By Way Of The Fantasy

Out the blue last night, someone whom I used to know well, but about whom I had rather forgotten, posted something utterly bizarre about me on his Facebook page. He even tagged me. Then he blocked me as soon as I corrected him in the comments, so I do not know whether it is still there. But thanks to a couple of friends, here are screenshots of it.

If it is still there, then this is the link, and the text reads:

I have 288 mutual friends with David Lindsay. You might know about his spell inside for putting a bounty on the heads of Durham County councillors & then perverting the cause of justice.

But you should also be aware that, during the 2019 election* (when he stood against Laura Pidcock as an independent) he said that Laura, Daniel (Laura’s partner at the time) and I were part of a terrorist cell - in print, on his blog.

In addition, he completely misrepresented my role in the Durham Teaching Assistant Dispute, calling me Ben Sellout (ok, that was reasonably witty) but spreading ridiculous rumours which were hugely damaging. He also sent a letter to Durham police, Guido Fawkes & Jeremy Corbyn amongst others alleging that I and others at the People’s Bookshop were members of Mossad & MI5.

There are times to laugh about this stuff, and there are times when I think the left are very naive.

*By the way, he got 414 votes (probably some by way of the fantasy that he was the champion of the Durham TAs). Laura lost by just over 1,000.

Here we go, then.

I have 288 mutual friends with David Lindsay.

My friend count had not gone down 24 hours after Ben posted that, when I accepted a request from a left-wing stalwart.

You might know about his spell inside for putting a bounty on the heads of Durham County councillors & then perverting the cause of justice.

That was not in itself why I went to prison. If, as he pointedly does not say, Ben believes in my guilt, then he is the only person whom I have ever met who does, and I have not seen him since before even my first trial, never mind the one at which I was convicted.

But you should also be aware that, during the 2019 election* (when he stood against Laura Pidcock as an independent) he said that Laura, Daniel (Laura’s partner at the time) and I were part of a terrorist cell - in print, on his blog.

I made no such claim about him, or about Laura (whose office manager Ben was when she was my MP), or about Daniel Kebede, the incoming General Secretary of the National Education Union, and none of them has ever mentioned it before. Nor has anyone else. Where is the blogpost to which Ben refers? Search this site for "Laura Pidcock terrorist cell", and nothing comes up. Well, of course it doesn't. I happened to run into Laura and Daniel only a few weeks ago, and the exchange was more than civil. It always is with them. At last year's Durham Miners' Gala, Daniel specifically asked me to blog in support of his candidacy for General Secretary. I did.

In addition, he completely misrepresented my role in the Durham Teaching Assistant Dispute, calling me Ben Sellout (ok, that was reasonably witty)

Well, that is a matter of opinion. I advised the Teaching Assistants to campaign in 2017 for the candidates best placed to defeat Labour in each ward of Durham County Council. Ben, still a member of the Labour Party at the time, advised voting Labour, and thus, since most of them were seeking re-election, for the Councillors who were cutting the TAs' pay by 23 per cent. That year, Labour retained control of the Council, and duly implemented the cut. Which of us was right? At the very least, which of us was demonstrably wrong?

spreading ridiculous rumours which were hugely damaging.

Give details.

He also sent a letter to Durham police, Guido Fawkes & Jeremy Corbyn amongst others alleging that I and others at the People’s Bookshop were members of Mossad & MI5.

I sent no such letter, and again, no one has ever mentioned any of this before. I have emailed Guido Fawkes to ask whether he had received it, and how Ben could purport to know who had been writing to him. This is the kind of nonsense of which Oliver Kamm accuses me. Think on.

There are times to laugh about this stuff, and there are times when I think the left are very naive.

Quite.

*By the way, he got 414 votes (probably some by way of the fantasy that he was the champion of the Durham TAs). Laura lost by just over 1,000.

What point is Ben trying to make here? That if all of my supporters had voted for Laura, then she would still have lost? That is of course true, but why would Ben want to say it? Proud though I am to have championed the TAs, if Ben thinks that that was where most or all of my votes came from, then he really was only passing through the North West Durham constituency. Alas, he had in any case played no small part in their defeat well before December 2019.

Jamie Driscoll should steer well clear of Ben Sellers. Everyone should.