Free Speech Union member Karen Sunderland is suing her former employer after falling victim to ‘offence archaeology’ and needs to raise funds to pay her legal costs. If she wins in the Employment Tribunal, her victory will have the effect of protecting the expression of non-woke views in the workplace, with employees able to cite their protected belief in conservatism and free speech if someone complains about them saying something ‘offensive’. You can donate to Karen’s fundraiser here.
In 2018, when Karen was a Conservative candidate in the local elections, iNews dug up some tweets she’d posted in 2017 and managed to get her suspended by the party. The tweets reflected her sincere belief that aspects of Islamic doctrine are illiberal and unfair to women.
Four years later, when Karen was embarking on a new career, someone tipped off her employer about this episode and she was fired. Karen believes her comments were protected political speech, and that her dismissal was unfair and discriminatory. Her claim makes two important legal arguments.
First, her dismissal was either directly or indirectly because of her belief in conservatism, a belief her legal team believes is protected by the Equality Act 2010. Establishing that conservatism is a protected belief would bring balance to the law: while there is case law protecting democratic socialism there are no equivalent protections for its right-wing counterpart. If she succeeds in winning this argument, the judgement would protect employees with conservative views which, while wholly lawful, are often distasteful to HR officers.
Second, Karen argues that she was dismissed because of her belief in freedom of speech. In short, free-thinkers attract controversy, and always have – and employers who put rigid speech codes in place are disproportionately affecting those who believe in free speech. A finding that freedom of speech is a protected belief would give legal protection to other employees who manifest that belief by speaking their minds and testing received wisdom.
Karen’s trial begins on March 28th. She is being represented by barrister Francis Hoar, acting on a direct access basis. Francis is one of England’s best barristers when it comes to freedom of speech cases and party-political matters: in 2021 he published In Protection of Freedom of Speech, with a Foreword by Lord Sumption.
You can donate to Karen’s fundraiser here.
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Depressing that these two have any say at all – I have no idea at all they can live with themselves –
a pair of spineless twats who’ve sold their souls to the devil, may they burn in hell.
A pair of creepy twats who could easily fulfil the role of a terrifying spook standing in the darkest corner of a horror movie…
I have to say the 15 year old who accurately described the Tortoise look alike as a ‘liar’ just made me think ‘out of the mouth of babes’.
And as for his John Prescott like response to the child; well didn’t you just know it was back to the office to think of more ways to punish everyone who bullied him throughout his life.
Whilst the medical science may well be flawed it is Boso and Madcock who make the decisions. It is they who have ignored the economic, social, educational consequences of their decisions. They have to go and the first step is to back any party that refutes lockdowns in the May elections. Spread the word.
Exactly. It is the job of the politician/executive to weigh the options, consider benefits, harms, risks, rewards etc. an come up with an evaluated, best decision.
It is also their job to react and change course when appropriate or demanded as such.
They didn’t, don’t and won’t ever do either.
It’s zero Covid, Covid only, international ranking tables p*ssing contests only for them.
They have the right character and management knowledge to fill supermarket shelves, at most.
It’s nothing to do with zero covid, it’s the Agenda they’re following. UN agenda 21 and 30.
Zero covid is a deliberately unobtainable goal. Especially when they continue to use the now thoroughly discredited PCR test to manufacture new “cases” and continue the tyranny.
COVID Restrictions To Remain In Place For Years, Says UK’s Public Health Official
Most politicians around the world have discovered that stoking up fear is a sort of “virtuous” circle for them. Cause enough panic and people will “cling to nurse” – i.e. the government – if nurse demonstrates she’s coping.
How does “nurse” show she’s coping? – by taking actions that stoke up fear – lockdowns and mask wearing etc.
The latest action to demonstrate the threat is being coped with is a “passport” to go in to a pub! What cares the powerful? Do they go in pubs?
Bonfire of the Vanities;
burn your non religious books and works of art, your lascivious jewellery and costly vestments; burn your sacrilegious books and Godless Icons; burn the Jews . . . Burn your children . . .”
