Who pays for this nonsense...

A satirical take on events...

Saturday saw a thinly attended march (forty people tops) by an organisation called ‘United against Fascism’ in Southampton that apparently is propped up by the Southampton Trades Union Congress while an even more sparsely attended counter protest (a maximum of maybe 20 people) was staged by the even more off the wall ‘English Defence League’ whoever they might be. Apparently the catalyst for this stirring up of apathy is the decision of the BBC to invite swivel eyed nutter Nick Griffin to be a guest on this week's Question Time..
Doubtless as these demonstrations continue up and down the country their organisers will cry it is their democratic right to practise free speech and so it is.
That said, the forgotten issue of free speech is that someone has to pick up the tab of policing such pointless events and in the case of Saturday’s march it will be the hard pressed taxpayer.
As none of the marchers were in anything like the political mainstream, I wonder if it would be unreasonable for both the protesters and the counter- protesters to contribute towards the cost of their protection? After all organisers of shows and football matches have to pick up the tab for part of the cost of policing such public events.
Despite Labour’s disastrous asylum and immigration policies that have led to a loss of control of our borders, people trafficking and human misery on an almost unimaginable scale for those involved, race relations remain generally good in this city. Assorted zealots shouting at each other from opposite sides of the street (in every sense) hardly adds to the debate while residents have to pick up the cost of the participant’s self-indulgent protests.