This is essentially a free speech forum. I enjoy much of the banter which goes on between commenters, particularly the dedicated band of people who post on a daily basis. There is an important distinction between my writing, and the comments section. The proportion of readers who leave comments is well under 1%. I cannot know what percentage of the readers read comments, but I suspect it is not terribly high.
In social media I find establishment hacks – particularly journalists and Labour Party functionaries – dismiss my thoughts by referring to the comments section. “Craig Murray – have you seen the tinfoil hats comments on his blog!” being a genuine and very typical example. Well, if people wish to damn me by association with the views of other people, that is sadly an example of the low intellectual standards of the British nomenklatura of our time. The only views on here which are mine are those which I write.
I cherish the diversity of the comment threads and am fond of our little community, most of whom I have never met. I do not value people by the standard of how close their views are to my own. I am sometimes saddened by the personal animosities which arise between people.
We state some rules from time to time. This is the current set, which I just made up:
No racism. Any comment which is racist will simple be deleted immediately. The biggest problem we face is anti-Jewish comment, which I will not tolerate. We are not in the business of stigmatising anti-Zionism as anti-Jewish, but there are quite frequently distinctly anti-Jewish comments. I deleted one just an hour ago.
Similarly, no holocaust denial. I do not believe it should be illegal (I am against thought crime) but I do not wish to have it on my blog as those associated with it often have very unpleasant sympathies. That is not to say the subject of the holocaust can never be mentioned – it will never be possible to ascertain the precise number who were killed, and it is important we remember not only the Jews but the Poles, gypsies, gays, freemasons and numerous others who suffered. But the basic facts are not in doubt. It is surprising how often people attempt to insinuate holocaust denial.
Sockpuppetry. It is in practice impossible to outlaw sockpuppetry without a formal registration system, which I do not want. But the adoption of multiple identities within the same thread is not to be allowed, nor the creation of identities of which the purpose is to ridicule, attack or insult another contributor.
Fair Play. Play the ball, not the man. Address arguments, not people. Do not impugn the motives of others, including me. No taunting.
Relevance
Attempts to keep people on topic are hopeless, but do try.
9/11
We don’t discuss 9/11. There are plenty of places on the web where you can do that. It tends to take over threads.
Contribute
Contributions which are primarily just a link to somewhere else will be deleted. You can post links, but give us the benefit of your thoughts upon them.
No explanation.
Enforcing these rules is necessarily arbitrary and needs judgement calls. Moderators are precluded from explaining decisions online. If you want to complain use the contact button.
Moderators
We have, and have had, excellent moderators over many years. But almost all have found it not only time consuming but also surprisingly emotionally draining. If you are interested in volunteering and are willing for me to know both your real and online identity, please get in tough using the contact button.
Ishmael; ‘The tigers of wrath are wiser than the horses of instruction’
I’m diggin’ all the quotes & links, but just to confirm my sense of highbrow “superiority”;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgSMxY6asoE
😀
Macky, 4:34 pm: so you deny that feel entitled to place me in a position where I am required to deceive on your behalf? That you feel entitled to make attacks upon others’ self-confidence disguised as psychological diagnosis? That you feel entitled to protection from Habbabkuk’s insults while you proceed to insult him yourself?
You seem to feel pretty damn entitled to me.
Macky, 4:34 pm:
Macky, you’ve never so much as denied it, so your “hand on heart” stuff is irrelevant. Indeed, you have argued against every criticism of Putin’s government posted in your presence.
Would you propagandise for the Kremlin’s agenda? If not, why not? From your comments you seem to regard that government as perfect.
This is taunting. I know where to find that advertising material (if you haven’t recently removed it from the’net), but I cannot reveal the location because to do so would also revel your name.
Clark; “You seem to feel pretty damn entitled to me.”
Whatever it is you are smokin’, it’s causing you to talk to yourself again !
Macky, I have asked you many direct, simple questions on this thread. You haven’t answered a single one. Here’s another:
Why did you send me your name but no request to conceal which sex you are?
Macky, 5:25, so yet again, your answer consists of no more than attempted mockery. Fine.
Clark; “I know where to find that advertising material (if you haven’t recently removed it from the’net), but I cannot reveal the location because to do so would also revel your name.”
Don’t pretend you have any sort of decency, just hope that the person you have convinced yourself is me, doesn’t take any sort of legal action, because, and get this through you thick delusional super numbskull, that person is NOT me.
I’m done with you Clark, it’s like trying to reason with a brainless robot.
Macky, 5:30 pm:
Oh really? How come they share your name and e-mail address?
