FASCIST! Spiked wrongly accused of being part of a ‘broad trend towards (far) right-wing politics’
No. Spiked magazine is not part of a “broad trend towards (far) right wing politics”. If you believe it is, you don’t understand what far-right wing politics is. Nazism isn’t about allowing everyone to speak and to be heard, championing free speech with no ‘buts’ and respect for the individual. Nazism champions fear. It is the opposite of courage, a moral force we should value most.
And on Spiked, open discussion rules. So can we talk about the lockdown? It invites a myriad questions, perhaps the biggest for many of us being when schools and colleges will reopen? But the Independent used Spiked!, a magazine I know well, to illustrate the rise of how the “libertarian right” are getting it wrong over Covid-19. The article notes:
With his contrarianism and pseudo-radicalism, as if a global pandemic was nothing but another opportunity to exploit, Brendan O’Neill, editor of Spiked!, condemned the closing of pubs and called for “Dissent in a time of Covid”, criticising the “chilling” and “dangerous” “witch-hunting of those who criticise the response to coronavirus”. This led to a backlash from mainstream commentators and even his fellow travellers.
O’Neill and Spiked! are only marginal examples of this reaction – albeit with disproportionate access to popular platforms and attention – operating as part of a broader trend towards (far) right-wing politics.
Brendan wasn’t having it. He wrote this to his followers on Facebook:
Posted: 8th, May 2020 | In: News Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
