Labour's ministry of truth in action again.

It wouldn't surprise me if the Department of Homeland Oppression has
encouraged the police to harass photographers. Otherwise, they'd have to
suppress the photos for 70 years, like the David Kelly post mortem report.

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/culture...nt-photograph/

Labour seems to have forgotten one of the first principles of
crowd-sourcing: the crowd may see things very differently from you.

The party has launched a social media campaign, entitled “Change we
see�, which asks people to share photographs of buildings that
illustrate Labour’s achievements since 1997. They hoped for images of
hospitals, schools, Sure Start centers and the like.

Instead, photographers have pointed out that one change they have seen is
a rise in the number of stop and searches by the police. So instead of
adding pretty pictures of their local hospital to the Flickr group, they
have uploaded copies of the stop and search forms they were given while
trying to take photos in public places.

Last Saturday, 2,000 photographers travelled to Trafalgar Square to
protest against police use of anti-terrorism legislation to stop and
search people taking pictures in public. Politicians still seem to
struggle to understand that social media is as much about listening as it
is about talking to people.

In the time it’s taken me to write this blog, worker bees have busily
removed images from the campaign’s Flickr pool. But how long do you
think it will be before more appear?!

Update: Labour has now deleted a discussion started by gnasheruk and has
locked the group so that no one can start a new discussion. And, as Jono
Warren pointed out, some troublesome soul has started a “Change we are
not allowed to see� Flickr group.

Phil Stovell wrote:
> Labour seems to have forgotten one of the first principles of
> crowd-sourcing: the crowd may see things very differently from you.
>
> The party has launched a social media campaign, entitled "Change we
> see", which asks people to share photographs of buildings that
> illustrate Labour's achievements since 1997. They hoped for images of
> hospitals, schools, Sure Start centers and the like.
>
> Instead, photographers have pointed out that one change they have seen is
> a rise in the number of stop and searches by the police. So instead of
> adding pretty pictures of their local hospital to the Flickr group, they
> have uploaded copies of the stop and search forms they were given while
> trying to take photos in public places.

I forecast a mass outbreak of humourless censorship, followed by facebook
backlash and widespread satirisation on HIGNFY etc.

These people can't evn run an efficient police state....

On 26 Jan, 22:57, "Steve Walker" <spam-t> wrote:
> Phil Stovell wrote:
>>
> I forecast a mass outbreak of humourless censorship, followed by facebook
> backlash and widespread satirisation on HIGNFY etc.
>
> These people can't evn run an efficient police state....


Former Irish Prime Minster Bertie Ahern's view -

In Ireland, we photographers are totally puzzled, we haven't a clue
about this photographer-harrassent in the UK . Or what on Earth it's
all about ?

Former Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern , chatted to a few of us
photographers a month ago after he had completed signing his book in
the local bookshop . He is a genuine close friend to this day of Tony
Blair, since they worked all-nighters together in the Stormont
Parliament building outside Belfast, putting in all-night stints in
Dublin and Downing Street too, to successfully bring a lasting
peace to Northern Ireland, in which, whatever else about them ( Bertie
is corrupt and had to resign ) . I asked Bertie, who I had first
photographed as Irish Government Chief Whip back in 1981, what he
thought of his friend Tony Blair not getting the EU Presidency :

" It's terrible, Tony is paying for that stupid foolish war in Iraq,
and rightly so, and also for turning his back on the British working
classes" Bertie told us, " It's sad, it's bad for us in Ireland as
Tony would have been great for Ireland as EU President ! I feel sorry
for him as a friend . "

A fellow photographer asked Bertie what he thought of all the
photographer persecution in England :

" it's like this" , Bertie mused thoughtfully, " any British
government, once elected, usually proceeds to do the opposite to what
the people want, you just have to look at their history going way back
to see that , they operate on a very different basis to the way we do.
They've let down the people terribly, they've done worse things than
the Tories would ever do - giving people fifty-odd quid a week to
exist on the Dole, for instance, that's inhuman , but the English
people will take things like that, they're different than us Irish,
they're far more regimented ! I trebled Irish social welfare
payments win my time as Taoiseach ( Irish Prime Minister ), the
British actually halved their social security payments in real terms
in that time, I'm proud of what I done for the weakest and most
vulnerable sections of society , our social security payments here in
Ireland are the envy of Europe today, the envy of every coutry i the
world ! "

