A little brain surgery

Dagenham: Didn’t pass off peacefully last year

The local paper in Walthamstow reported yesterday that the police are saying that they have no intelligence to suggest that the EDL march planned there this Saturday will be violent.

Perhaps the Walthamstow police have not spoken to other police forces around the country to gauge the EDL’s propensity for violence. Two things are always certain when the EDL go anywhere; drinking and violence.

Walthamstow is not far from Dagenham, which is the last place in London that the EDL had a march, in July last year. Redbridge police had the same “intelligence” in the run up to that march and sent no police officers along to steward the EDL. Two Asian men ended up in hospital as a result.

As far as I can recall, it must be almost three years since an EDL march or rally passed off without an arrest for aggression, threats, breach of the peace or violence. And that does not mean those components were not present, it just means that the police in Newcastle did not arrest anybody for it.

In the last week, we have run stories about two EDL activists heading to Walthamstow who would appear to have an interest in violence. Darren Mann and Jason “Shaggy” Essex hardly seem the types to be on their best behaviour. Unless of course, violence is their best behaviour.

We hope the EDL march does pass off peacefully. But we won’t be surprised if it does not.

That’s based on our knowledge and intelligence. Not brain surgery.

"Shaggy": Looking forward to visiting Walthamstow market