"I will Stop using the Glasgow Heralds comments facilities until freedom of speech is returned and intend PICKET the Glasgow Herald if they do not allow free speech and reasonable comments. Say no to ministerial bullying. Democracy and freedom of speech is a human right. but only if 50 other local people will do the same."
— Juan Kerr (contact)
Deadline to sign up by: 11th December 2009
7 people have signed up, 43 more needed
Country: United Kingdom
More details
As a disgusted longtime user of the heralds comments facilities I find it disturbing in the run up to the Glenrothes bi-election they decided to block comments boards, remove posts for no reason other than politics and allow BNP rascists to destroy the comments section. To date only a select few are allowed to post.
Heavy handed and weighted moderation
I think they should be shamed in front of their peers as lickspittle's and yes men for their governmental masters in westminster. Not a goodspace for a Broadsheet to inhabit.
Juan Kerr, the Pledge Creator, joined by:
The westminister cabinets current war on bloggers and blog owners only shows their fear of people holding them to account.
Yeah, right. Nothing to say he buys the print edition of The Herald. He merely reads the free online edition; and thinks this qualifies him as an authority!
There is no censorship here. The Herald facilities are financed and maintained by their staff and resources. It would be an infringement of their freedom of speech to demand that they give any individual a soap-box. No-one has been prevented from setting-up their own web-forum or contacting their elected representatives.
The Herald can reasonably be associated with the tenor of comments and opinion on its web-resources. If these are seen to be nasty, unpleasant, vitriolic and personally abusive, this reflects on them. I have personally witnessed a number of comments which skated perilously close to incitement to violence or contravention of Race Relations legislation. Thus, I can entirely understand why The Herald introduced moderation.
So, if their is no censorship why are comments pre moderated. The forum has always been self moderating for years up until an important election.....
Nae luck!
>> Allthough your usage of "here" is obviously a pointer too the fact your an employee
No, but this is a pointer to the fact that you're a delusional paranoid loonie.
>> and are every so slightly rattled by the fact people are signing up.
Five signatories thus far, one of whom doesn't even have the honesty to leave an Internet nickname. Infamy, infamy they've all got it in for me!
You cannot even get your fantasies straight. On one hand you accuse us... whoops... The Herald... #wink# #wink#... of accommodating B.N.P. supporters (always a sign of the green-ink brigade), and then cry blue bloody murder at our... damn!... *their* introducing moderation.
Which is it?
>>So, if their is no censorship why are comments pre moderated.
Because moderation is not censorship, you numpty. You contribute nothing to the comments section... not taxes, not subscriptions (online editions are firstly paid for by advertizing), not effort... their blog, their choice.
You are not being prevented from creating this 'petition' (on another free online resource which you contribute nothing to). You are free to set-up your own blog. Just that, I suspect, no-one will read it. Therein lies the problem... you want a worldwide audience for your burblings without any effort. In Yiddish, you are a shnorrer or trombenik.
>> not an authority,
Which is why you're threatening to picket the offices and refusing to buy the paper.
>> The forum has always been self moderating for years
Like those B.N.P. supporters you see under the bed? Loonie!
>> up until an important election.....
Which one? Last week?
>> I do buy the print edition, I have it delivered.Sorry, Had it delivered.
This reminds me of when little William Brown and his Outlaws formed their Nasty Party because someone had said something they didn't like.
Cheers ;-)
Like those B.N.P. supporters you see under the bed? Loonie!
"
AHHHHH, So Sam the BNP unionist was a figment of everyones imagination then......
Are you living in an alternate universe or have you actually been to the herald forum, or just assume AM2 is against it and following suit.
Sounds like the latter.
Please don't mock my spelling, it is SO hurtful! I may cry!
Except when you accused The Herald of accommodating the British Nationalist *Party*, or being beholden to Westminster. Loonie alert!
>> but you are.
Maybe your time will be better spent reading Richmal Crompton than setting up vacuous petitions.
>> Are you living in an alternate universe or have you actually been to the herald forum,
I have, and it was a nasty place.
>> or just assume AM2 is against it and following suit.
