Sunday, February 14, 2016

Spannersplanation urgently required for the Spanner-silence

I've just been down with the lurgy for about a fortnight - I think it was two successive colds, and they were both absolutely wretched.  So when I published the now-famous blogpost on Monday that revealed J K Rowling's misogynistic friend "Brian Spanner" had probably been in Ardrossan when he posted on Twitter on 7th July 2015, I didn't hang around to see the reaction - I turned off the computer, watched a DVD for a little while, and then had a nap.  It wasn't until several hours later that I switched on my phone and discovered that all hell had broken loose in the interim, and that Ardrossan was the eighth highest trending topic in the UK on Twitter.  My amusement at the whole thing gradually started to turn to concern when I saw a rather self-righteous chap called Scott Reid say this : "Somewhere (not Ardrossan, presumably), Nicola Sturgeon looks at her phone, silently screams and hits her head off a wall."

Now, don't get me wrong - I was absolutely clear in my mind that the blogpost had been fully justified. If certain journalists are deliberately giving the public a misleading impression of a story by withholding crucial pieces of information, it's vitally important to try to discover why they're doing that. However, I'm not naive enough to think that a justified action can never backfire, and I did accept the uncomfortable possibility that the SNP leadership might have preferred it if people like me had left well enough alone - even if that meant letting sections of the media get away with absolute murder. But thankfully, my fears that I may have unwittingly caused some damage were very quickly dispelled. Correct me if I overlooked anything, but my search for any news headlines the following morning about "Ardrossangate" drew a complete blank, even in Rowling-obsessed gossipy websites like BuzzFeed and the Huffington Post.

Scott Reid and his fellow spannersplainers might want to reflect on this irony : just as it's not possible for J K Rowling to be damaged by her association with Spanner if the media conveniently edit him out of the story, it was also never possible for "Ardrossangate" to harm the SNP in any way if journalists refrained from reporting it due to their determination to protect Spanner. The temptation must have been overwhelming to run mocking, distorted stories about a female Cybernat descending on Ardrossan with a detection-device in one hand and a pitchfork in the other - but, in view of the wider imperatives, they somehow managed to resist it entirely. I did spot one journalist from the local Ardrossan/Saltcoats paper say that he had considered writing a light-hearted piece about the subject, but had decided against it because no-one would have had a sodding clue what he was talking about.

And the wall of silence continues. Just a few hours ago, a news website ran a piece about Natalie McGarry's return to Twitter, and regurgitated the story of her spat with Rowling in a typically one-sided fashion. The misogynistic Mr Spanner was referred to several times - but only indirectly as an "anonymous tweeter", and never by name. I suspect that will have left anyone who doesn't use Twitter with the false impression that no name at all, even a fake one, was ever attached to Spanner's tweets. It drives a coach and horses through Jamie Ross' insistence that the reason Spanner had been edited out of events by journalists was that Rowling and McGarry were the only two people of interest in the story. As it turns out, he's important enough to be mentioned repeatedly, but he absolutely mustn't be named. Why? Spanner is a bogus identity, so there can't possibly be any credible privacy considerations. It's very, very hard to escape the conclusion that a decision has been reached that as little attention as humanly possible should be drawn to Spanner's Twitter account. OK, if members of the public are absolutely determined to locate it, they can't be stopped, but they're not going to receive any encouragement or assistance at all in that direction - presumably because of what they'd find when they get there (both in terms of the content of the account, and the prominent public figures who have very visibly interacted with him and continue to do so).

If there's an alternative spannersplanation, I'd be delighted to hear it from Scott Reid, or Professor James Chalmers, or Jamie Ross, or any of the others. But I have to say I'm really struggling to think of one.

Incidentally, I've been taking another look at this blog's stats. Here are the top ten most viewed blogposts, out of the 2500 or so I've written since May 2008 -



As you can see, two posts from the last couple of weeks, both about Spanner, are already in the top five for all-time page views. It seems that there are at least a good few thousand people out there who beg to differ when they're patted on the head by establishment figures, and told that they wouldn't be remotely interested in hearing the uncensored version of what the Rowling-McGarry dispute was actually about.

