Craig Online

The European Elections are coming up and so I have the usual batch of political leaflets through the door. However, this time they come with a (worrying) twist - the BNP (British National Party) have started leafleting. Of course I'm sure I could have prevented receiving a leaflet by putting a sign up 'Scottish Lives Here', but hindsight is a great thing.

Actually, I wish I had been around to challenge the people delivering the leaflets. I once did that with someone distributing Scottish Nationalist Party leaflets (quote "Nationalism - wasn't that popular in the 1930's ?").

Reading through the BNP leaflet a few days ago I was pretty shocked at how targeted the campaign was- the usual 'taking British jobs away', mentioning past wars, and such usual 'justifications' (nonsense of course). The use of prominent people in the community like doctors, elderly, military is an example of how things are targeted.. However, I can't help feeling that this sort of targeted marketing resonates with a lot of people who don't have the common sense to filter it through- felt like the ad's you get at the back of tabloid newspapers on a Saturday (selling lots of rubbish).

The back of the leaflet had a picture for you to put up in your window, with the slogan 'People Like You Voting BNP'. I was going to make my own version (putting 'Hell will Freeze Over Before...')- but I reckoned at a casual glance people wouldn't notice my updated message (and hence think I actually supported the BNP).

Saturday I was reading in the newspaper that the images used in the leaflet of people (Doctor, Building Worker, Retired Couple, Housewife) were in fact stock photo's. Not just that- but a journalist had gone to the trouble of finding the origins of the people and they were all from abroad ! That did bring a smile to my face - targeting a leaflet about foreign people taking British jobs and it turns out this was exactly what happened in the images used in the leaflet ! Of course they could have figured this out so easily - on close inspection the people in the images have teeth that are way too good for a 'British' person !

Now why the title of the post ? Well years ago (around the John Major era) I went to vote and there were no credible candidates, so I decided to put my own take on the proceedings by writing 'Butcher' 'Baker' 'Candlestick Maker' alongside each of the 3 primary candidates...