Thursday 12 July 2007

With Regard to Central News

I have delayed voting on recent Blogpower internal issues till now, whilst I got a general impression of how this looked to the wider community.

Thanks very much for all the views that came in.



Firstly, less people voted in the poll than commented. But nobody who has voted so far in the poll has voted for expulsion.

There were several comments from BP members.
I think the best point here was made by Liz, who said;

'I agree with you that Blogpower is too right wing and male - but perhaps you weren't saying that but simply stating it as fact. I am totally out of place! Not even political. I visit others and think, 'What am I doing here?!'

But I am disinclined to ban anyone. I simply don't visit those I don't like - and a couple of the newbies I don't think I'll be going to often. But maybe that is against the ethos of Blogpower.

As for the recent polling that caused some disquiet, I would say that it wasn't only the far right that was involved in dodgy goings-on.'

I would agree.
Next year, the sort of anomalies that showed up this time, are unlikely to appear next time. I think there were dodgy voting patterns, but we cannot just throw that at Wayne's door.

Again, whatever existing members may feel, they joined when Central News was already a member, so it is obviously possible for them to co-exist in the way Liz describes with the BNP, much as none of us like their policies.
Welshcakes offered a good middle of the road position;

'I agree with Pommy and "the ego". I have been very unhappy about having a blog which links to BNP ones on my site but, when I read Wayne, I couldn't find anything particularly objectionable, so I didn't do anything about it. But I do think it has put some good bloggers off joining BP and does not do our reputation any good. We are being perceived as totally right-wing. I have a friend in Britain who stopped reading my blog because there was a BNP supporting blog in the roll.'

This leads me to assume that most BP members don't much care for Central News' politics, but are prepared to put up with it.

This being so, what was external opinion? Does the membership of Central News deter others from joining?

In the case of Alexys;
'Yes, it does put me off from joining. I have to respect any group I would join.'

In the case of Helen;
'"Identify, Ostracize, Confiscate, Concentrate, Annihilate" these are identified as the five steps (all accomplished legally) that resulted in the Holocaust. Yes, it would be nice to alienate ourselves from people like Muslim extremists who kill 13 year old girls for attending school (June 12, 2007), but we can't. If we refuse to find solidarity and commonality with one of us we give permission to other forms of oppression. Better to take a stand in the face of racism and say emphatically "you are WRONG" than to ostracize them and wonder how hate breeds.
If a 17 year old kid, alone, dejected and bullied wades into focused hate and finds acceptance and not one voice that cries against it, we have created one more racist. Not they, we.'

And in the case of a commentor by e-mail;

'Not having all "facts" I shall restrict myself to focusing on just two aspects:

1. Studying "Blogpower Ethos" and coming to d)] one does not even need to act as an advocatus diaboli.
d] As a family, it looks after its own but where we differ from a RL family is that we are open and welcoming to new members of any persuasion;
Thus, acting on this maxime per definitionem there exists no right/ no need asking your members for a yes or no.
In case you do it would be wise to soon cancel the superlative.

2. Given a "family-member" were addicted to drugs: Would you not try to convince your "family-member" . . . as long as he/she is willing to listen?'

But one also needs to take into account the opinions of Daily Referendum and others, as expressed elsewhere.
These are people who WOULD be members of Blogpower for sure, if it wasn't for Central News.



But of all the comments so far, Helen's is the one that most resonates with my own feelings. I cannot, as it stands find a compelling reason to vote for Wayne's expulsion, much as I loathe the party he supports.

I'm going out at half nine and will vote just before I go out. I am hoping to leave another post here before I do (on something more interesting), but in the event I don't get a chance, I will have done one for Ian at Imagined Community.

Ian is currently enjoying Glazsnost and Perestroika.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I hadn't considered that by becoming a member, my own blog would be obliged to advertise and promote such racism. I will be cancelling my request to join should they be premitted to stay and will have to reconsider going to any blogs that form part of the blog power and brotherhood of this BNP blog.

Anonymous said...

I applaud you for taking a stand. Well done.

Anonymous said...

I agree with The ego...

Anonymous said...

I'm with ego on his principles. But I hate Labour so I'm going to recogniser any blogs that link to Labour blogs and if I find any on the Blogger I'm going to boycott all Blogger blogs as well. As a matter of fact I'm going to cancel my internet connection because I find that Labour has posted on that Interweb thingie. Anyone who uses the Interweb will no longer be allowed to speak to me because I find it offensive.

I'm off to report this as some sort of discrimation because I feel offended.

CBI. Your logic seems to run the same way mine does.

Anonymous said...

Ego- there is no obligation under current rules to either advertise or promote. I could say I object to advertising and promoting a particular type of blog- say, one that deliberately insulted my beliefs- but that goes against the free speech ethic.

Alexys- It was a very hard decision. My vote won't make much difference, but I generally don't like banning things- or people. As regular readers will know, I'm not a fan of racism, but Waynes blog is rarely offensive. That's not to see I always agree with his opinions (though when not on Asylum or law and order, we can find common ground), but at least he doesn't put them forward in a way designed to gratuitously offend.
Now there are blogs now in BP that do.

Mutley- Yes, Mutley. Were it be a BNP blog specifically, I probably would agree. But the blog of a BNP member?
Don't get me wrong, those of you who followed the debate at http//defendingtheblog.blogspot.com, will notice I challenged Wayne on this point.
I've read many posts I haven't much cared for the tone of, many that I think offensive. Whether or not I visit those blogs depends on the willingness of the blogger concerned to enter reasonable debate.

Bag- I'll be honest, in running the post I did Monday, I was actually asking to be a given a compelling reason to vote to exclude. What I got from the wider bloggosphere was the reverse.

And the readership here is quite centre ground.
Abstaining would have suited me, but in the context, there are some who might the me voting to retain as voting to endorse the BNP. It isn't.

Bag-

Anonymous said...

...But nobody who has voted so far in the poll has voted for expulsion...

Really? Seems to me that the vst majority have voted for expulsion and do not accept Wayne's doings.

Anonymous said...

Ah, James, I meant the poll in the sidebar!
I'm aware the tallies elsewhere look different.