Sailing close to the wind

weaviemx5

Well this is going stratospheric. I don't think there will be enough room on that bus. I'll book another.

Boris Johnson faces a backlash over his burka comments | Coffee House

The former foreign secretary used his weekly column to argue that the Danish government were wrong to bring in a burka ban. Johnson said that although he thought that it was frankly ‘absolutely ridiculous that people should choose to go around looking like letter boxes’, he was uncomfortable with the idea of the state telling a ‘free-born adult woman what she may or may not wear, in a public place, when she is simply minding her own business’.

Naz Shah the shadow equalities minister said Johnson’s ‘racist insults cannot be laughed off’ while David Lammy called Johnson a ‘pound-shop Donald Trump’, accusing him of "fanning the flames of Islamophobia".

Here is a knight's fork. Speak out against the Danish ban and you end up siding with Boris.

Sweden and football hooligans:

Swedish football ultras wear niqab to get around law banning face masks

"Thanks for the loophole," read one of the banners displayed by AIK supporters in their opening game of the season against BK Häcken.

The Swedish club's ultras have spotted a way to get around new anti-hooligan legislation banning face masks – by wearing niqabs.

Religious face coverings are exempt from the new law, which was passed in January and enacted in March under the guidance of Anders Ygeman, interior secretary in Sweden's government.

The AIK ultras' named Ygeman specifically in their  display of gratitude for the loophole, and held aloft other messages, reading: "Freedom for ultras is the ultimate goal.

"AIK's ultras mean well. We're now wearing masks for religious reasons."

UK

BBC NEWS | England | West Midlands | Probe after second burka robbery

Burka-clad robbers jailed for string of jewellery raids

Burka-clad gang who carried out £1.5m Selfridges heist plus nine other high-profile smash and grab raids are convicted | Daily Mail Online

France

France's burqa ban upheld by human rights court

Belgium

Court backs Belgian face veil ban

Enough there for several columns from Boris.

Just don't wear any vintage Hugo Boss uniforms. Then you really will be in trouble.

Sonic67

Should we dictate to everyone?  I find fat men wearing white vets and shorts in the summer pretty offensive so they should be banned too.  I also assume that you have no idea if those women wearing veils in the UK are forced to do that?

weaviemx5

Stating that people look like letterboxes or bank robbers is clearly what passes for, "debate on serious issues" on planet Johnson..

SteakAndCake

When I was 6, I was made to wear a tea towel on my head and pretend to be a shepherd in my school's nativity play.  I found the forced head covering and inevitable embarrassing photo deeply traumatising.   

I hope any new law will protect other children from this terrible injustice in the future.

Sonic67

Some clothing is banned. Or I'd like to think so.

WWII German Nazi Swastika T-shirt

                                                                               

Who buys that? Momentum?

Sonic67

And take that out? What was the article about?

weaviemx5

I think the people giving him attention are those who are over reacting to something which should be a non story in a free society.

I hope he doesn't apologise. I'd rather live in a country that values free speech over the right of people to wear absurd clothes without ridicule.

Sonic67

I've already said several times, it was an opinion piece about a law in Denmark.  Johnson could have criticised the law without directly ridiculing the individuals but you seem to be struggling to comprehend that idea, why?

weaviemx5

I have no problem with defending his stance on Denmark. You wouldn't say anything. Against it? approve of Denmark's law? How far does your defence of the EU go?

weaviemx5

What are you on about now, what's it got to do with the EU?

I've already said, numerous times, his article was perfectly valid as an opinion piece. He's perfectly within his rights to criticise a law/policy if he so wishes to.  Personally, as I've already said, I have no opinion either way on the law itself because I don't know enough about why it was introduced etc to comment.

As I've also already said, he didn't need to add the personal jibes about how people look unless he was deliberately trying to stoke those who have the same opinion, as you've already said yourself.  Please don't make me type this again and again, just read my previous posts if you need to ask again.