28 comments:

  1. No worries James! The only people banging their heads against a wall are the Yoonies AKA Spanneristas.
    Their smugness and self conceit has exposed them as rather grubby sad little people.
    Never mind every time look at my UNC or UNF "King Dick" (Birmingham Tool Company) imperial spanners I laugh out loud.

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  2. I've been taking every opportunity to insult and laugh at @brianpanner1 including sly digs at Jakey, and any other YOONS who retweet his drivel because I know they will not attack me. Childish? Of course! But no more childish than Spanner and the Hackery, and it gives me pleasure. What else in life is required?

    Indeed, @brianspanner gave me the honour of retweeting a tweet of mine in quote form. One where I wrote that Kenny Farquharson was an irrelevant nonentity in Scotland. Presumably Spanner thought people might think it was a stupid tweet. But since Kenny F has joined the London Times with a circulation of only 18,000 in Scotland preaching to the converted he IS a nonentity.

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  3. It's about time they weird little unknown journalists who 99% of the population have never even heard off and probably don't read their crap accepted the fact that what they think is news (attacking personalities and so called cybernats) hardly raises eyebrows in the vast majority of households.
    Scottish journalism is rank, it's really desperate stuff when rubbish print stuff on individuals who none of us have heard off because they tweeted some stupid tweet on twitter towards an MP of opposing views at around 3am viewed by about 4 people and yet this sort of guff makes headlines news!! Little wonder less and less of us are buying print and take to social media where journalists can be challenged.
    That's the whole crux of the matter...journalists think they are above everyone else yet Joe blogs with half a brain and second hand laptop can easily challenge them thanks to social media and the internet.
    Happy days. Big Tom in the BarL

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  4. I'd like to know why public traffic was delayed for weeks on a busy Edinburgh street, simply to trim a monstrous leylandii hedge surrounding a house owned by... well let's call it "Riddle House", shall we?

    Under the 'High Hedges (Scotland) Act', effected April 2014, the Council can cut nuisance hedges (over 2 metres high) down to size.

    Pity the neighbour who dared complain to 'She Who Must Not Be Named!' They'd find themselves in Azkaban quicker than they could point their wand at the hedge & shout, 'Diminuendo!' (shrinking spell).

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    Replies
    1. This mystery person sounds a bit Death Eater-ish to me.

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  5. Have there been any more developments concerning Rowling's threat to sue Natalie McGarry?

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    Replies
    1. No, it all seems to have gone quiet on that front.

      Delete
  6. The main thing about all this James is that they know that we know.

    It really doesn't look well for McHolm or his chumps if his unflattering pic on Scotland on Sunday is anything to go by.

    He knows we know.

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  7. The main thing about all this James is that they know that we know.

    It really doesn't look well for McHolm or his chumps if his unflattering pic on Scotland on Sunday is anything to go by.

    He knows we know.

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  8. McColm has not denied it It is not his birthday, some have many. There are others...

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  9. Glasgow Working ClassFebruary 14, 2016 at 9:18 PM

    Let us get back to real politics and leave the drivel behind. Why do the Nat sis think they speak for all the Scottish people regarding the EU referendum. I am for oot and suspect many more agree. The Nat sis speak for themselves. Hopefully the Scottish people will vote for oot and
    really sicken the Nat sis. A double whammy could be on the cards for the for them. Finish the Tory imposters aff fur good.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Glasgow Working ClassFebruary 14, 2016 at 10:28 PM

      You could end up greetin yer eyes oot David (former pretend socialist). Not be long now before we find out so have your laugh now.

      Delete
    2. McGibbon, your rhetoric gets more ridiculous and desperate by the hour.

      You are losing, pal.........and you know it.


      Dram Time!

      Delete
    3. Glasgow Working ClassFebruary 14, 2016 at 11:08 PM

      Nein Mein Herr it is you Nat sis who are desperate with nothing to offer the Scottish people except moaning and crawling tae Europe. The wee dram is a good idea.

      Delete
    4. Glasgow Working ClassFebruary 14, 2016 at 11:20 PM

      Achtung Mein Herr. It is a clear choice which means voting Yes when the Referendum comes.

      Delete
    5. The Scottish People certainly ain't as thick as you are and will not vote for your Party (ies) in anything other than derisory percentages.

      Scotland and Unionism are drifting apart.....but, again, you know all this.

