On comments, the banning of comments, at CiF.
To recap, Ritchie writes article. Various people comment including myself.
Ritchie complains that the commenting from such neo-liberal Worstallites is why no one reads CiF comments threads nor comments upon them. Because Worstall\’s a meanie and a nihilist neo-liberal in fact.
This comment of Ritchie\’s being in response to FastRobert….who is our very own Arnald of this gaff and ….well, this little bit is amusing, isn\’t it?
You don\’t even live here.
This is one of Arnald\’s/Fast Robert\’s critiques of the nihilist neo-liberal Worstall. That he doesn\’t even live in the UK.
As of course Arnald/FastRobert does not, being a resident of Guernsey.
But that\’s not today\’s little amusement. This is:
FastRobert
18 February 2012 10:27AM
Response to TimWorstall, 17 February 2012 4:34PMThis comment was removed by a moderator because it didn\’t abide by our community standards. Replies may also be deleted. For more detail see our FAQs.
Neither Arnald nor Ritchie can really complain, can they? They are, after all, those who admire, even insist upon, the censorship of comments sections.
*munches popcorn*
Bugger! Read it last night but didn’t think it was too outrageous so didn’t save it. Now I can’t remember what he actually wrote.
Maybe you could get him to post it here and you won’t delete it! 😉 Just to show how open you are compared to CiF.
CiF are well known in all circles for censoring comments, not for any reason such as libel or bad language, they censor anyone who disagrees with the author of the article – who is usually some lefty shill.
Try getting any comment pusbilshed that disagrees with their eco-fascist view of climate change – you’ve go not chance.
Have you read the comment thread? Ritchie gets his backside neatly dissected and handed to him on a platter with a lightly sarcastic vinaigrette. The only comments deleted are from those on his side.
I have to say, in defence of Tim, Arnald / FastRobert / whoever doesn’t live here either.
I have to say, in defence of me, I did read Tim’s post. But failed, clearly, to read the bit where he said exactly that. I blame gypsies …
Biter, bit! Tee hee!
But just to reassert the principle, the Guardian would have the right to censor its own comments pages even if a particular instance of censorship were unfair. (I expect this instance was fair, though I don’t know since I did not see the original comment.)
I’m not even entirely happy with the word “censorship” in the case of a newspaper; though I can’t immediately think of a better equivalent. My point being that no one has a right to comment at a newspaper website. I defend the socialistic Guardian now the better to defend bodies’ whose views I like better in the future, when some eternally offended “victim” lobby group is demanding “the right to reply”.
Sorry, rant over now. Not really the audience I need to reach, are you?
Surreptitious Evil – “I have to say, in defence of Tim, Arnald / FastRobert / whoever doesn’t live here either.”
That depends on the attitude you take to the Duchy of Normandy. As someone who thinks the solution to all our economic woes lies in reclaiming that and Anjou beyond, I object to the refusal to count Guernsey as part of the UK. Or at least the notion that it is not “here”.
I think the real issue is why Arnald is avoiding UK taxes, such as VAT, by living in such a notorious tax haven. He ought to do the right thing and move to Hull immediately.
So the correct response to Arnald from now on would be “Why don’t you fuck off back to Guernsey”?
Cool.
I can’t really comment though as I live in the Isle of Man (80,000 drunkards clinging to a rock).
Wonder if Richard Murphy knows FastRobert is a resident of one of his hated tax havens?
The comments section is closed now. The Graun’s moderators are a little random in their enforcement, in my view (although some of that may be attributable to their only deleting comments that have been reported to them as violating their principles). I genuinely don’t think that they delete right wing arguments unless you make ad hominem attacks against the author. Even those seem to have made it through the net this time.
Richard Murphy should remember that it’s only on his blog that he has the right to delete comments…
I don’t think it was Murphy that raised thr ight wing troll argument, although there are a lot of right wing trolls on there. Saying the same thing over and over, like mactheknife
“Try getting any comment pusbilshed that disagrees with their eco-fascist view of climate change – you’ve go not chance.”
pus-bilshed is a great word, though, for aomething you disagree with being published.
And to be fair to me, I’ve only been in Guernsey on and off, now on for a few years, due to family reasons. Definitely not my first choice for hat-laying.
And I’m not bitter about the deletion, just curious. It had no bad language, no ‘outing’, and only the usual CiF snides. Someone didn’t like it, obviously.
And Murphy doesn’t comment on CiFs mod policies.
Oh yeah, and I’m not the only one here, and in Jersey, that doesn’t like tax abuse. Most of those people have worked in the industry and know quite a lot.
Arnald (#12) said “I don’t think it was Murphy that raised the right wing troll argument”
Murphy’s Guardian comment:
“Which is, of course, why almost no one reads the comments here precisely because it is populated by the likes of Worstall”
True he didn’t actually say “right wing troll”, but given his views of our host that seems to be what he meant to suggest.
As for Arnald’s deleted Guardian comment, if it was the “you don’t even live here” one it probably failed their racism policy.
Richard
It was probably because i did a big picture of a cock using asterisks with “This is Worstall” underneath, and a link to that youtube clip that shows a chimpanzee using a toad to pleasure itself.
I think I prefer the current Arnald to the Tourettes Arnald we have been subjected to……………..
So if the cock was Tim, were you the toad and Murphy the chimp, or vice versa?
Matthew,
The mind boggles….
Arnald / FastRobert
‘And to be fair to me, I’ve only been in Guernsey on and off, now on for a few years, due to family reasons. Definitely not my first choice for hat-laying.’
Ah, so UK Dom nit res then. The target of so much of Ritchie’s ire. I take it you’re still paying UK tax rates then, and declaring all your income to the UK Revenue, holding I assume a UK passport ?
typo
Ah, so UK Dom not res then. The target of so much of Ritchie’s ire. I take it you’re still paying UK tax rates then, and declaring all your income to the UK Revenue, holding I assume a UK passport ?
Arnald – You sly dog you. We never realized that all of the bolshy commie talk on here was just some form of sarcasm.
I didn’t realize you were another high tax UK-dodging resident of a low tax jurisdiction.
Welcome to the club man.
:O)