We can stand together or hang apart in the face of political terror

Nature abhors a vacuum and the media is far worse.

There must be reasons for the obscene massacre in Oslo.

There must be lessons to learn

There must be something we can do, so it can never happen again.

Well here it comes. Some on the left are making the jump from the stated aims of a deranged terrorist to stating all those aims and issues he mentioned are themselves beyond the pale.

Its an enormous temptation for the left. They, this time, were the target so may feel there's some sympathy and victim ennoblement to be spent in the bank of public opinion. They also have always favoured refusing those they disagree with the right to draw political breath, let alone speak. Here is the perfect excuse to pursue the totalitarian objectives that are implicit in much of left wing politics.

And if they attack, others will respond on the airwaves, though perhaps the left wing bias and bigotry of the likes of the BBC might keep much of it off our airwaves.

And then what have we got ? The debate that the man who stole those lives in Oslo always wanted.

There are times to remember that silence is sometimes a good option. Whilst many of us are political opponents we are also subjects and citizens of the same nations and we all share common interests and common loyalties.

We should stick together. Forget this man who has done evil things, and comfort the bereaved parents, wives and husbands.

We can talk about and debate some of these other issues a little later on, when this man won't be taking the credit.

When evil strikes

Just as with the Brighton Bomb, evil has found its way into a man's heart (and perhaps others) and allowed him to do unspeakable things in Norway yesterday.

We live in a political world and it will be hard for many to resist making political points, or even religious ones that are more based on their own agenda and opportunism than the facts of the events.

My advise to the Norwegians is this: treat this as a criminal act. Pursue those involved as you would criminals. Apply justice without fear or favour. ( Some of the great mistakes in the UK were made when we let our fury at these crimes overcome the implementation of proper justice - for example the Guildford four [ though as with many of these things the original victims of the pub bombings somehow get forgotten in the follow on court cases. I've drunk in one of the pubs concerned.] )

It is only by treating terrorism as a crime that sufficient disgust with the idea will become accepted by the far reaches of our societies were it can breed.

I've already heard the opposite approach on the BBC this morning and seen some individuals who have over stepped the mark this morning.

Lets stay focused and determined here.

Norway is one of my favourite countries, I've been there on holiday a number of times and can remember being shocked at how easy it was to walk up to key buildings in Oslo. I hope they can make the necessary changes without changing their wonderful character of their country.

There must be terrible grief in so many families today, and nothing I can say here will help them, but we can hold the line against political violence and help deter any future criminal acts.