Well pubs will certainly be out of bounds for them in the future.
Only if the pub landlords go along with the lunacy.
I’m sure I read yesterday that the Israeli government’s measures to only allow vaccinated people to be allowed in gyms has been abandoned already, as the gyms said it was too onerous to implement.
Perhaps this had something to do with that.
Let’s hope that was the reason.
All businesses should blacklist all politicians.
The main problem appears to be the Precautionary Principle and manipulated statistics and predictions. In a similar way whole industries are being closed down in the name of climate change, for which all we have is heavily manipulated and cherry picked data and politicians following the Precautionary Principle. Had computer models been around millennia ago we would never have left our caves or used fire. All life is risk.
Yes, computers, modelling , social media and internet, have been used to bring about this ‘pandemic nonsense’ . And in exactly the same way they are used to promote the ‘climate emergency’ nonsense. What was hoped to liberate humanity with easy access to knowledge, is now used by totalitarian regimes to repress, re-educate, control and manipulate on a scale previously thought impossible.
The precautionary principle has increasingly been employed to throttle any semblance of individuality from our lives. A life with no risk, is no life at all.
All of this helped me to see “the Matrix” is real.
That assumes that ameliorating crime change is the real goal. It’s the excuse, just as CV19 is, not the reason.
The reason is to destroy capitalism, as they’ve admitted, to have global socialism to make society “fairer.”
So far it’s served to destroy the lives of citizens whilst making a small number of elites very much richer. Maybe they think that’s fair….
Their idea of ‘fairness’ is impoverishing us whilst enriching themselves! When are we going to say ENOUGH!
I am not (yet) brave enough to go on a protest march as I fear, for the first time in my long life, police violence against me. I will, however, if there is no anti-lockdown candidate standing in the forthcoming local elections, wear something yellow to the polling station ( Stand in the Park colour) and spoil my ballot by writing “Lockdowns Destroy Lives”.
Protest marches aren’t for everyone, but fortunately there are many ways as individuals that we can make a difference. Just being on the right side of history is a great start.
The protests at the weekend, bar the one in Bristol, did not have any police violence against the protesters. There were too many protesters this time, and the police were already enough scrutiny after the Sarah Everard vigil fiasco.
My MP is Neil O’Brien, no chance of persuading him. But he’s not getting my vote next time.
Likewise – I have been emailing him for some time requiring his considered opinion on a number of LDS and other blog topics – not replied to any substantively – and his office have gone on record to confirm, and I quote,” He knows lockdowns are difficult and challenging – but it’s proved to ultimately be the only way to bring rising cases, admissions and deaths under control. Toby Young and others have made their positions quite clear on the below website (that we’re very familiar with) and twitter (though some of his tweets have since been deleted) – though Neil takes a different view on how best to bring this virus under control.”
NO’B – how apt – has also said “lockdown sceptics have a lot to answer for”.
So has he, with others whose names will be in the Covid Hall of Shame – perhaps TY can set up this and ask for nominations. Especially as NO’B has “not changed his mind” I learned last week, despite the tide of information making a mockery of the standing of career politicians like him.
What a creep he is. At least my MP is just a useless Tory twit but O’Brien is a nasty piece of work.
What an inspiring article. I immediately wrote to my MP, Simon Jupp, East Devon to request he vote against extension of the coronavirus act. I clearly explained my thoughts and concerns. I I lore everyone to write to their mp today. They represent you, they should be representing your concerns.
I have written to him too, enclosing the HART document. But on the basis on previous correspondence he will support the Government line. Unlike his predecessor he doesn’t have a mind of his own. But for an ex BBC journalist that’s not a surprise!
Do you ever hear back, my MP went AWOL when this started
Yes, I get a cut and paste response that demonstrates that my email hasn’t been properly read – probably from a researcher not Emma Hardy herself.
When that’s happened to me I’ve written to complain and included something pithy in the subject line to the effect that could my MP do his bloody job and read his own mail. So far its worked – apologies and everything. Not that the content has had any effect on his slavish adherence to the party line but at least he’ll never be able to claim he didnt know or that he thought he was doing what people wanted.
