Councilors Resign En Masse Because of Blogger
Eleven councilors in England staged a mass resignation following critique from a blogger.
The Guardian reports that eleven out of fifteen councilors in a Somerset local authority have resigned "en masse" in protest against a barrage of criticism from blogger Niall Connolly.
The Guardian cites Councilor Ian Neale as saying the Muck & Brass blog was "probably the catalyst" for the walkout, which occurred on Tuesday. Previously, Niall Connolly had referred to several members of the council as "jackasses" and compared one of the council's leaflets to, "a Nazi call to arms."
"He comes to meetings, takes copious notes then goes back to his computer and makes criticisms," said Neale.
Of course, Connolly has blogged about the events of Tuesday night, labeling the mass resignation a 'Berlin Wall' moment and said "stunning news" of the Vice Chair's resignation "was greeted by the audience with rapturous applause."
"The Vice Chair stood up, put on his jacket and started a brief speech about how he was sick and tired of something or other and how he was going to leave it all up to the Town," writes Connolly. "At that point it seemed like he was presenting his resignation and this stunning news was greeted by the audience with rapturous applause."
The blogger goes on to say that one by one, the majority of the board stood up to give the Vice Chair his or her own verbal resignation.
"This seemed to trigger of a convulsion of action on the part of most of the rest of the council. As one they rose up and the Chair was subject to a proverbial avalanche of resignation letters before he himself resigned," Connolly writes, adding, "As the sheep filed out, a euphoria spread through the hall and everyone there shared their own 'Berlin Wall' moment. Freedom. Heady days indeed."
Read the full story here.
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So what was the issue Connolly had with the council?
So what was the issue Connolly had with the council?
I think your name contains an adjective describing how most of us felt after reading this article.
This must mean a lot more to those that live on the Small Islands near Europe.
Come on now precarious..."of" is a preposition...
A ray of hope for Ron Paul supporters!!
I think your name contains an adjective describing how most of us felt after reading this article.
His name doesn't contain any adjectives. But yes, I think this article is centered around an issue that most people here know nothing about. It could have used a bit more clarification.
Well, since Jane M. is Irish, it probably means something to her.
It would be nice to know what were the issues over which there was disagreement, and why these people gave so much weight to what this specific blogger wrote.
Of course, you can always just randomly tap buttons on your keyboard and hope it comes out to an article.
It would be nice to know what were the issues over which there was disagreement, and why these people gave so much weight to what this specific blogger wrote.Of course, you can always just randomly tap buttons on your keyboard and hope it comes out to an article.
Works for 90% of the interwebs, excluding myself of course.
This must mean a lot more to those that live on the Small Islands near Europe.
I think the fact that a single blogger can have such an effect means a lot, no matter what the location.
Well, it'd be nice to know what the whole thing was about. Was this guy just the UK-blogging equivalent of Rush Limbaugh, heckling government for whatever no-good reason? Was there some kind of legitimate controversy over the council's behavior?
I think the fact that a single blogger can have such an effect means a lot, no matter what the location.
Yes, England could use some men in black to deal with individual such as this.
BTW, happy Halloween. Don't know if the smaller island further away from Europe celebrate this but happy weekend.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/program [...] 335153.stm
Pretty much, if the councilors are speaking truthfully, the blogger is calling the council members various names, such as rascists, or "The Ugly Sisters," in regards to two of the council members.
Of course, the blogger says that the hostility aimed at the council is really generated by their own ineptitude, and not his blog.
I really had no idea what this article was about without any form of context.
I wish I could be a big enough jackass (I mean this in a good way) to have half my city council to resign. No more spending money on stupid endeavors that only benefit a minority of people.
This guy seems like a pretty awesome troll.
^ no it doesnt...
This guy seems like a pretty awesome troll.
+1. Kanye West and this guy play golf together.
Heres the link to the blog http://muckandbrass.blogspot.com/ . ,, I think this is about a board that has mismanaged money from a town for the past ten years for there own interests , you know the saying " power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely" . The counsel was pushing somethng the town opposed and it was the straw that broke the camels back so to speak, its a win for the man who published the blog,as he got his community involved and changed the downward spiral the town was heading ,
Something to mention about the blogger is how I read about his windows getting smashed and car torched on fire by some people who were displeased about his blogging I wonder who they could have been ,perhaps one of the twelve that left the counsel.
This guy seems like a pretty awesome troll.
+1
Something to mention about the blogger is how I read about his windows getting smashed and car torched on fire by some people who were displeased about his blogging I wonder who they could have been ,perhaps one of the twelve that left the counsel.
The Twelve That Left The Counsel.
Creepy name. Nice.
Yup, it's easy to criticize. Let him come up with a better idea, a better solution, a better plan, and he'll come up empty. Empty cans make a lot of noise.
What place does this news have in a magazine dedicated to hardware.
I believe it is because it has something to do with blogging or whatever. Never the less, I would be curious to know what the rest of the citizens thought of the council. People like this guy who blogs, etc... never have their own answers, they simply just know how to complain.
So you're saying it's wrong to complain about such things? Who cares if this guy didn't have any other ideas, he wasn't part of the council, that's why you elect people who are capable of coming up with more ideas.
I agree with the blogger's right to protest.
^+1
You don't have to already know how to make something right when you know something is wrong.
The blog kicked off in November 2006 when Town Councillors made it clear that the community, whose money they spend, would have no say in a community hall project.
It shifted up a few gears in September 2008 when the Town Council announced that they were selling off land which had been purchased as the site for a community hall and were, instead, buying an industrial shed on the edge of the town. The community were not consulted, the project has now swallowed £1.3M and the town don't use the hall because it is too expensive, although the community have paid for it.
All through this story, one particular councillor has business interests which conflict with his position as a town councillor yet the rest of the Council followed along like sheep.
What really brought things to a head were two planning applications which the Town Council tried to push through without consulting those most affected ie the community. At the last meeting 160+ residents showed up, asked tough questions, and the councillors resigned, with pre-prepared statements blaming the blogger. But it was the community that made the difference. The blogger was a side-show, a distraction.
The best media coverage was on BBC2's Newsnight programme with Michael Crick. You can find it on his blog under the title 'Somerton Suiciders' and he compares the problems in Somerton with the larger problems in Westminster.
Regards and best wishes.
Niall
The story has faded into the dim and distant past but another chapter has been added with the publication of the External Auditor's Report in the Public Interest. This catalogues the failings of Somerton Town Council within fiscal 2008/9. The Report describes what may have been "unlawful expenditure" and "abuse of Public funds". The documents are on the Audit Commission website and the story is available at www.muckandbrass.blogspot.com Its a minor story but it describes abuses at the ground floor of our UK democracy.