Spectator Reports on Bapthorpe Affair

SarahLeah. Goodness, we are taking a stroll down memory lane. He was repeatedly banned wasn’t he, both before and after he threatened Petra Bigman. If you remember he used to reappear with new moniker’s, some tolerated for long periods until he’d go bonkers again then they’d be forced to re-ban him. Berchman’s is stretching credulity even for him when he moans Khartoumi was vulnerable and threatened ! Khartoumi was happily published by the Guardian using his own name and never ruddy stopped sending threats.

Yes it is Sababa. That’s why I’m happy to congratulate this site on raising the issue. Charles Moore said it – ‘ What community is the Guardian creating.’

PBUH and his Eight year old wife.

Ami

” of course Berchman has never been banned at all”

Yes this has surprised me as well. He was warned twice.. once for saying ” I wanted to be a Zionist but my folks were wed”. I thought it was funny.. He cant remember the other time … he thinks he snapped when called an anti Semite …it is a disgusting and calculated smear … and it is self fulfilling ..you certainly start to hate the pathetic ghouls that use this to cover Israels violence.

I guess the 100 plus posts Berchmans posted specifically condemning Hamas violence and the hundreds and hundreds of posts calling for unconditional peace…I guess that did the trick.

He says he could not get banned now if he tried… he’s become part of the furniture.

@ margie isnt cifwatch a grassroots unaffilated group that is neither left wing nor right wing, religious or secular

Is it common for non-muslims to append “pbuh” after referring to muhammad/mohammed/the prophet? It just appears cringeworthy and patronising to me.

You’re right. They shoud instead append SBUH.

The Spectator 30 January 2010 edition from my hard copy of the magazine(I really can’t find a link the letters page on the website): letter from Chris Elliott, Managing Editor, Guardian News & Media:

Sir: I am sorry Charles Moore published the repellent comment from ‘William Bagthorpe’ in his column (The Spectator’s Notes, 16 January) since it was removed from the Guardian’s Comment is Free site as soon as our moderators were made aware of it, seven minutes after it was posted. We do not tolerate comments like this and our site-wide moderation approach should mean that anyone posting them is placed in quarantine pending a review of the individual comment as well as their posting record, which can lead to a permanent ban.

Regrettably (and unusually) in this case, because ‘Bagthorpe’ was a poster with no history of breaching our talk policy (he is in fact a regular contributor to other news websites including the Daily Telegraph’s where he can be found posting on Charles Moore’s articles), he was not quarantined as quickly as he should have been. We’re currently reviewing procedures.
Chris Elliott

Damage limitation exercise demonstrating all those Guardian qualities we have come to know and love. Procedures are being reviewed – yes, that reminds me; whatever happened to the Style Editor’s (or whatever s/he is called) adjudication on the term ‘moral imbecile’?