When will Britain wake up to terror?

THE FRIDAY THING:

IT has taken time, probably too much time, for we Brits to wake up to what is happening in other parts of the world and the damage it inflicts on British people and institutions.

Probably many people will feel like I feel in the wake of the murders, beheadings and massacres in the name of people from other lands, who kill for the joy of killing and, often, in the name of their religion.

The scandal is that murder, massacres and terror are the barbarism of an earlier time and, to be honest, I cannot get the idea out of my head that we have brought our present problems on ourselves, by refusing to recognise the dangers British people faced at home and abroad for no other reason than that they are British.

Whether it is the scandalous decision not to properly arm our troops in the name of saving money, or because, in the wake of Tony Blair’s blundering about non-existent weapons of mass destruction, maybe today’s politicians are running scared of making a big mistake.

No-one can claim we have not had warnings that the temperature of violent rage was rising in many communities across the globe. Surely people being beheaded in the street should have alerted someone in a position of authority to recognise the challenges we face.

And now we have Tunisia. Is anyone surprised? The assassination or murder of 30 or so British people who found themselves on the holiday from hell will surely invoke some positive action from our politicians and armed forces - and I don’t mean a one-minute silence in remembrance.

They and we deserve more from those we look on to protect us. Sadly, it looks as though they aren’t up to the job.