firmly against the wall, and are on the brink of being wiped out, that they are obviously going to claim responsibility for any and all attacks.
If we take every news report of IS claiming responsibility for every 'terror' attack, then we play right into the hands of the terrorists. But exactly the same happens when we pay any attention to the extreme right screaming about Muslim "immigrants" and "refugees" (even if they happen to be British-born - the bigots never make any distinction between the three). They too are trying to stir up fear and hatred of Muslims, and when they do so, they are the very ones who are abetting terrorism. Are they not attempting to strike terror into people and is that not the very definition of terrorism? Saying things like it will be on every street in Europe merely abets the terrorists. Refusing to be bullied by extremists, whether they be Islamists, the far-right, or of any stripe is the right thing to do.
The moment we fear and hate Muslims, or any other group within society, the terrorists have won. Certainly, we can question and criticise Islam. It is worthy of criticism - are as all religious faiths and cultures. But when we listen to the hyperbole of hateful minds, then we do both the extreme right and the terrorists a favour. I happen to extremely dislike a young man who works in his parent's shop near me. I don't dislike him because he is a Muslim, but rather because he's a cheeky, arrogant git who needs a bloody good slap. His mum and dad by comparison are lovely people whom I have tons of respect for. I often wonder how their son turned out to be such a prick. Probably because he's so westernised.
It is a symbol of any civilised society that we respect all races, cultures, ethnicities, and faiths - even if we disagree strongly with them. And trust me, as an atheist, I have severe reservations about Islam, just as I have of all faiths. Tolerance and respect are what make us decent human beings. When the paramedics arrived on the scene at Westminster, one crew tried to save the life of PC Palmer ~ and the other crew tried to revive the attacker. Why? Because they are civilised; because it is the right thing to do.
As I write this, just over 24 hours after the attack, there are also some people trying to make political capital out of this attack, and some frankly disgusting internet trolls making sick comments about the attack, about Muslims, and even some wishing it had been an attack upon Nicola Sturgeon. Rise above it. This is not a time for anyone to play politics, nor is it a joke, nor a time to react to brain-dead knuckledraggers. Let the Daily Express try to claim on SNP MSP groaned when parliament was suspended. Let the trolls make their sick comments. Leave the loopy conspiracists to claim it was a "False Flag" attack. But if we react to any of that, then we are giving them exactly what they want.
Walk away from it, in the knowledge that you are better than that, and you will not sully your respect for those maimed and killed in an atrocious act by rising to their bait.
But most of all walk away from it ~ because it is the right thing to do.
Two pedestrians and the police officer, Police Constable Keith Palmer, died of their injuries. The attacker later died of gunshot wounds. 40 others were injured.
As news of the attack reached Edinburgh, the decision was taken to suspend business in the Scottish Parliament for the day. It had been decided earlier that the debate would continue, however Presiding Officer Ken Macintosh took the decision to suspend the sitting, stating "The fact that our sister parliament has had a serious incident is affecting this particular debate."
SNP Brexit Minister Mike Russell MSP stated "Any attacks on a parliament are an attack on all democracies. It looks very serious indeed, so it's the right thing to do and I think people would have expected it to happen."
Whilst this was the prevailing view in Holyrood, there were a few MSPs thought that the debate should have continued and that suspending parliament was giving in to terrorism. There have also been some individuals saying as much on social media, and even some callously suggesting that what happens in Westminster was of no consequence.
Mike Russell hit the nail on the head; it was the right thing to do.
Whilst we Scots Nats wish to sever our ties with Westminster, no-one can deny that it is a democratic parliament. As such any attack upon Westminster is an attack upon democracy and an attack upon decent-minded people across the UK, and around the world.
Okay, I don't see Westminster as the mother of parliaments - and if it is, it's just a bloody shame they never found out who the father was. But it is a semblance of democracy, and in a world where the vast majority of countries do not have democracy, that makes it all the more important. Let us also not forget that when we talk of Westminster, we talk of those who serve there. That includes 59 Scottish constituency MPs, 56 of whom represent the SNP - Alex Salmond was the first MP to speak to LBC Radio about the attack shortly after it happened. There are also MPs of Scottish birth or background who represent English constituencies, Scots lords, Scots civil servants and other workers in the Palace of Westminster, Scots police officers who have taken up careers in the Metropolitan Police, and of course the enormous number of Scots who live in London.
Even the most ardent Scots Nat who wanted business to continue in Holyrood cannot deny that what happens in Westminster, London, or England as a whole, affects us all. Many of us have friends in England, many indeed have family.
