The view from the bus 88

In Britain, in its pre-Islamized days,when it was thought necessary by intellectuals to take the opinions of the “common man” into account, they would allude to him as “the man on the Clapham omnibus”. That man, considering that he lived in the London district of Clapham, which is on the wrong side of the river (though over the last 30 years or so very much gentrified), and considering further that he was not transporting himself in a car, was lower middle-class in the calculation of the always class-conscious Briton. But his opinions could be held to be representative of a wider band of the class spectrum, from middle-middle-class to working-class.

Tommy Robinson, a working-class Englishman, is the leader of the English Defence League. Apparently he speaks for the many tens of thousands of Britons who show their approval of his organization by joining it. At the moment, though he lives (we suppose) further to the east of London, he is our man on the Clapham omnibus.

The organization he leads is called “far -right” and “fascist” by its critics.

If they are what we would call fascist – authoritarian collectivists – we are their opposites, our highest value being individual freedom.

We find, however, that we do not disagree with the view he expresses in these two videos on the issue of Islam, its jihad, the actions Muslims are taking in Britain (and elsewhere) in waging their jihad, the weakness of government and police in dealing with it, and even with the recommendations he makes for what should be done about it. Though we might word our arguments differently, and advocate other, more considered remedies, they would be in addition to those he demands, not instead of them.

The videos provide an opportunity for viewers to judge the organization and its leader, at least on this issue, for themselves.