Simon Wright needs a new election agent

I mean, would you allow this to be on your website ...


Simon Wright.

Status: None.

Exactly.

A very modern resignation

Social networking may have gone a step too far as one friend points out that Labour's latest resignation in the City has come on the Facebook site. Dan Roper, who I think may even have stood as a candidate before, has quit and left an open message giving his reasons why. At least Labour have found an up-to-date way of people of shunning them.

BBC Poll UpDate: Constitution & Facebook

The BBC loves its little polls on the side of news stories but does anybody actually look at the results? Having just trawled through the news, I voted on two polls. The first, on the EU Constituion Referendum (I voted for having one), was a massive 79% for to 20% against. The second asked if workers should have access to Facebook during the working day (I voted against this). The result, as of just now, was an even 49-49 split, but with the anti's just ahead by a fraction.

Given the way that Facebook has taken over my life and the amount of time I give to it during the evenings alone I strongly predict that if the TUC get their way and workers can get access to it then the entire British economy would collapse within an hour and a half. If I could read and reply on Facebook in school, I'd never do any work ... during my free periods and probably during class too. For my sanity, if nothing else, don't do it! Vote by clicking here.

The "Facebook Faker" is revealed... as a stupid person

Having been at first quite irritated by this, you may have guessed that I now find this whole thing very very amusing. And just in case my day looked like it may have been dull, what pops into my email box but a message from the "Facebook Faker"! Oh yes - it came from the famous norman_lamb@hotmail.co.uk e-mail address and this is what it said:

Dear Norwich Conservatives,

I'm sorry about the misunderstanding. I am the person who setup a fake Norman Lamb profile on Facebook.

I did send my party (the Liberal Democrats) an e-mail a while ago pointing out that I am a Liberal Democrat activist who made the Norman Lamb profile and group in response to another group about Norman Lamb on Facebook. I felt that by pretending to be Norman Lamb I could get more support for the group. In terms of messages I would pass them onto Norman himself. I was happy to pass the group and profile onto Norman when he was ready. I just felt Norman was taking too long to join Facebook.The only reason I gave a reference to Norman's opponent was to show that Norman was confident about beating him. I was confident we could show off Norman's group had more support than his rival. Also by people seeing his rival's website they would more likely look at Normans and see how much better it is.

In terms of replying to one person saying that the negative stuff posted was true. The reason I did that was because I felt sure there was evidence out there which could be used against Norman if he denied it. Therefore I felt it better off saying it was true and therefore make Norman appear more straight forward.I did post some stuff on Norman's wikipedia. I was giving him credit for some campaigns, but it got taken off apparently because some activists would have been offended. I wasn't sure why, but chose to ask no more questions.Because I have felt that the accusations against your party could damage my party and after having told my party a while ago that I am a Liberal Democrat activist I have with deep regret had to tell you the Conservatives about this so it does not damage Norman in a General Election. By that I mean our two parties can put this to bed quickly. I have sent a similar message to this back to my party. I hope we can get back to positive campaigning which I think is good for politics in general.

Best wishes

Norman Lamb's loyal activist
P.S. I won't tell you or anyone who I am because otherwise it could damage my party. Because David Cameron wants to get rid of your nasty image I think you would rather know no more about me.

So, there we have it, case closed ... a LibDem after all! Or is it...

... the trouble is that whilst this e-mail absolutely comes from the Facebook Faker, something troubles me about their claims to be a LibDems.

I just can't put my finger on it.

Hang on! What's this? The e-mail display name ... it doesn't come from Norman Lamb, it appears to come from NORMAN LAMN.

Oh dear, a suppoter so loyal and so dedicated that they can't even spell their own man's name.

Which leads me to conclude that this isn't a LibDem or a Conservative ... it is just a very, very stupid person with too much time on their hands. And if you are a stupid person who wants to give a few LibDems and the EDP a thrill every now and again - try getting the spelling right.

Case closed.

The Net Closes In

I notice from every LibDem blog in the world that the net is closing in on the "Facebook Faker" and a jolly good job too. Trouble is (well, for the LibDems) the only person looking more innocent than they are is Trevor Ivory, on whom all the blame was heaped at the beginning. This is almost certainly now not a LibDem, but I am now pretty much as certain it has nothing to do with Ivory either.

I genuinely hope whoever did it is caught, but I hope those who flung mud in the wrong direction apologise when they are.

Could a LibDem be the "Facebook Faker"?

The controversy over a faked Facebook page in the name of LibDem MP Norman Lamb seems to have the EDP and the blogosphere in a frenzy to discover whodunnit. Several bizarre claims have been made - not least that it was a UKIP plot - but most of the LibDem accusations seem to have been directed towards Tory candidate Trevor Ivory who made a strong denial of being involved or even knowing who did it.

As always in these cases, the LibDems drop big hints without actually pointing the finger (due to, well, no evidence) and the EDP leaves the reader with that no-smoke-without-fire feeling towards Mr Ivory because whoever did do it put a link to Trevor's blog on it.

So, all-in-all, Norman Lamb looks like the innocent hard-working MP and the Tory candidate looks a bit shifty.

And that's what started me thinking. A faked Facebook page attacking Norman Lamb attracts a small readership of Facebook diehards. If they'd left this alone, very few people would ever have cared. But an EDP article suggesting Tory involvment in a smear plot attracts a large readership of floating voters in North Norfolk and from around the county.

Could it be that this albeit rather time-consuming stunt was not designed to besmirch the good name of Norman Lamb MP (as claimed) but to give plenty of sleaze ammunition against the Tory candidate?

After all, who would be stupid enough to leave their own blog details on a site like this which was bound to cause trouble? It just doesn't add up, and with the LibDems being the only winners you have to ask if somebody with a lot of time on their hands and a devious mind could just have dunnit...

Church, Lunch, Beach, Garden

Apologies for the lack of posts - I am rather enjoying the post-election period at the moment and we found ourselves drawn along by the weather today. After going to mass at St. George's this morning, we then headed down to the Recruiting Sergeant for one of the best Sunday lunches we've had in a long time! After this we went to Mundesley for a trip to the beach. It was much colder on the North Norfolk coast than in the City so within hours we were back in the garden and finally enjoying the summer.

It's been a very sociable weekend all-in-all - yesterday, following a strategy meeting with the Town Close Conservatives, we had a get together at Dunstan Hall. Beautiful location and great food - although my pint of beer did manage to nearly blow up the bar when the tap went wrong and backfired! In the evening I stepped out with UEA Conservatives past and present - a social to launch their new blog, which can be found here. It is great to have a large and active Tory group at UEA and even better when they are fired up for the elections!

In fact, wherever have I found the time to facebook this weekend???

Our New Hobbies

The reason for my lack of posts is that I cannot grapple the laptop away from my wife - well, I say wife but I really mean a woman who inhabits the house and surfs on facebook all day.

This cannot come at a worse time, because now I am spending all day and night thinking about Big Brother. Oh, the shame.

New Obsession Watch: Facebook

A certain young lady (who shall remain anonymous) had led me onto Facebook. She, who unlike my poor long suffering wife doesn't have to stay around to see the consequences, should have known better.

I can't work out what it is for, what use it has or why I love it ... but I do.

I have 12 friends in 24 hours and have spent much of that time stalking people I went to school with.

Ask not what it does for me, but how I coped without it!

I am thinking about starting up a "Bowthorpe Group" on it - but I don't know why.