GOLLIWOGGS, CHRISTIANS AND A DUTCHMAN

Having been called a racist in the past by some contributors to 'Strife' I approach this topic with some trepidation and concern.

You may wonder why a Golliwog, Carol Thatcher, Nurse Caroline Petrie, school receptionist Jennie Cain and Dutch MP Geert Wilders are grouped together in this item. Let me explain.

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We have Florence Upton and her book 'The Adventure of Two Durch Dolls', printed in 1895 to thank for the Golliwog. Until the appearance of the revisionists and 'Thought Crime Police' who now stalk the United Kingdom, did a generation of British children ever entertain a rascist thought as they clutched their favourite 'Golly' or collect their Robertson's Jams badges? I doubt it. In fact we are now encouraged to buy ethnic dolls for our children that are in some cases as grotesque as rag doll Gollys have been described.

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So when Carol Thatcher, in a private conversation, describes wanting to hug a tennis player because he looks like a 'cuddly golliwog' the immediate interpretation is that she is racist and has made a racist comment. It clearly has not ocurred to Miss Jay Hunt, controller of BBC 1 that this might just be a middle-aged woman expressing a sexual attraction to a fine figure of a man.

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But of course that was not Carol Thatcher's 'crime'. Her crime as stated by Miss Hunt, when asked to justify Carol Thatcher's sacking, was that she had failed to be sufficiently contrite. For those who have read of the Chinese and North Korean 're-education' brainwashing techniques of the 1950's and 60's and have read Orwell and Huxley, you will recognise that BBC 1's Jay Hunt seems more like a Political Commissar or Thought Police Officer and that Carol Thatcher's 'real crime' is that she has been judged to harbour 'Thought Crime'.

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I am thoroughly disturbed that 'Thought Police' now lurk in every corner of this Land as illustrated by the treatment of NHS Nurse Caroline Petrie who wishes to offer prayer for patients and School Receptionist Jennie Cain who asks friends by e-mail to pray for staff at her school.

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The case of Geert Wilders is also illuminating. We once tolerated free speech, allowing citizens or anyone else for that matter, to speak their mind and have their say however controversial or even offensive their words may have been. There has always been one proviso, a view held and expressed should not foment violence. Our Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith issued a banning order against an EU citizen entitled to free movement in this country on the specious grounds that his film 'Fitna' ' would threaten community harmony and therefore public security'.

Geert Wilders, as a result, has had far more publicity concerning the film and his odd views.

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So, where do we go now that the principle of 'free speech' is no longer upheld? Down the dark corridors of repression and extremism perhaps.