Is there’s anyone, anywhere, still in any doubt about my fitness to escape from the cosy playpen of the blogosphere into the dirty, nasty world of real politics?
Yesterday, a friend came round. He lives in Leeds. We got talking about the bins, as you do, and he forwarded me an email and told me the tale of what’s going on.
I said, “we should do something” and so, lo, a facebook group was created, and that was all there was to it until more time could be found for a properly researched post.
But no, nothing’s ever that simple. Spent the day battling with someone determined to portray this ‘campaign’ as something called Astroturfing, which apparently means organisations creating fake grassroots campaign.
I’m not quite sure what it is I’m supposed to have done differently in order to avoid this. There was no group on the side of the people against the strikers, so one was created… we just happened to be Lib Dems. Does that make you evil now?
Politics, it turns out, is a dirty business. Who knew? I sort of get a sense of the kind of pressure that turns politicians into frightened drones terrified of risks (and the internet, and saying anything definitive).
For the record, apart from some arrests that were reported in the paper, most of the rest of my evidence is word of mouth from other Lib Dems. People are right to question that evidence (I certainly do), so, again, I stress, until I’ve done some homework you should regard it as nothing more.
In the meantime, I love the irony of writing a post standing up to bullying, only to find myself getting bullied too. Why am I surprised?
Plato said...
1 Oct 09 at 8:26 pm
Stick with it – you’re right to take a stand on this one.
Constantly Furious said...
1 Oct 09 at 9:00 pm
As I’ve said, many many times, here and elsewhere, this kind of attack is the last resort of the bankrupt (in every sense) Left.
Got no policies? Got no idea what your policies should or might be? No problem. Attack. Attack! ATTAAAACK!!
No need for ideas when you can denigrate others’.
Ignore ‘em. Fuck ‘em.
Dick Puddlecote said...
1 Oct 09 at 9:36 pm
CF is spot on. Bankrupt in every sense indeed. Seriously, CG, I’m not deliberately spamming here, but I posted something on mine tonight about how the righteous have decided that evidence isn’t required for their laws anymore.
It does seem to be the modern way that, when faced with a problem, debate is discarded in favour of ad homs and illiberal arguments.
Anyone who disagrees with the ‘progressive left’ is instantly attacked as immoral, uncaring, or in many cases, advocating the suffering of others.
Without proper debate, there can never be an equitable solution to any problem. Years of bad laws forced through by a combination of Labour dogma and spin should have taught the country that, but then, I don’t believe socialists ever aspire to such a thing, I truly believe they are only motivated by self-interest.
Unfortunately, it would appear that they have taught the population in general to expect the same selfishness to be admired in all areas.
That’s the atrocious legacy of Labour IMHO.
AJ said...
1 Oct 09 at 11:45 pm
I think you do a great job Charlotte, and what you would bring to politics is honesty and humility(quite unique in that field). You always consider alternative and opposing views. The bin debate, while demonstrating that the binmen are only standing up for a fair wage, exposes them and all of us as victims of a restrictive,dogmatic system.
Job done.
Belinda BG said...
2 Oct 09 at 11:23 am
Sticks and stones…
Astroturf campaigns are ones which have money pumped into them by a big corporation, a donor, a government, or a rich charity and then pretends to be grassroots.
I know nothing about the strike, but to be someone affected by the strike and then asking others to support your cause having laid out how it affects you, seems pretty grassroots to me.
JuliaM said...
3 Oct 09 at 4:40 pm
“But no, nothing’s ever that simple. Spent the day battling with someone determined to portray this ‘campaign’ as something called Astroturfing…”
Don’t battle with them, don’t fall back on the reasonable polite way of dealing with false allegations.
Simply say, every time they try this: ‘That is a lie. And you are a liar.’
Old Holborn said...
5 Oct 09 at 5:56 pm
To be governed is to be watched, inspected, spied upon, directed, law-driven, numbered, regulated, enrolled, indoctrinated, preached at, controlled, checked, estimated, valued, censured, commanded, by creatures who have neither the right nor the wisdom nor the virtue to do so. To be governed is to be at every operation, at every transaction noted, registered, counted, taxed, stamped, measured, numbered, assessed, licensed, authorized, admonished, prevented, forbidden, reformed, corrected, punished. It is, under pretext of public utility, and in the name of the general interest, to be placed under contribution, drilled, fleeced, exploited, monopolized, extorted from, squeezed, hoaxed, robbed; then, at the slightest resistance, the first word of complaint, to be repressed, fined, vilified, harassed, hunted down, abused, clubbed, disarmed, bound, choked, imprisoned, judged, condemned, shot, deported, sacrificed, sold, betrayed; and to crown all, mocked, ridiculed, derided, outraged, dishonoured. That is government; that is it’s justice; that is its morality.
graco playard said...
29 May 10 at 9:10 pm
Babies are the best and deserve only that! Your blog has given me some great ideas, so thank you and please keep it going!