>> Tell AM2 a thanks for sending folk from his blog
I suppose this is less barking that having thought I am a Herald employee. Still wrong. I came of my own volition, and was troll-baiting long before I found his blog.
>> to sign.
I didn't sign you twit.
>> AHHHHH, So Sam the BNP unionist was a figment of everyones imagination then......
That's not what you said. You said the forum was riddled with B.N.P. posters, then you said it had been successfully self-moderating, now you're back to saying it riddled with one (!) B.N.P. poster. Loonie!
>> Please don't mock my spelling, it is SO hurtful! I may cry!
Oh, I'm sorry. You're a schmendrik's schmendrik! This is Yiddish for someone who's socially well-adjusted and has a healthy relationship with his mother, and is incidentally quite lucky with the girls.
A guy was faking others and the herald allowed it too continue, I reckon someone thought it amusing and to get hits up or something.He was pretty bottom barell even for my cut and thrust standards. Some pretty nasty stuff on ethnic issues.
Because someone was clever enough to find a way to get the Herald(and rightly so) to stop all threads looking like an snp chatroom which was full of comments sometimes hundreds from a handful of snp activists who also reported all non snp posters.
How do you know this "Sam" was a BNP member?, also were you not named as a fake poster yourself, and if i remember correctly at least two people said they had past your comments to the Police naming juan kerr as the faker.
The bottom line here is that juan kerr is gutted that the Herald is no longer an snp chatroom and place to spew snp propaganda.
A large number of people are pleased with the new Herald comments system including myself.
P.S Note the kerr person is calling someone who is of a different view a member of the Herald staff.
He posted vote BNP frequently
"if i remember correctly at least two people said they had past your comments to the Police naming juan kerr as the faker"
By Sam using his two pre proven (by other users) fake accounts. I have never said anything that would require a visit from the police.
"The bottom line here is that juan kerr is gutted that the Herald is no longer an snp chatroom and place to spew snp propaganda"
No, my view is that freedom of speech and toleration of banter has been killed.It os everyones recourse against politicians of all parties.
How dare you slander a fair campaign, probably the same guy who ruined the herald no doubt.
You should be quite ashamed.
“The Herald has been forced to suspend reader comments on its political stories because of persistent and unacceptable levels of personal abuse posted by some contributors. The decision has been made pending a review of the way our stories are commented on.”
http://www.theherald.co.uk/politics/news...
Douglas Fraser: “These online discussion forums have taught me quite a bit - rarely about politics, but much more about the disturbing results you get from the interplay of anonymity, group psychology and bullying. This is not unique to The Herald's website, or to Scottish politics, but as the content and tone of this conversation represents a daily injection of poison into the well of Scottish public life, we are all worse off for it.”
http://www.theherald.co.uk/politics/poli...
How anyone can criticise the Herald over this defeats me.
"“The Herald has been forced to suspend reader comments on its political stories because of persistent and unacceptable levels of personal abuse posted by some contributors. The decision has been made pending a review of the way our stories are commented on.”
"
there is is tounge in cheek and there is hate. Posters arent daft as to which is which.
We believe strongly in free speech, as apparently do others in the comment thread above.
However, we also recognise circular, fruitless, name-calling, covered-all-of-this-ground-before "discussion" when we see it too.
We welcome positive contributions (including *constructive* criticism) from all. Please keep things civil, respectful and useful.
He will have to come of the list as it breaks the terms of the pledge, he is busy spewing rubbish on the Herald.lol.
I do suspect a couple of the others on your pledge are posting in new names or as you say yourself "Fake" names, i will not name them YET.
Juan Kerr you must show people with different views respect and stop saying people are Fake posters or this that and the next thing, just because you lose the debate does not mean you have to be abusive, i note you dealt badly with the Glenrothes majority for Labour and posted almost 2000 posts of abuse in other posters names, you failed, your angry is a worry perhaps a poor education or issues, please seek help and also please stop faking others especially when you post dogs abuse in other peoples names.
I wish you luck with your pledge i think you will need it and more.
P.S Are you sure you are giving yourself enough time Dec 2009?, better to make it Dec 2015.lol.
I am sure your stretching credibility by lying your bottom off.
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Rest your case Juan.