I did the same and got a really angry response. Gave me a laugh at least!
rattled is good, no?
Mine stopped replying at around Christmas so this time I sent one of those pre-written emails to avoid feeling like I’m wasting my time. Lo behold, he responds, but typically with his own pre-written, copy/paste bollocks.
Madness.
Have done this several times, most recently last night- keeping me up into the small hours. I’ve also told him that whatever he does, I will see whomever I wish and disregard bad law. I let him believe I still trusted him to act properly,(rather than piss him off) but hold out no real hope. Can’t think why he supports these jokers – he has absolutely no chance of promotion.
I’ve just done the same – told my MP to get a grip – this is not the black death, quoted Whittys comments about the virus being mild and hard to find and rounded it off by saying that me and mine, are about embark on our criminal careers. I used the ‘we dont want to but you’ve made us do it’ favoured by lockdownistas. It will be to no avail but made me feel more resolved.
I am constantly writing and emailing my MP David Warburton. Somerton and Frome. He never replies. I don’t even get a computer generated acknowledgement to my emails. I have written emails and letters to JRM, John Redwood, Steve Baker and many more. Absolute silence……
John Redwood tweeted today that he was proud of the efficacy of our vaccinations and how they were saving lives so we must stop listening to those who express concern. The sheer ignorance and toe the party line rhetoric is deeply upsetting. He has been in Parliament far too ling I think.
I feel bereft of anyone in the establishment who speaks for my concerns. What happens when we go to vote in 2024. Will it be rigged because there is just no one speaking for the silent majority. Will it be stolen because those in power
don’t want the people taking responsibility for their own lives.
I see no way forward when every single institution and powerful position is filled with blind adherence to a foreign mantra.
If it was French, he’d be leading the anti-vaxxers.
You’re right – we’ve had a year with no MPs, no GPs, no religious leaders.. I sometimes imagine they know something we don’t and are all in underground bunkers… But maybe we’re discovering we don’t actually need any of them!
My MP asks ‘how high’ when told to jump by her Party.
Not as high as my MP – postcode LE8 – look it up!!
A brilliant article. Of course, items 2 & 6 are closely related, to to with the manipulation of our language, along the lines of deliberately re-defining things and exploiting the general public lack of detailed knowledge of many things. I’m not criticising the public – just the so-called experts who are playing the political game. They are no longer delivering a proper service to us, unfortunately.
I reckon these 2 ‘scientists’ will be off to pastures new soon, the pharma companies are about to sell the vaccines for Profit instead of Cost as per their agreement, the real incentive
Sweden has Anders Tegnell and we have these 2 clowns
Employed by WHO for the UK as SAGE when they agreed to use the UK, Brazil and SA as lab rats
I seem to remember AZ’s commitment was that they would not make a profit “during the pandemic” or until July 2021, whichever came sooner.
Amazing how supplies have suddenly dried up a bit. Back online for the summer….
And that a ‘case’ = somebody presenting symptoms who needs treatment.
And that in 2020 only 388 people aged under 65 with no underlying health conditions died from Covid-19.
“we had moved from evidence-based medicine to one of “assumed effectiveness””
It’s the anchoring effect. The movers advantage.
Get your propaganda in first.
The problem with laissez faire is that it forgets that the other side doesn’t believe in laissez faire.
If you want to maintain freedom you have to constantly teach and explain to people what that means. And that means having control, funding and staffing the education establishments with people on your side so that people learn how to think and assess evidence rationally.
Perhaps the answer is simply to teach critical thinking from primary level. Humanity would be healthier and happier as a result.
“As a parent I have seen the impact of this first-hand”
So have I. What’s scary though is how many parents are using their children’s futures as “human shields” to avoid getting the virus themselves.
If we don’t start looking after the young soon, when they get into power as they will it’s very likely they will forget to look after the old. After all, why should they?
The problem is that the current crop of old will be dead by then, and it is those coming up behind that will get it full in the face.