More questions you will answer with insults and threats. And now you’re threatening legal action, which is what you’ve criticised Resident Dissident for – when he was opposing racism and hate-speech, to which you CLAIM to be utterly opposed.
Is there a shred of honesty in you, Macky?
Clark; “How come they share your name and e-mail address?”
and you don’t consider yourself stupid !
Clark; “now you’re threatening legal action”
and you don’t consider yourself dishonest !
I’m not wasting any more time on you.
Ah Macky, I do apologise; I understand now. Some third person that’s nothing to do with either of us and knows nothing about this conversation but happens to have the same name and e-mail address as you claim to have might get upset and take me to court for… something, I’m not sure what… Saying you are her, I suppose.
Yes, Ishmael. Seems like he was a fairly decent fellow too but – alas – like many people of great talent, found no acclaim for his work during his own lifetime.
Still playing around with “Mad” Macky, Clark? I don’t know why you bother.
Glenn, Macky wanted her unbridled freedom of speech; all her ‘LOL’s and winky or smiley faces – I could only assume she was enjoying it. Maybe I was wrong; Macky sure never is!
Clark: Of course Mad Macky was enjoying it. Cruel people, bullies and sadists all enjoy making others unhappy. That’s what they live for.
glenn_uk, we must always have compassion; most abusers got that way by suffering abuse themselves. I have tried not to insult Macky, despite feeling angry after being insulted repeatedly myself.
“Of course Mad Macky was enjoying it. Cruel people, bullies and sadists all enjoy making others unhappy. That’s what they live for.”
I’d rather die from cruel murder then go grey rot and die at the hand of dull continuous Philistinism..
“we must always have compassion” Says the man encouraging I tuck myself away at the ass end of threads.
This is what I hate about it most I think. That it’s done so ‘civilly’, while accusing others of all this oppression. Who if like me do get do get enraged by it especially when it comes in such a hypocritical from…
Like Craig it’s obvious you can’t defend any other way. It’s pathetic. Truly pathetic. Yes laughable.
“Seems like he was a fairly decent fellow too but – alas – like many people of great talent, found no acclaim for his work during his own lifetime.”
You obviously missed the major point. For many artists his meaning is exactly that in a large part. It’s about intention and purity of action. Not acclaim or limelight.
Ishmael, I support freedom of speech, but it has to have limits. An example often given is “does freedom of speech include the right to shout “fire!” in a crowded theatre”? There are other limits too, and more on a blog like this where the space on the threads has to be shared by many commenters.
I’m sure that if you post comment on any thread, so long as it is clearly relevant and abides by the other rules, it will not be deleted.
And Ishmael, I’m sorry that chatting with me and others on the second page of this thread is not good enough for you.
Ishmael, I know you wrote that fine art and painting are your thing; I’ve associated mostly with musicians, and the best ones tell you that part of the skill of improvisation is knowing when to take sixteen bars’ rest. A sculptor will tell you it’s about what you remove rather than what you add. And you probably know about leaving the paper or canvas unmarked in places.
Ishmael, do you know much about Council Tax and bailiffs? I don’t, which is why I haven’t commented on the front thread.
…..
And you say you don’t understand me, we are at least equal in this. Though I swear with those last posts there is nothing to say.
You have a warped perspective Clark, leave me alone.
Though I wear fools reproach well.
We do not come to treat with Sauron, faithless and accursed.
I try not to be evil, Ishmael.
Ishmael, sometimes I do not understand what you write. For instance, I do not know what you mean by this:
Which posts? Who has nothing to say? I’m sorry; I don’t understand. On the front thread, similar comment would probably be deleted due to lack of clear relevance.
Consider; when Macky seems to “defend your freedom of speech”, maybe she serves her own objectives rather than yours. Maybe she’s just using you. She certainly is less than honest, and maybe somewhat devious. Maybe I seem less friendly, but then was Gandalf’s advice always popular?
Ishmael, we seem to have a quiet space here now with no restriction about relevance; is there anything you’d like to discuss? You can suggest something, or you can reply to the following (just to get things started); what brings you to this blog? How did you find it?
“Which posts? Who has nothing to say?”
*sigh* I have nothing to say to you after those posts above that reply, jeez, it’s not complex.
And I don’t really (as you imply) regard Macky’s input while executing my own. This is not some gang up.
Really your machinations are vile and worthy of the the mouth of sauron. Maybe the mouth wasn’t aware that it was just a mouth.
And how many times, don’t know about Macky but this is not about my personal objectives. But of course you would think that…God it’s like a Habba merry-go-round.
“Ishmael, we seem to have a quiet space here now with no restriction about relevance; is there anything you’d like to discuss? ”
Yes, do you have some cyanide pills….