I'm Not Seeing Any Sign Of It, Sadly....

...but then we all know they are inveterate liars, don't we? 

Racial and religious hate crime on public transport is on the rise according to new data obtained by the Guardian, as community groups report how people are restricting their daily journeys because they fear abuse or assault.

Courtney was travelling by train out of Glasgow city centre in August this year when an elderly woman boarded the carriage and sat opposite.“I didn’t think anything of it, I had my earphones in and was just choosing music,” says Courtney.

A black woman playing music with her earphones on? This tale starts out unlikely, and forges ahead into the even unlikelier... 

“Out of nowhere, she began making racist remarks, which got progressively louder after she put on a face mask. I stayed quiet because I was genuinely taken aback, you never expect that kind of hostility from a stranger.”

Throwing a bit of cloth over your mouth increases volume, eh? I never knew that! 

Like many twentysomethings, Courtney vlogs parts of her day for TikTok. “But what prompted me to start recording was when she took out a Dettol disinfectant spray and sprayed it in my direction. At that point, I felt I needed to document what was happening for my own safety.”

Are you allergic to antiseptic then?  

The woman eventually moved seats but continued to verbally harass Courtney, telling her: “Go back to your own country.” At this point, some fellow passengers stepped in to support her.

 And then the entire carriage tood up and gave her a standing ovation, I suppose? 

Akeela Ahmed, the chief executive of the British Muslim Trust, said the data echoes the stories her organisation are picking up all over the country and calls on local authorities, transport operators and community safety partners “to take urgent and meaningful action” 

 Such as? We don't find out, probably because there aren't any that come to mind.

“For visible Muslims in particular, the top deck of a bus or a half-empty train carriage can mean threatening behaviour, verbal abuse or even violent attack simply because of their faith,” said Ahmed. Attacks on public transport reported to the trust are “some of the most complex and distressing cases we have handled to date,” she adds. “Many Muslims now feel compelled to micro-analyse every movement, expression or gesture out of fear that it may be misinterpreted, recorded and weaponised against them.”

 Really? Doesn't seem to have inhibited the ones all over my social media feeds who never lose an opportunity to whine about Israel and how oppressed they are by being rexpected to obey the UK laws everyone else has to obey...

Dave Rich, the head of policy at the Community Safety Trust, said: “Although these figures are for all racial and religious hate crime on public transport, it is telling that the recent increase over the past two years aligns with the rise in antisemitic hate crime since the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October of that year. This is an ongoing problem that shows no signs of abating and it is vital that police, the CPS and transport operators are doing everything they can to catch and prosecute perpetrators of this hatred.”

Thsnk you for reminding us who has a legiimate complaint, Dave.  

Well, They Would Say That, Wouldn’t They?

To the 'Guardian' letter pages!

Recent press comment about the role of the attorney general, Richard Hermer, referred to in your article (‘Deeply unfair’: how attorney general became lightning rod for criticism of Starmer, 13 February), overlooks the principle that those representing parties in contentious litigation have the right, and indeed the duty, to put forward the case for their clients without fear or favour, so that, as and when appropriate, the court or tribunal can itself independently decide whether such a case is or is not valid. As the great British advocate and judge Norman Birkett once pointed out in a radio talk about the art of advocacy, it is essential that a lawyer’s presentation of the case for a client is not perceived as an expression of the lawyer’s personal opinions.

With decisions as perverse as this one being made by them, that's going to be pretty difficulty to maintain, isn't it?  

Not only would this be incorrect as a matter of fact, but it would also undermine our system of justice, under which the case for each side is fully and objectively presented before a decision is made by an impartial and independent tribunal.

Stories like this one aren't really helping are they? 

Those who state or imply that, in doing this, the lawyers are advancing their own personal opinions, are doing immense and untold damage, not only to our legal system but to society as a whole. They are undermining the rule of law and opening a path towards a society in which the public no longer trust the legal system or the individuals who participate in it.

So, who is saying this?  

Stephen Hockman KC and Sam Townend KC

Former chairs, Bar Council Christina Blacklaws and I Stephanie Boyce Former presidents, Law Society

Ah.  

The Word 'Could' Is Doing A Lot Of Heavy Lifting Here...

Foreigners who commit anti-Semitic or other hate crimes could lose their visas.

Ha ha ha ha ha ha! No, go on, tell us another!

Ministers are looking at stepping up deportations of hatemongers after a surge in incidents amid the Gaza conflict.

'Stepping up', eh? Well, that won't be too hard, since they've been dragging their feet for years.  

Home Office officials are able to weigh up evidence against individuals and boot them out even if they have not been convicted but their presence in this country is still judged to be 'not conducive to the public good'.

Able they may be, but the crucial question is, are they willing...? 

Labour's Sir Keir Starmer said there had been a 'disgusting rise' in anti-Semitism since the Hamas outrage along with an 'appalling surge' in Islamophobia with mosques 'forced to ramp up security'.

And that's just in your own ranks, eh? 

The New ‘Oooh, Me Back!’

Well, I'm sure this comes from rigorous medical research...

The findings come from 10,171 adults who completed questionnaires.

Oh. 

More work is needed to understand who is at risk, how bad it can be and what can be done about it, experts say.

No, I'd start with 'can it be proven to exist?' first, if I were you.  

The researchers behind the new work say the results provide validation for patients who experience problems like this. Investigator Prof Adrian Martineau, from Queen Mary University of London, told the BBC: "People really can feel very run down after a virus. It's not in their imagination and it is a recognised thing."

I wonder if it's recognised in HR departments?