My god, this is so true. I’d be sick 100x before I let my children suffer. I don’t want to die because I want to be there for them, but with my 1 in 55,000 risk, I’m not worried about dying of COVID. Getting in the car is more dangerous.
What a brilliant article. The sheer levels this government will go to to maintain compliance through fear, beggars belief, to those of us who see through it, have done even since the start. I wrote a post on Facebook last April 7th, saying that ‘this whole pandemic seems like a massive social experiment’. How right I was.
I think I deleted my facebook around the same time, the virtue hasn’t waivered since then and my gag reflex is quite acute.
Also as a scientist of some seniority (Head of Global Medical Affairs for a cancer biotech), my only challenge to an otherwise perfect article is the timing of the most striking moment of the Prof Vallance and Whitty roadshow.
Instead of this equally great choice, in my own hit parade, I plumped for 21st September 2020. This was the day that they provided their ‘scientific briefing’ and refused to take any questions from anyone after providing their pronouncement. They simply provided their graphs and walked off the stage. It’s just a shame that they didn’t keep walking!
I remember it well as it was the same day I was radicalised to the anti-lockdown cause, although I had been moving in that direction for some time before.
I wrote the same day to my MP with the following:
Never in my long scientific experience have I seen, or think I would see, two such eminent scientists take the stage to share their view on such an important issue and not be open to questioning by their scientific peers or, at the very least, the press or MPs for that matter. This simply does not happen either in the scientific community or in a free and open society.
If Profs Vallance and Whitty are confident that their view is a correct one then they will be open to questioning around it. It would allow them even greater opportunity to explain and provide all necessary evidence to validate their thinking. This is how science works and how a better policy response can be created.
Without allowing questions, this is not science. Instead, it is pure government PROPAGANDA and must be treated as such.
You as an opposition MP, or any other MP for that matter, must demand that these government officials are open to questioning if they hold such briefing events. The so-called ‘The Science’ depends on questioning and proper scrutiny. It will be this that will improve our scientific response and ultimately save lives!
In my most humble opinion, today’s briefing was a truly shocking and dangerous moment for our managment of the pandemic. Please – I encourage you to challenge and question ‘The Science’ as it will make for a better response to the pandemic. Literally, lives depend on it!
I was done with those ‘scientists’ when their German equivalent, Lothar Wieler from RKI, stated that the 3 NPIs (hands, space, masks) may never, ever be questioned.
The very definition of being unscientific, of course.
A central point – these individuals with massively conflicting background interests and questionable sociopathic personality traits (by definition and observation) are the contradiction of ‘The Science’ in the essential sense of adhering to scientific logic and method.
I have as much faith in them fulfilling the role as I have on anonymous telephone callers asking me for my card details.
I too remember September, and the apocalyptic forecasts – and yet my rough estimate of weekly deaths a month on were more accurate by a factor of about 50.
I bet you didn’t receive any response.,
I saw that presentation, I was convinced they did not believe what they were saying. It was as if they were reading the script for the first time. The question then is, who wrote the script?
This articulates exactly how I feel. Thank you.
Dangerous times indeed. Unless those of us who are keeping our heads under the parapet start looking over the parapet, the few true believers will lead us all over the cliff.
I thought Will Jones’ piece absolutely hit the nail on the head. Covid is the new religion.
Facemask the new Burkha, Sage the prophets- such a great comparison.
How refreshing to find that other scientists are so despondent with the way that data has been so misused. There has been a total absence of rigour, and association has been conflated with causation in publications and the media. Ethics and morality have been discarded with abandon. How is it ethical to vaccinate an under 16 for a disease which will not affect them but with a vaccine which has no data on children and certainly no long term study?
Publications have been fast tracked with113,860 in this last year with Covid in contrast to 9000 for influenza and 34,000 for breast cancer. It should not be forgotten that scientist and institutions measure their success, and obtain grants by publications and previously unknown figures like Vallance and Whitty now have their moment in the sun.
It is sad but many of us hide behind our invented names because of the engendered policy of non conformity with doctrine being considered as heresy.
