Right on the button!

This below was left as a comment, just at the time I was giving some thought to what can be learned from recent events. I couldn’t have put it better myself:

What is becoming clear is that certain individuals/groups would like this blog shut down.

While the likes of Guido Fawkes may well have the financial and legal backing that stops the likes of RMBC from using local tax payer’s money to gag debate, not all blogs enjoy that level of support.

However and there is always a however, a pro-bono legal team may just give RMBC a bloody nose that it just deserves, all those files, minutes, interviews with key staff, whistle blowers, and not to mention the forensic inspection of who knew what and when regarding the culture of RMBC and the CSE scandal.

So to all contributors, please comply with the ground rules of this blog, your actions will ensure that when the fight for the right to speak out comes, this blog will not be found wanting.

This explains why Rotherham Politics has to enforce part of our conditions concerning registration of those who comment on this blog. Put simply, this is how to both register and preserve the confidentiality you may require.

1. Choose an identity, best to keep it short.

2. Email Rothpol rothpol@rikv.net putting register in the subject line and your chosen identity in the body text.

3. When you receive a confirmatory email, you will then be able to comment freely.

Rotherham Politics is a moderated blog , comments are published at the discretion of the moderator. This doesn’t equate to censorship, as Rothpol is prepared to publish comments that are adding to the debate, even if critical of Rotherham Politics!

No one needs to reveal their identity, all Rothpol is asking is to be able to tell everyone apart, nothing else!

Simply use a pseudonym, get a free email account in that name and use it to establish two way communication with me. Hushmail, is both free and secure, and is to be recommended.”

Regular Readers thoughts are relevant here too:

1. Never rely on a saviour galloping into saving your right to free speech.
2. Guido Fawkes blog is hosted on his own off-shore server.
4. As we have been discussing elsewhere on this blog – RMBC cannot use tax-payers money to .gag debate.
The core problem is that this Blog had begun to attract a fair number of people who have simply no interest in keeping this important blog alive but in just loudly spouting their sometimes ugly – without any attempt to involve in debate.
If this blog was to close, they would just move on, whilst we who care about our town and its future would have to start all over again.
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Regarding anon-identity
I make a minimal attempt to protect my identity, but RIk knows well who I am – as do several other contributors etc. I have never changed my forum name- I am “A regular reader” – I just can’t see what the problem is for those who call themselves anonymouse – pure lazyness, lack of imagination ?