Brian Eno - Idiot

A year or two back the great Aaronovitch was worrying about the consequences of a terrorist strike.

On the war against terror I fear a descent into arbitrary government, and I also fear the popular consequences were a large-scale terrorist outrage to happen here in Britain. Do you remember how the David Copeland bombs a few years back provoked Ken Livingstone to call for the banning of far-right political parties? Can you imagine what a lorry-load of explosives in a London cinema, driven there by a Muslim from Derby, would lead to?

Tony Blair has said that nothing could have prevented Thursdays attacks. I guess that depends where you start from. I'm sure the Government is crossing its fingers that the bus bomb wasn't a suicide bomber. That wouldn't be good for community relations or bus travel, to put it mildly.

All major Muslim organisations have condemned the attacks, even the Muslim Association of Britain - whether their proposed vigil will turn into an anti-war demo we shall see. And while I'm sure it's no coincidence that the poor family of Shahara Islam featured prominently on BBC news, one's heart can't but go out to all those people searching for loved ones. Bombs don't discriminate. And the response of Londoners of all classes, creeds and colours has been wonderful - as defiantly British as anyone could want.

So into this scene of unity in the face of terror welcome the musician Brian Eno and his size twelves. The very first question on Radio 4's Question Time today was 'are we reaping what we have sown ?' - and the questioner wasn't talking about mass immigration.

Step forward Brian. Not only are we reaping in Iraq, but apparently Bush and Blair's Crusader Armies have alienated young British Muslims, who may not necessarily be bombers themselves, but will apparently, like the people of the Falls or Crossmaglen, keep schtum about terrorists in their midst out of a sense of solidarity against the Great Satan and his poodle.

My jaw hit the floor. I wonder if he realised what he was saying ? Here are the great and the good panicking about Islamophobia, every Muslim leader condemning the blasts - and to make his (anti-US) point he's quite happy to tar large numbers of young British Muslims with complicity in terror.

Who needs the BNP (whose view is as usual identical with Respect/SWP, that we've been punished for "our unpopular involvement in Bush’s war to secure Iraq’s oil supplies") with liberals like Brian ?

UPDATE - Pub Philosopher finds more idiots.