Re. Point number 5: https://imgflip.com/i/532r4c
Great article, especially the analogy of SAGE as the “religious council”. SAGE also has conflicts of interest as Zoe Harcombe demonstrates in this article.
https://www.zoeharcombe.com/2020/11/sage-conflicts-of-interest/
Fascinating detail re. SAGE connections in that reference.
Re the totalitarian definition: only today this pro-vaccine propaganda piece appeared in the Telegraph (not sure if a paywall stops the link):
pro-vaccines-do-feel-nervous-children-having-covid-jab
It is a dire piece of which even Goebbels would be ashamed. But it prays in aid a scary organisation I wasn’t aware of – ‘The Vaccine Confidence Project’. Following that link you’d discover another DT piece fawning over the censorship TikTok metes out to “anti-maskers and lockdown skeptics who have been radicalised by unsubstantiated claims published across various platforms.” Ie those who disagree. ‘Radicalised’! We’re terrorists!! And look how dangerous we can be…. “Extremist movements born on social media shook America this week.” Ie we are all armed insurrections (a la the Jan 6 pantomime ‘storming’ of the Capitol) now! So, only a couple of clicks from pro-vaxxing propaganda lies TDS – Trump derangement syndrome against us deplorables. “Branded evil” indeed.
History repeats…
That’s brilliant, thank you.Just a question though. Why is everyone in Israel flocking to be vaccinated?
Are they though?
International Criminal Court accepts complaint of violation of Nuremberg Code by Israeli government
Excellent observations. I don’t disagree with a word. But at some point, when the final history of the catastrophe is written, we will have to look at the multitude of incidents that contributed to us – as in much of modern society – accepting the destruction of our civil rights on such slender evidence. In no particular order:
1) Tom Hanks getting coronavirus. When “Mr Nice-guy All-American” gets it…
2) It was plainly obvious to anyone with any common sense that the Chinese Government was lying about covid-19. The lied about its existence. They lied about how widespread it was. And they lied about how effective their “lockdown” was. Why our media and our Governments didn’t call them out on this I cannot tell.
3) Tom Moore walking around his garden. British society and culture at its absolute maundering, pathetic, 2020 lowest. Pointlessness personified, only to be raised to near sainthood. And after all that, he ‘effin dies of it. After being given a free holiday 99.9% of his fellow Brits could only dream of.
4) Boris Johnson gets it. Boris, while not aged, is unhealthiness itself. Boris rides a bike because it makes him look like he’s exercising, when it’s really just another chance to sit down.
5) Endless, meaningless, useless statistics. R-values. Rates per 100K. Is my county/town/region worse than yours? And the obsession with the death toll. When, in all honesty, most of those people were going to die of something pretty soon anyway.
6) The useless media constantly pushing outlier stories. Your dog can get covid. The “healthy, happy 25 year old who dies of covid” bullshit. The “covid can wreck your heart” nonsense.
7) Clapping for the NHS. Uggghhhh…. To be honest, I’d prefer it if we had organised the Two Minute Hate. That, at least, would be an emotion I could relate to.
8) All the Government boondoggles. The pointless hunt for ventilators. Building the Nightingales. Track & Trace. “Eat Out to Help Out” And, no doubt, many, many more.
9) Tim Brooke-Taylor dies. I may be wrong, but wasn’t he the most “high profile” British celebrity to die of covid? Not to slag Mr Brooke-Taylor, but The Goodies were on forty years ago. And he was almost 80.
10) Dominic Cummings and the illegal road-trip. British politicians and journalists get their knickers twisted into a Gordian knot of holier-than-thou bullshit. I thought wasting police time was a crime in this country? And – for the record – I don’t like Dominic Cummings.
11) Donald Trump gets it. How many people were kinda-sorta hoping Trump was gonna die from it? Be honest now…
I’m sure I’ve missed many. But these incidents all contributed to where we are now.