Not that the fact that there were Scots caught up in the attack should be the only driving factor. There were many nationalities and ethnicities caught up in the attack. A group of French schoolchildren were on Westminster Bridge, three of whom were injured. Of the two dead pedestrians, one was a Spanish school teacher and mother of two, Aysha Frade. The other was 53-year-old American Kurt Cochran, in London to celebrate his 25th wedding anniversary. His wife is in hospital in a critical condition. London truly is a metropolitan city where many cultures meet, visit, and live, and that is why an attack upon London is indeed an attack upon the world.
Putting it all together then, it was only fitting that the Scottish Parliament should be suspended. It was indeed "the right thing to do", to show solidarity with and respect to the peoples of London and of the world caught up in this atrocious act.
The First Minister later stated "My thoughts, as I'm sure the thoughts of everybody in Scotland tonight, are with people caught up in this dreadful event. My condolences in particular go to those who've lost loved ones. My thoughts are with those who've sustained injuries and we all feel a sense of solidarity with the people of London tonight."
As ever, Nicola Sturgeon speaks with the values which so many of us in Scotland, and across the world, share.
But doing the right thing goes further than showing respect and compassion for victims of terror attacks. It is about respecting others. Even as the story was breaking, social media was ablaze with accusations of Islamist attacks, fingers being pointed at the Islamic faith, and even some seeing it as an opportunity to blame immigration and refugees. Notice there how it very quickly went from blaming one particular interpretation of a religion, to blaming that religion, to blaming individuals. I saw one comment on Facebook stating "This will soon come to every street in Europe." Yeah. I'm really scared that a Muslim is going to crash a car through my garden fence and try to stab me.
Yes, we now know was Muslim who had previously been investigated by MI5, but was currently not under investigation. We also know that eight people have been arrested. It is also now reported that Islamic State are claiming responsibility for the attack. And of course, the bigots are jumping on this immediately. Only a few points here; we also know that the assailant was British-born, arrest does not equal complicity in a country where you are innocent until proven guilty, and IS now have their backs so firmly against the wall, and are on the brink of being wiped out, that they are obviously going to claim responsibility for any and all attacks.
If we take every news report of IS claiming responsibility for every 'terror' attack, then we play right into the hands of the terrorists. But exactly the same happens when we pay any attention to the extreme right screaming about Muslim "immigrants" and "refugees" (even if they happen to be British-born - the bigots never make any distinction between the three). They too are trying to stir up fear and hatred of Muslims, and when they do so, they are the very ones who are abetting terrorism. Are they not attempting to strike terror into people and is that not the very definition of terrorism? Saying things like it will be on every street in Europe merely abets the terrorists. Refusing to be bullied by extremists, whether they be Islamists, the far-right, or of any stripe is the right thing to do.
The moment we fear and hate Muslims, or any other group within society, the terrorists have won. Certainly, we can question and criticise Islam. It is worthy of criticism - are as all religious faiths and cultures. But when we listen to the hyperbole of hateful minds, then we do both the extreme right and the terrorists a favour. I happen to extremely dislike a young man who works in his parent's shop near me. I don't dislike him because he is a Muslim, but rather because he's a cheeky, arrogant git who needs a bloody good slap. His mum and dad by comparison are lovely people whom I have tons of respect for. I often wonder how their son turned out to be such a prick. Probably because he's so westernised.
It is a symbol of any civilised society that we respect all races, cultures, ethnicities, and faiths - even if we disagree strongly with them. And trust me, as an atheist, I have severe reservations about Islam, just as I have of all faiths. Tolerance and respect are what make us decent human beings. When the paramedics arrived on the scene at Westminster, one crew tried to save the life of PC Palmer ~ and the other crew tried to revive the attacker. Why? Because they are civilised; because it is the right thing to do.
As I write this, just over 24 hours after the attack, there are also some people trying to make political capital out of this attack, and some frankly disgusting internet trolls making sick comments about the attack, about Muslims, and even some wishing it had been an attack upon Nicola Sturgeon. Rise above it. This is not a time for anyone to play politics, nor is it a joke, nor a time to react to brain-dead knuckledraggers. Let the Daily Express try to claim on SNP MSP groaned when parliament was suspended. Let the trolls make their sick comments. Leave the loopy conspiracists to claim it was a "False Flag" attack. But if we react to any of that, then we are giving them exactly what they want.
Walk away from it, in the knowledge that you are better than that, and you will not sully your respect for those maimed and killed in an atrocious act by rising to their bait.
But most of all walk away from it ~ because it is the right thing to do.
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