It looks like Draper has been well and truly shackled by the Labour powers that be. Having tried to start a war with me and Guido Fawkes, he then moved onto Alex Hilton. He reportedly issued verbal threats against Hilton, warning him that unless Hilton withdrew from MessageSpace and stopped being a friend of Guido Fawkes, he would trash his relationship in the Labour Party. Hilton fought back and, without actually naming Draper, posted on LabourHome [posts now deleted] that he had been threatened. Oh how these boys must miss their student union days.
Anyway, this morning, it appears that Draper was carpeted and told to back down. This afternoon he and Hilton issued THIS comradely statement on their respective websites. So, two apologies in three days for Draper. Not bad going.
They say things come in threes. All he has to do now is apologise to me for accusing me of condoning racism, and all will be well with the world. He knows he went too far. Enough of his own colleagues have told him so. But I'm not holding my breath.
And an apology is needed for
ReplyDeletehttp://www.order-order.com/
Two out of three ain't bad but it's not enough.
Hand on heart, I really do feel sorry for his wife.
ReplyDelete"Hello dear, so what did you get up to today?"
"Well I called someone a racist, threatened one of my colleagues and generally made a lot of enemies for the Labour Party. You?
Perfect Newspeak
ReplyDeleteAlex "Winston" Hilton deletes history and falls back in love with Big Brother.
Come and pick a fight with me Draper. I DARE you. It won't be pretty. I don't tolerate advertisers telling what I can say.
mr draper pants....will you be my window?
ReplyDeleteLabourlust for Glory. Is it a car crash, or some kind of giant roller-coaster, specially designed to make the passengers sick with fear?
ReplyDeletePff, I'm going to hardcore trol everything Draper does like a good internet geek, as will many other people, just because we can't and he's a complete tool
ReplyDeletefrom the politburo's joint communique... "Dozens of great blogs, including Labourhome, Go Fourth and LabourList..."
ReplyDeleteJudging by the order of blogs in that list Alex won. Great soap-opera, mind.
The only purpose the Daily Dolly can serve is to shore up the core Labour vote.
ReplyDeleteWho else is it supposed to appeal to?
Am I the only person in the world who Dolly hasn't demanded an apology from? I feel left out.
ReplyDeleteWho else is it supposed to appeal to?
ReplyDelete----------------
Draper's many, many alter egos including his several from Berkley!
An apology is needed from The Labour Party to The Nation!
ReplyDeleteStanislav - Gordon the Ruiner, part two
ReplyDeleteDraper may be stamping on the brakes but it's too late, the car is already on the roof.
ReplyDeleteYet while he is beyond rescue, will somebody explain the Alex Hilton bit?
Had there been any doubt about who had threatened Hilton, this joint statement would seem to remove it.
But why this reconciliation (which few will believe) when the issues that divided them have not changed? Is it because somebody in the Labour Party with real clout has made further threats or certain promises?
Let's have the full story.
Whatever the case it must have Dave grinning from ear to ear.
I posted back on LabourHome when I heard this earlier today and whilst glad the hatchet is buried, and Dolly named as an apologist, it stinks.
ReplyDeleteBoth articles delelted a la rewriting of history. *Bleugh*
Yes, and not read anything here; but can Draper apologise for being a true "ah-hah", because that is what he is in reality (and more to the point in imagination)?
ReplyDeleteThe launch of his Labour-site has been embarrassing for the UK: it has been kindergarten-cops with way too much sherbet, honeyed with excessive amounts of vinegar...
Pff, Derek, you have been denied.
They have got and continue to get hits from both you and Guido, anybody with half a brain knows you would be just about the last person in the UK to be declared a racist, but from a non story he has achieved a huge number of hits. The apparent chaos all feels a bit orchestrated by someone more sophisticated than Mr Draper.
ReplyDeleteNo doubt another Draper inspired Caper will surface to try and get site Traffic! Labour are doomed - DOOMED at the next election. They will be ripped asunda by the electorate.
ReplyDeleteGood to see that at last senior members of the Labour Party are addressing the more important issue facing the country
ReplyDeleteI don't think Alex has won, Iain. Far from it, even if Alex thinks he has made a noble compromise.
ReplyDeleteThe history has been erased on LabourHome. Draper has won.
This, for Draper, is an Islamic "truce". Draper clearly reserves the right to restart this Messagespace issue at a time of his choosing at a point of Alex's highest inconvenience. No real fault has been accepted by Draper, in fact he implies Alex is still mistaken.