I’ve become very sceptical of anyone working for the pharma companies but I like the term Virocracy. However, not only are we living a lie with regard to Covid 19, we are also living a lie about our health, healthcare and dietary advice. The more I read about the ever-growing obesity problem as a result of undiagnosed insulin resistance, secret diabetes, MIRS, etc. the more I worry that we’ll never get out of this mess. Treating the problem by testing for blood insulin levels, eliminating added-sugar and processed foods from our diet, checking our blood sugar levels to see what triggers insulin responses and so on would mean not only vast reductions in demands for sugary and processed foods but also unnessary drugs for high blood pressure, cholesterol, etc. Prof Tim Spector and many others know about this but dare not put their heads above the parapet.
I work for a pharma company. We are not all bad and we don’t all believe the BS.
What I find most mind boggling is that our whole business model is based on looking for clinical evidence of medical benefit, and making an appropriate judgment on whether to invest on a risk-benefit basis. This involves setting aside emotion, or risk making terrible capital allocation decisions that lead to failed studies (and poor returns), or in a worst case scenario, lawsuits.
Yet somehow I have seen top execs get suckered into the BS, either through wanting to be aligned with the government (whether or not they truly believe), presumably for various quid pro quo type reasons, fear (scientists are not immune to fear, just like anyone else), PR for the sector (despite making many lifesaving medicines, the industry is always looked at askance for profiting from it), and fame & glory (if they can contribute to solving the manufactured crisis). Oh and profit.
Opportunity to make a fast buck also appeals, although it’s not doing much for the share prices as (1) net present value of cash flows from pandemic products are limited, given pandemics are short lived (2) everyone knows these things distract. How much time is Soriot spending on this bullshit vs preparing for the Alexion integration, or fixing his somewhat half assed pipeline that is about to run out of steam?
Anyhow. My point is that despite supposedly being capable of seeing through the bullshit, the pharma sector has a lot of people in it (much like government) who either can’t see through it or won’t see through it because of various self interests. Mostly the former, but leaning to the latter at exec level.
Your second paragraph describes the economics of Big Pharma doing everything it can to rubbish the use of ivermectin and/or HCQ/zinc. There is absolutely no money in any of them persuing the tests necessary for these generic drugs to be passed for use in dealing with covid. That ‘capital allocation’ decision damned hundreds of thousands to death and more to unnecessary suffering.
The model of Big Pharma is simple and it mimicks the virus ; create a beneficial environment for diseases to flourish , hopefully without death rates being too high to attract attention, and make as many $billions as possible as a consequence. The very last thing they want is for ‘cures’ to be found.
Ivermectin, HCQ and zinc have been approved and used in the past, along with vitamin D and C. Another insidious aspect of this corona-con is how they were purposely and reprehensibly discredited or order to “qualify” for emergency use authorisation of the experimental gene therapy and other experimental jabs.
Vitamin D Insufficiency May Account for Almost Nine of Ten COVID-19 Deaths: Time to Act. Comment on: “Vitamin D Deficiency and Outcome of COVID-19 Patients”. Nutrients 2020, 12, 2757
I’m sorry, I’m rather more cynical and see the problem being that those promoting this are definitely in the latter camp. The alternative is what? Gross incompetence?
Fauci, Fergusson and SAGE are seriously conflicted, and it is a mystery why anyone not involved in the corona-con, trusts Fauci and Fergusson.
have copied and pasted the entry from Encyclopaedia Britannica and have sent it to my MP- might be good if there could be a concerted effort to bombard the buggers!!
I see Chris Exley, (who researches aluminium and its neurotoxic effects), has had his funding streams shut down. And of course, where there is dubious academic practice, there’s the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. It’s just so vile and reprehensible the way in which UK academia has been corrupted beyond recognition by Philanthrocapitalism.
https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/university-shuts-down-aluminum-experts-research/?itm_term=home
Yes, except I would call it misanthro-capitalism.
I’ve twice sent my pathetic excuse for an MP the definition of a Dictatorship. He thinks democracy is alive and well in his safe hands.
I shall be sending the useless twit your definition of Totalitarianism although he won’t see the comparison. Cognitive dissonance is a terrible thing in the wrong hands!