Of course none of this is happening at the moment. But some of the comments on this thread suggest that people would like to see people (and their families) harassed (potentially physically) or sacked from their jobs simply because of their political views. In fact, not even because of their political views, simply because they are a member of a legitimate political organisation.
That a large number of people seem to hold this view I find disappointing and worrying, and I don't think it's invalid to compare it with McCarthyism.
That's a good point. It saddens me also to observe how some people on the far left readily adopt the behaviours of their perceived enemies in order to oppose them. I've seen such transformations happen to so many people on the left. Perhaps if they were more spiritual, prayed more and eschewed such tactics of burning hatred they would realise that violence only begets violence.
The rise of the BNP in UK politics in recent years represents a sea change in British politics that concerns many, myself included.
It is concerning that the BNP has grown in the way it has, and so many people out there are still wedded to racist ideas, when ancestrally speaking, all of us are related to one another, black and white alike. We are all brothers and sisters of the human race.
The world is going through a period of economic crisis without precedent and increasing - and very justified - industrial discontent, when both the far left AND far right are on the rise.
There are forces out there - particularly amongst the capitalist ruling class who see the foundation stones of their empire and control crumbling - that would be only too happy to see both of these camps fighting amongst themselves instead.
The list has clearly become an overnight national obsession. I hope I'm wrong, clearly in terms of historic timescales we're not there yet, but I think the publication of this list could end up fomenting an unprecedented period of unrest between the far left and the far right. Look at the rise of Mosley, the Battle of Cable Street. These all took place at the height of the last great recession.