Part of me wants to say “Good, serves the hate monger right.”  The other part of me thinks that this isn’t such a healthy sign for what is supposed to be a liberal democracy.

The Home Secretary has banned two extremist anti-gay preachers from entering Britain, a move that follows a decision to refuse entry to Geert Wilders, the Dutch anti-Muslim MP.

Fred Phelps and his daughter Shirley Phelps-Roper, who belong to the US Westboro Baptist Church, were planning to come to the UK to protest outside a performance of a youth play called The Laramie Project, which recounts the death of gay university student Matthew Shepard who was killed in Laramie, Wyoming, in October 1998.

It was due to be performed at Queen Mary’s College in Basingstoke, Hampshire, tomorrow.

The pair have been known to picket US soldiers’ funerals, holding up banners with phrases such as “God Hates Fags” because they believe that their deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan are punishment for America’s tolerance of gays.

Free speech means free speech, whether it’s Republicans and Democrats (or Whigs and Tories) kvetching about one another or hateful bigots like Phelps polluting the air with nonsense.  Perhaps it’s a little different because Phelps isn’t a citizen of the UK, but if the roles were reversed and Phelps were a citizen of Great Britain attempting to visit the US I’d say let him in and let him talk.  Protest him.  Debate him.  Criticize him.  But let him talk.  Because, again, free speech means free speech.

But what’s interesting in the case of Great Britain is that even as they’re banishing Phelps, all sorts of extremist Muslim leaders are in Great Britain calling for a downfall of the government and the institution of Islamic rule.

Funny how those politically-correct double standards work.