A final rant before Christmas
I thought I would share this with you before the holidays. One of the blogs I check from time to time is conspicuously absent from my blogroll. That is Councillor Terry Kelly's blog. The good Councillor represents the people of Whitesbridge, Fischer, Baronscourt and Ferguslie on Renfrewshire Council. The reason that I keep him off my blogroll is that I prefer my readers to have access to coherent writing, that I might not always agree with but I can at least see where the writer is coming from. Councillor Kelly, on the other hand, has decided to throw reason out the window and his blog is little more than a series of rants about groups he doesn't like. This is mainly members of parties other than Labour.
One of his pet rants is that the SNP is both anti-gay and anti-English. This came up once again on this post. I'd like you all to read it and the comments that follow. There would have been another comment at the end. It would have been mine. However, Councillor Kelly was too - what's the adjective? - ah yes, chickenshit to post it. Or at least, has failed in the last 24 hours to notice an argument that completely undermines his rants.
So what has wound me up enough that I would comment on a blog that I don't otherwise give houseroom? Well, it boils down to this. In case it hasn't been totally clear (and in a way I hope it hasn't been, as I try to stay non-partisan when I'm commenting on events), I am a member of the SNP. I'm from England. And I'm gay. So as you can imagine, Kelly's sound and fury is somewhat annoying to me. His main justification for the 'anti-gay' allegation is that Brian Adam, the SNP MSP for Aberdeen North and Holyrood's only Mormon member, arranges internships on behalf of Brigham Young University, a Mormon institution which takes a dim view on homosexuality. Kelly alleges that this personal connection represents an official link between the SNP and BYU. This is wrong: Adam has also helped BYU students to work with MSPs of other parties. Kelly is deliberately misrepresenting the facts to justify his own personal hang-ups. He's also suggesting that BYU students ought not to be allowed the same opportunities as their compatriots on account of their institution's stance on one issue. And he claims to oppose discrimination!
That is why this is the first and last time I intend to link to that vile, odious, deceitful little man's blog on here. He's using my community to defend his own petty hatreds, and lying in order to do it. In fact, all he's ever done is prove the old joke that there are parts of Scotland where people would vote for a monkey if it wore a red rosette. If there is any sense (or if there are any other activists) left in the Labour Party in Renfrewshire they will decline to have him stand as a representative of their Party in the forthcoming Council Elections.
Of course, if the good Councillor wishes to rebut my post on the Comments section, he's more than welcome to. I don't mind having my opinions disputed in public. But he might want to bear in mind that if he spouts more rubbish, he can't stop me from replying to a comment on my own blog. So at least on here, if not on his own magnum opus, he might want to start using his head before he uses his keyboard.
5 comments:
He honestly makes my blood boil. I just don't understand how people can elect him. I fail to grasp how him and his daughter can show themselves up as incoherent fools on their blogs and still be elected.
I couldn't agree more. I could list the homophobic words and actions of Labour councillors when I worked in Inverclyde Council. I don't necessarily think the SNP is perfect in promoting equality issues for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered communities but judging by the fairly high number of us who have been elected within the party's structures and by 4 May by the public to parliament and council chambers, we can hold our head up high. I'm not aware of any gay or lesbian SNP MSPs at present but I think that will change next year. I'm impressed that Iain Smith and Margaret Smith have not been slow in coming out and of course Patrick Harvie is streets ahead in showing the closeted Labour members (and I know of at least two) how to handle politics and your sexuality with dignity, honesty and professionalism. I respect Brian Adam's beliefs as of those from other faiths. However, there is a niggling feeling that one or two use their 'conscience' as an excuse for utterances that go further than just having their say in a debate.
I just think it's ironic that Renfrewshire, which has elected Wendy Alexander to Holyrood (love her or loathe her, she has one of the sharpest minds in the Labour party) and sent her brother Douglas to Westminster (again, no slouch), can also send T.K. to their Council Chamber.
Hopefully, with the advent of STV, Party affiliation alone will no longer be enough for him and he'll have to find a new role in keeping with his abilities.
Of course, you can't help but wonder whether or not people like T.K. would even get near a nomination form, much less a ballot paper, if we had US-style Primary elections to select candidates.
I think there are few in all parties who might struggle if the internal machinations for local adoption of party candidates was opened up to the public or more likely registered party supporters. OMOV was a move in the right direction but the number of sole nominees in 2007 kinda made OMOV obsolete. Where it was used,it provided a more inclusive result than if branch delegates had been left to their own devices.
Labour is indeed the party of choice for Scotland's bigots and homophobes. As for the SNP, they have indeed had at least one bisexual man in a fairly senior position within party ranks.
I am sure his absence now has got nothing to do with his sexuality.
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