A British blunder
British Home Secretary Jacqi Smith appears to be catching flak in London for including American radio ranter Michael Savage on her banned list, along with violent extremists.
"Another humiliating gaffe for the Home Secretary," the Daily Mail says.
From The Times of London in regard to Savage's threat to sue for defamation:
"A leading media lawyer said today that lawyers would be 'falling over themselves' to offer their services.
"Mark Stephens, of the London law firm Finers Stephens Innocent, said: 'He would seem to have a very good case. The people on the list who have been banned are supposed to be advocating extreme violence and so to put him into that category is clearly defamatory.
" 'His views, such as those on homosexuals, may be offensive but that is another thing entirely. The Home Secretary appears not to have appreciated the difference between tolerance and defamation.'
"Mr Stephens added that he thought that Mr Weiner could hope to obtain about £200,000 in damages, adding that this should be paid by the Home Secretary personally, not by the Government."
Apparently, Smith was already in political trouble.
Savage is frequently offensive and usually rude and obnoxious. I'm not sure, however, what threat he would pose to Great Britain if he were allowed to visit. Many Brits seem to wonder, too.
The government there can choose to keep out whom it wants, but it will only hurt itself if it becomes too exclusive or puts commentary in the same category as violence.
Comments (5)
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"I'm not sure, however, what threat he would pose to Great Britain if he were allowed to visit."
As I'm sure you're aware Doug, Britain is a powder keg these days. Economic stagnation (like everywhere else) has forced a lot of people out of their jobs, and the recent strike to protest foreign contract laborers has given run-of-the-mill Brits someone to blame for their problems.
You let someone like this come into your country and speak (note: this site is likely to be monitored by Homeland Security, so don't click it if you're a skeerdy cat)
http://www.stormfront.org/forum/showthread.php?t=503156
and you might be smoking next to that powder keg.
Posted on May 7, 2009 11:09 AM
What's your point about Michael Savage? Are the Brits justified in keeping him out?
Has he provoked violence in this country (other than people kicking their radios)?
I'm guessing London will remove him from this list very soon.
Posted on May 7, 2009 11:25 AM
British Home Secretary Jacqi Smith appears to be catching flak in London for including American radio ranter Michael Savage on her banned list, along with violent extremists.* Doug
Big Deal? Who cares? 7 months ago Mr Savage wanted Homeland Security to lock up Presidental candiate Ron Paul supporters for being terrorists....Nothing like being ban from one diverse country from another diverse country.....
" Michael Savage! America's 2 nd Talk Show Host without a country" * Arron Burr on tourism in England
Posted on May 7, 2009 11:56 AM
"What's your point about Michael Savage? Are the Brits justified in keeping him out?"
Being granted a visa to visit another country is a privilege, not a right. The UK can deny that privilege to pretty much anyone they want to, just like the U.S. does. Up to and including the rerouting of an international flight that wasn't even going to land in the U.S., because a journalist on our extensive "No Fly" list was aboard:
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/271601#tab=comments&sc=0&contribute=&local=
Frankly, the outrage over this Michael Savage thing reeks of American Exceptionalism. As if our Constitutional rights are portable, and should be honored wherever we go in the world. If Savage was allowed entry to the U.K., but then denied permission to speak publicly to a group, we would be just as outraged (if not more), and just as wrong.
Posted on May 7, 2009 12:55 PM
Hey folks, look around you. We already have a Homeland Security Secretary very close in philosophy to Ms. Smith.
We have a political party that wants to stifle dissent by trying to shut down talk radio.
We have a president who apparently threatened to destroy a Hege Fund that had the temerity to want to be repaid more than 29 cents on the dollar for their investment in chrysler, if they refused to cave and take a financial beating, which they eventually did.
Wake up people!
Posted on May 7, 2009 12:55 PM