      That's the only reason you are constantly venting your spleen on here.

      The more you Lose, the more you spout.

      Spout away, son.....it will change absolutely zilch.

      Now..... Glenfiddich or Glen Grant?

      Or both?

      Delete
    6. Glasgow Working ClassFebruary 14, 2016 at 11:36 PM

      Of course the Scottish people are not tick they voted Naw so you ur ra sad loser. Being an Eastender any Glen wull dae even lannie or 365.

      Delete
    7. Get up do date, sucker.

      Stop living in the past - like your Party(ies).

      Scotland NOW is kicking yer fat arse.

      Delete
    8. Glasgow Working ClassFebruary 14, 2016 at 11:52 PM

      Ok David auld yin I will stick tae a malt fae noo oan.

      Delete
  10. It is perhaps interesting that the Fantasy / Unionist nexus wishes to keep it a secret. They have enormous bravado when it comes to 'revealing' Nattalie McGarrie as a person that is against fgm. They have, otoh, an ability to hide in the secret forest when it comes to their identity. Though their views are there for all to see.

    It is a bit of a conundrum.

    Whilst I have always posted under my own name, mainly because it stops me from adopting a personality that I am not, but also because it keeps me straight. Our Mr Spanner would have to be a completely horrible individual to believe the tripe he has posted. So, Mr Spanner is playing with us, much as 'shock jocks' on US radio did a decade ago.

    They, at least didn't have the ability to hide behind anonymity. Their more ridiculous pronouncements met with a flood of hatred.

    I think, on balance, that no-one should be permitted to use social media behind a hidden identity.

    It just seems that it allows out the back brain recluse, the nasty side of human nature. Unmediated by the sort of direct confrontation that would happen in most social circles.

    Perhaps that is the circle that new media has to square?

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    1. Glasgow Working ClassFebruary 14, 2016 at 11:58 PM

      douglas clark. I wonder how many opportunist Nat sis or pretend Nat sis jumped the Nat si bandwagon to get to Westminster to enhance their personal lifestyles with the 73k a year. They are now all on board taking the Queens Shilling. They may fool you.

      Delete
    2. As far as I can see, the mainstream media has two different attitudes to anonymity on social media. Either -

      a) You lose your right to anonymity if you say anything abusive or even mildly rude - if you do that, you should expect to tracked down and exposed. (That was the Daily Mail attitude when they did the Graham Grant 'Cybernat' article.)

      or

      b) You lose your right to anonymity if you say anything abusive or rude, and you happen to be a public figure in real life. If both of those factors apply, you should expect to be tracked down and exposed. (That was the attitude of almost the entire media over the Paco McSheepie case.)

      Even if b) applies, you do of course have to do some investigating to establish whether the person is a public figure or not. We could innocently ask why no such investigation has taken place in this case, but the likelihood is that many journalists knew from the word go that Spanner is a public figure of some sort, and indeed knew exactly who he is. The double-standard stinks to high heaven, and I'm getting a bit sick of certain people (including one or two people I previously had a lot of time for) implying that I'm a lunatic for simply pointing that out.

      Delete
    3. Oh, and I've just spotted another one (not that I ever had much respect for him in the first place) : Lib Dem tweeter Fraser Whyte has declared on the basis of this blogpost that I am a "twat", and his mate reckons I'm a "nutjob". Yup, that's pretty much the level of civilised discourse I'd expect from the Lib Dems these days.

      But at least, unlike some, he has the guts to post the mindless abuse under his own name...

      Delete
  11. Glasgow working class. any chance of a peek at your cv.

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    Replies
    1. Glasgow Working ClassFebruary 15, 2016 at 1:01 AM

      In the old days you went fur a joab got interviewed and got started or a knock back. Then moved on. Nae Nat si moaning and hard dun tae stories. Scotland under the Nat sis will be a failure and our people humiliated like the Greek's. We are made of better stuff..

      Delete
  12. Has Spanner been reading you?

    Perhaps he has.
    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-3404257/Why-Brexit-poll-England-s-accidental-ballot-Scotland-leaving-UK.html

    Spanner hates UKIP/Brexit, likes things just as they are, except in Scotland.

    http://capx.co/not-everything-can-be-decided-with-a-view-to-pleasing-the-scots/

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