If Alex had won, Draper would have been told that it was off limits and forced to promise to keep away eternally and withdraw.
However, I still stand by my comments when this first broke that Draper is at least being transparently Authoritarian and Totalitarian. That is, in a way, more "honest". He is an enemy OUTSIDE the gates and you can see him and he makes no bones about it.
It is the other kind who are the real danger to us IMHO.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that I find most depresssing about all this is that such puerile dickheads should be in a position to have even the slightest amount of influence over anything a major political party does.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't employ them to make the tea!
the old communist tradition of airbrushing those who had fallen from grace out of the group photo on top of the mausoleum seems to be alive and well just applied to blogs and bloggers in 2009!!!
ReplyDeletei am more and more certain that the blogs in labourlist are written by the same people who write 'prime ministerial degree' in private eye
ReplyDeletethe same hectoring tone ,lack of contact with reality, space used to fight battles with revisionists and backsliding foes within the party.
come on hislop own up - it is you isn't it !
The great thing about the internet is that nothing can be deleted forever! Surely there's some computer geek out there who can retrieve the missing links?
ReplyDeleteThis lot belong is cold-war Russia; so much for the Brownite era of no spin!
1. Can I ask that we keep wives and families out of this without being called a fascist?
ReplyDelete2. Iain, what's your position on Labourhome deleting two conversations/threads like they never happened? In my experience, this has only been regarded as acceptable if shouty lawyers are involved (and even then a notice/placemarker is usually called for) or - maybe, at a strictly community level - if everyone who invested in the conversation agrees it's for the best.
My view on the deletion of threads is that it should not have happened. Bitter things were said in those threads so it's quite clear Draper demanded it as part of the deal. Deleting threads is pointless because there will always be someone out there who can find it hidden in a cache. But it's the principle that stinks. I suspect the only way I would ever do such a thing is if I was advised to by a lawyer for reasons of libel. Luckily, it's never happened.
ReplyDeleteIain: We appear to have similar positions, then.
ReplyDeleteOh, and Shamik (missed you there, sorry) I have copies of both threads in their entirety, because I'm in the habit of saving copies of conversations hosted by unprincipled types (who often resort to retro-moderation, and later denying that X or Y was said/done).
But right now I'm merely trying (and failing) to get Alex Hilton and/or Jag Singh to answer this simple question on the subject of principles:
"Is it the policy of Labourhome that inconvenient conversations will be disappeared down the memory hole as if they never happened?"
If that's their policy, then fine(ish); I'll know where I stand and I probably won't trust Labourhome with my time/effort/content again.
I just want to hear them admit it, is all. They can always delete it later.
iain
ReplyDeleteI fear that by giving this little twerp almost as much coverage on your blog as the prime minister or david cameron, you are just playing dolly draper's game.
He operates on the principle that no publicity is bad publicity.
So long as he is causing controversy, he is a player in the game.
Why not try a moratorium on Derek Draper? Never mention his name, his useless blog or any synthetic spats he may have with colleagues. Just ignore him for, say, six months and see what happens.
Iain
ReplyDeleteBut has he made you 'squeal like a pig' as he alleged?
Cheers Tim! Great stuff!
ReplyDeleteTom: agree with you entirely! Draper sounds like one of those people who just can't bear not to be talked about; it'll really, really piss him off if we all ignore him for a while. Or forever.
Iain Dale said: "But I'm not holding my breath."
ReplyDeleteJudging by every photo I have ever seen of Derek Draper, holding your breath while in close proximity to him would appear to be exactly what you should be doing.
Having thought about this joint communiqué long and hard, the only people who have come out of this with any credit and respect are you, Iain,and also Guido.
ReplyDeleteYou were both wrongly accused of being racist (an accusation which, from Jag Singh, brought genuine and well-deserved wrath down upon the head of Draper) and now Alex Hilton and Derek Draper are both trying to pretend that no threats were issued by Draper (or anyone) against Alex Hilton, that had any threats been issued, why, they have been expunged from history, so all is well with the world!
Well, no it isn't. History has a nasty habit of being expunge-lite, in that once it is out there, it stays out there. Available for all to see.
Both Draper and Hilton come out of this smelling like rose fertiliser, whilst you and Guido smell more like roses.
Wot Tom Catesby said.
ReplyDelete