Passenger Mutiny

[Dancing Queen]

Passengers on a flight from Malaga to the UK refused to fly home on Weds, until 2 'asian-looking' men were taken off the flight. It says on the BBC site that the men were acting suspiciously, although no-one says how. The men were questioned and later released without charge.

I think this is outrageous. Isn't it mass-racism? If a woman was walking down the road in a revealing outfit, she wouldn't be accused of prostitution. I know this is a lot more serious situation, and in a way I can kind of understand passengers being wary of anybody, but I'd be mortified now if I was one of those passengers, for unnecessarily putting those two men through that, just because of the colour of their skin. You might as well just arrest all asian people before they get on a plane, just in case.

What do you think? Does anyone know how these men were supposed to be acting?

Link (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/5267884.stm?ls)

[choccy eating monster]

I think they did the right thing. I too would have felt strongly about this, especially in light of what has been going on recently. Being tolerant and even handed hasn't worked so far, has it?

If the terrorists were Chinese/White/Black then I would have reacted in the same way if either of these groups wanted to board my flight and/or were acting suspiciously.

For me, it has nothing to do with the fact they were moslems, but the fact that there is a current problem in that some moslems belong to an underground terror group which delights in killing innocent people.

The worst part is, they are so darn secretive about it, that their own community either doesn't know what they are up to, or doesn't face up to it.

They say they hate the West, and its Capitalist policies and its World policing, but lots of them just love to wear NYC baseball caps, Nikey trainers,drink Coca Cola, use credit cards and play on their psp's. Hypocrites, the lot of them.

[natacha]

Looking at the situation objectively, of course it's racist. Having said that, human nature does not tend towards objectiveness when under potential threat.

Their reaction actually sounds pretty normal to me. And no, I don't see myself as racist; just human:wink:

[Fantasseee]

Yep, it's discrimination based on race, but what can you do!

You have a situation where a group of people have decided to make their political point known by blowing innocents out of the air. They have inflicted their own personal war onto us because of our governments foreign policy decisions.

So i get onto a plane and see two Muslim men acting in a way that makes me feel nervous, the air stewardesses are alerted, they also feel uncomfortable and so the two men are removed for questioning. Yes it stinks, but at the same time i can understand it. I would much rather they err on the side of caution that take a PC stance and risk the possibility of endangering 100's of people's lives.

[Hanie]

Actually yes I think they did the right thing. Yes it is racist and not at all politically correct but then neither was 9/11 was it? It is sad that a few minority muslem groups have created this kind of attitude to most Asian people who are more than likely just your average Joe. If the tables were turned and white people (I pick white because I'm white) were staging numerous terrorist attacks on Asian countries then Asian people would quite rightly become suspicious of every white person they met. It's not actually down to a personal vendetta against Asian/Muslems (although some media groups try to put this across) it's just down to the fact that all the terrorist attacks of recent years have been carried out by Muslems. The terrorists could be blue people from the planet Mars and we'd be just as suspicious of them. After the end of the second world war for many years weren't a lot people suspicious of German people? It wasn't right by any account but it was bloody understandable.

I'm not racist myself and I have friends from many different cultures, but I think our country has been far too tolerent for far too long. These extreme groups have taken advantage of the fact that we are a free country and turned it around to be used against us. When extremeists are free to spout their hatred in the streets of the country that they supposedly hate and then turn around and say they agree with 9/11 and 7/7 then something drastically needs to change just to protect the actual freedom we have in this country.

PS sorry if I've gone a bit off topic there. :talk:

[Supersonic]

Unfortunately that is what is happening and I think it is better to be safe than sorry.

My Dad is Irish and came over here in the 70s when the IRA were active. He was waiting for my mum outside Paddington Station with a carrier bag with his lunch in it and was approached by the police, he was arrested and held by the police for 48 hours for acting suspiciously. I could tell you numerous stories of friends and family being hassled back then.

It happened to the Irish in London for years, I myself have had may racist jokes and comments said to me about Irish people because people can't tell that I myself am Irish (I was born there but was brought up in London so don't have an accent).

[Rowan Tree]

Poor men. I'd be acting nervously too if a plane-load of sun-seekers were staring at me.

[Nics]

I think this is outrageous. Isn't it mass-racism?
Link (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/5267884.stm?ls)

I think we have a huge problem in this country because if you are brave enough to admit you are scared of muslims now you are labelled racist.

Not many people (in my opinion) are genuinly hatefully rascist, but lots of people (again in my opinion) are now feeling very threatened by muslims and if they wernt so scared of being branded as racist maybe more open to talking about their feelings and in so doing may not be so judgemental.

[Devil Girl]

Poor men. I'd be acting nervously too if a plane-load of sun-seekers were staring at me.

:agree:

[Hello Kitty]

I find it all rather sad that things have come to this and I must admit to feeling very sorry for the Muslim community who in the main have nothing to do with terrorism :-(

[Nics]

I think our country has been far too tolerent for far too long. These extreme groups have taken advantage of the fact that we are a free country and turned it around to be used against us. When extremeists are free to spout their hatred in the streets of the country that they supposedly hate and then turn around and say they agree with 9/11 and 7/7 then something drastically needs to change just to protect the actual freedom we have in this country.

PS sorry if I've gone a bit off topic there. :talk:

I totally agree with you here!

[Toots]

From what I read today the reason that everyone was suspicious was because they were wearing big thick winter coats when it was really warm in Malaga. This doesn't make what happened right but it maybe makes it a bit easier to understand why these people were suspicious of them.

[Pippin]

As far as I've read they were thrown off the flight for acting suspiciously. We have been told to be vigilent against such behavior so tbh I can understand why the passengers were rather wary of the two men.

I really don't think its racism at all. If I was sitting next two a pair of scruffy asian men who were jumpy and constantly looking at there watches whilst wearing lots of thick layers of clothing despite the weather I would be a little worried too.

After everything that has happened recently with terrorism haven't we the right to be extra vigilent. When there was the trouble with the IRA lots of Irish men were arrested because they were the most likely to commit such offences, nobody said that was racist. Its just the same the terrorist threat is from asian muslim men and thats who the police and authorities will be most vigilent against because the people who have commited terrorist offences lately have been asia muslim men. Its not because people dislike or are prejudice against such people its just because they are going on what threat there is currently.