" And though I don't generally know about the situation of their
treatment of photographers, from what little I've read and heard about
it , it would of course in the eyes of a democratic country like
Ireland, a fair-minded people like the Irish People, amount to an
abomination , it couldn't happen here, no Irish Government would want
to, or even dare to, interfere with the rights and freedoms of the
people like that, anyway it would be in direct contravention of our
written Constitution under Article 40 which guarantees Freedom of
Expression to all citizens , so to even attempt anything like that,
would be unconstitutional , it couldn't happen here, never, and no
irish Government would ever stand for it .

" Personally I wouldn't, as all my political career, no matter what
they say about me being corrupt - I'm not and I'll prove that yet ! -
I have always relaxed in the company of photographers afterwards, I
find photographers to be very relaxing people, not journalists, no, no
way, but photographers, yes.. Photographers are " Joe Soaps " like me,
that's why I feel at home amongst you photographers, whether you're
British or fellow Ir ish or whatever, we're all the one - and you
work damned hard to make a living too, I've always seen that and I'm
acutely aware of that fact . I just don't know what the British
Government are up to against photographers, of all people, I don't
blame the Police , they have to do what they're told, just as they
have to here in Ireland.

" But I can't see this coming from Tony, he's not petty -minded like
that, it must have been someone else that ordered it , please tell
your British colleagues that I've said this if it will help, they've
always been very good and kind to me too, I'll also bring it up to
Tony next time we meet, whenever, socially , but he would have no
power left now, no more than I have . "

( word for word - I had my camera mike switched on ! ) .

Michael .

On 9 Feb, 03:30, "Michael McGrath, Portraitist ."
<photographerofkilke> wrote:
[..]
> your British colleagues that I've said this if it will help, they've
> always been very good and kind to me too, I'll also bring it up to
> Tony next time we meet, whenever, socially , but he would have no
> power left now, no more than I have . "
>
> ( word for word - I had my camera mike switched on ! ) .
>
> Michael .- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

Bertie, is, of course, running for election for President of Ireland
in two years time, when Mary McAleese retires, so he's anxious to have
the backing of every photographer on the planet , especially all
photgraphers on all the English national newspapers that have mass
circulation in Ireland . When I asked him, he confirmed this and
smiled that famous Bertie Smile, " - he's a man of massive personal
charisma !

He also said that he is free to criticise the British Governent, or
any government, on civil and human rights matters, said that the
Photographers Persecution in the UKcomes under personal and civil
rights, though he hadn't studied it enough yet ( Bertie always leaves
a backdoor for a quick exit ! ) they are entitlled to criticise us if
we acted ' so abominably '

- importantly he confirmed to us, and in his book, that he strongly
advised his friend Tony Blair, in private, not to go to war in
Iraq ! And that " sadly for Tony " his ( Bertie's ) advice was not
taken . Bertie told us that Tony Blair had " magical qualities " in
dealing face tio face with the Unionists in Northern Ireland , " Tony
accomplished a really tough job there and should never be forgotten by
the British or Irish people for the Peace he brought. the two of us
working together as is traditional now between British and Irish
Governments - and then he went and ruined it all with the Iraq War !
" and that Tony Blair should have used those fabulous qualitieshe
undoubtedly and indispuably has " in trying to persuade President
Bush at the time not to go to war in Iraq . "

Asked by me afterwards about what would happen in the British
Government - Photographers confrontation, Bertie smiled as he said
quietly :

" You should know that, Michael, The photographers will win, with the
total support of all their bosom and boozing pals thoughout the entire
media, that's a foregone conclusion ! The only people who don't know
that are the British Governent !!! "

And Bertie Ahern laughed outright .


Michael .