A lot of water has gone under the bridge since a little over a week ago I posted my “Waving the Flag for Britain” blog (see here), so a follow up is in order. Firstly, let me define terms …

According to Meta AI (about terms often used): “The terms “Far Left” and “Far Right” refer to extreme positions on the political spectrum. The Far Left is often associated with radical, socialist, or communist ideologies that advocate for significant changes to the existing social and economic order … The Far Right is associated with extreme conservative, nationalist, or authoritarian ideologies that prioritize tradition, order, and often, a strong sense of national identity … It’s worth noting that the terms “Far Left” and “Far Right” can be somewhat subjective and context-dependent, and different people may use them in different ways.”

Also, according to Meta AI (about something I remembered from my school days): “Newton’s three laws of motion are fundamental principles in physics that describe the relationship between a body and the forces acting upon it … Third Law: For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. When two objects interact, they apply forces to one another that are equal in magnitude and opposite in direction. These laws, formulated by Sir Isaac Newton, laid the foundation for classical mechanics and have had a profound impact on our understanding of the physical world.”

I am not Far Right (even though some would cast me in that mould because of my views, some of which I will get to) and I am definitely not Far Left. Neither am I near right (these days I support neither the Conservative nor the Reform Party) and nor am I near left (Labour, although, in its current trajectory, it is heading far leftward, and the two parties seeking to replace it – Lib Dems and Greens). I describe myself as a once upon a time a Labour supporter (mainly because I considered it to be best placed to tackle pressing social justice issues) before becoming a wannabe supporter, finding these days I am a can’t be one, for reasons discussed in recent blogs.

Now comes the awkward bit – trying to explain what my position is and how I came to reach it. This will come as little surprise to some who follow me in my blogging and forays into social media and to an extent it is back to rewinding the old gramophone record. Many have articulated my concerns and have done so far better than I could. For example, I have just checked out again this eighteen-minute video titled: “England Awakes: Operation Raise the Colours and How We Got Here” (click here) that powerfully makes many of the points I would like to make, and in doing so raising the sort of issues that get many of the flag raisers riled and thus resort to their flag raising. You don’t have to agree entirely, but Peter Whittle makes many good points, many of which I agree with. He begins by supporting “Operation Raise the Colours”, the spontaneous erection of British and English flags, partly as a reaction to all sorts of flags being waved other than the British one. He sees what is happening as something very positive, arguing it needs to be supported. It is a culmination of the sort of righteous indignation toward an institutionally treacherous state that has been building up over several years and is now coming to a head.

He lays the blame initially on the Blair government opening the doors to mass third world immigration and endorsing the doctrine of multi-culturalism where all cultures are viewed equally other than the British one. He cites many causes for concern: the Brexit reversal, the grooming gang scandal, further mass immigration, evidences of an anti-white backlash, pro-Palestinian marches with its incitement to hatred, the banning of British flags, two tier policing, in the light of the protests in the aftermath of the Southport killings, targeting “far right thuggery” and the likes of Peter Lynch and Lucy Connolly and effectively ignoring weapon wielding Muslims and those intent on violence and even worse hate speech, such as coming from Ricky Jones, housing of illegal immigrants in luxury hotels, often breaking the law with importunity, sending home children celebrating Britishness, elevating the foreign over the British and effectively trashing British history. In short, he sees wholesome Britishness being forcibly replaced by something worse and, as far as he could see, the people have had enough and are now unafraid to say so. As far as Whittle is concerned “Nations primarily exist to protect and advance the interests of its own people”.

As I watch from my wall at what is happening to my country along the lines I outline, I can see a lot of disquiet, frustration and anger, with various remedies suggested, starting with flag raising. We have been seeing of discontented people raising Union or St. George’s flags all over the country in order to vent their feelings, as well as those who are objecting to the objectors taking them down, often accusing the raisers as being far right, racist thugs and xenophobes. It is indicative of people seeing things not just drastically differently but who are keen to express how they felt, as evidenced by for and against comments, following my earlier posting, by people who I know and respect, expressing their views on social media. I confess to being somewhat taken aback that some of my sensible friends, who seeing things differently, oppose the flag raising.

Which brings me to Newton’s Third Law of Motion, which we are presently seeing being played out as people react to the harmful actions and inactions of those who run the country that are bringing the UK into the sorry state it now is in. If I were to use the analogy of this law and its application as it affects our nation, just as we may have gone too far one way in allowing the wrong thing, those of us who are opposed may be in danger of going too far the other way in trying to correct the wrongs that are apparent. There is some evidence of racial hatred, especially to new foreign arrivals, which is unnecessary and wrong. There may be some truth in the argument that the non affluent English working class, and especially men who see themselves as having no value as workers and fathers being preyed on by the Far Right and that their identity crisis, on top of a perception that Britain is going downhill, has led them to accept the scapegoating of minorities. The danger we face ranges from civil strife and war to anarchy and authoritarian crackdown, which is the very thing some of the flag raisers have objected to in the first place.

Other than change my Facebook profile, I have done little regarding the British flag. I have no intention in joining protests. I will continue to post my thoughts (e.g. this blog) but am more interested in being a peacemaker and a voice for moderation. I also want to focus on the gospel preaching, community activist, watchman on the wall remit I believe I need to be exercising. Operation Raise the Colours does not touch on all the issues facing my nation and the calamity I believe is in store for it. Like Jeremiah the prophet, the best I can do is warn, even if I am vilified and ignored. My counsel to any who have read this far is to put your trust in God, do what is right and love thy neighbour, including the folk you would rather not live here and the people contributing to the debacle that we are beginning to see unfold – all according to God’s sovereign purposes.