Dispatches on Saturday night

[Long slender neck]

The graphics dont look right. There's a timestamp thats in the wrong place. Some of the text is blurry. It may just be a mock up from messages the Times have seen and I guess thats fine.

The above 'screenshot' is from Twitter. Anyone got access to The Times or somewhere else that may show the messages?

[CEB]

Well spotted Inspector Caca. Do you know what, I reckon it would have been a good idea for the four year investigation to check whether that text was knocked up on photo shop before they used it in a documentary. Lucky for them Russell Brand aint litigious!

Dearie me.

[Rich Tea Wellin]

Thread is starting to get embarrassing for people on both sides of the argument. Very emotive topics are never going to end well on here. Steering well clear.

[Long slender neck]

Not what I'm getting at. I just would like to see the full text exchange that would be shown in a courtroom so that I can see how strong the evidence against him is and if its undeniable etc.

I'm not sure why you find it so hard to have a polite conversation.

[CEB]

Thread is starting to get embarrassing for people on both sides of the argument. Very emotive topics are never going to end well on here. Steering well clear.

Can you point to something embarrassing that’s been said by someone who maintains that Brand is a rapist? Your fence sitting “I’ll take the middle ground on any given issue, that’s sure to never make me look unreasonable” schtick is dull at the best of times, but when it ends up being like “the rape apologists and the people who don’t think rapists are nice have both had a mare here”, perhaps it’s time to back out of the thread

[Long slender neck]

BBC car took me to Brand's house, says accuser

Alice says a BBC car was used to take her from school at the age of 16 to Russell Brand's house.

She tells Woman's Hour that it was a chauffer-driven car, rather than a taxi.

ffs

[Rich Tea Wellin]

Thread is starting to get embarrassing for people on both sides of the argument. Very emotive topics are never going to end well on here. Steering well clear.

Can you point to something embarrassing that’s been said by someone who maintains that Brand is a rapist? Your fence sitting “I’ll take the middle ground on any given issue, that’s sure to never make me look unreasonable” schtick is dull at the best of times, but when it ends up being like “the rape apologists and the people who don’t think rapists are nice have both had a mare here”, perhaps it’s time to back out of the thread

As I say, a bit embarrassing.

[CEB]

Not what I'm getting at. I just would like to see the full text exchange that would be shown in a courtroom so that I can see how strong the evidence against him is and if its undeniable etc.

I'm not sure why you find it so hard to have a polite conversation.

How far back would you like to see the text exchange? You do understand that the only texts pertinent to whether someone was raped or not are the texts after the rape, right? What might have been said before that could provide context that makes it less damning?

[CEB]

Thread is starting to get embarrassing for people on both sides of the argument. Very emotive topics are never going to end well on here. Steering well clear.

Can you point to something embarrassing that’s been said by someone who maintains that Brand is a rapist? Your fence sitting “I’ll take the middle ground on any given issue, that’s sure to never make me look unreasonable” schtick is dull at the best of times, but when it ends up being like “the rape apologists and the people who don’t think rapists are nice have both had a mare here”, perhaps it’s time to back out of the thread

As I say, a bit embarrassing.

You really are a bit dim.

[Rich Tea Wellin]

Can you point to something embarrassing that’s been said by someone who maintains that Brand is a rapist? Your fence sitting “I’ll take the middle ground on any given issue, that’s sure to never make me look unreasonable” schtick is dull at the best of times, but when it ends up being like “the rape apologists and the people who don’t think rapists are nice have both had a mare here”, perhaps it’s time to back out of the thread

As I say, a bit embarrassing.

You really are a bit dim.

No idea why people might not want to post up their views on here that may no align with others.

[Long slender neck]

Not what I'm getting at. I just would like to see the full text exchange that would be shown in a courtroom so that I can see how strong the evidence against him is and if its undeniable etc.

I'm not sure why you find it so hard to have a polite conversation.

How far back would you like to see the text exchange? You do understand that the only texts pertinent to whether someone was raped or not are the texts after the rape, right? What might have been said before that could provide context that makes it less damning?

Difficult to say as I dont know how many there are.

[Long slender neck]

24hr ban for ceb for being a patronising twit

[Proposition Joe]

24hr ban for ceb for being a patronising twit

The Establishment closing ranks once again, sigh.

[BoniO]

24hr ban for ceb for being a patronising twit

Can we please have a poll about extending it?

[Mistadobalina]

Mainstream press conspiring against Brand by giving him, his whackjob views and his weird bunch of followers more prominence than he's had for years. Had honestly forgotten about the man until this stuff came out.

[VeganO]

Yes, I’m happy calling Russell Brand a rapist. I’m basing that on the fact that there is credible evidence that he is a rapist.

It’s pretty amazing that you’re like “what?! Social consequences for men accused of rape!? That’s not cricket, is it?”

I can only assume you have not either read the story, watched the documentary, and have never read anything at all about how “due process” harms women?

Do you think that Im wrong in calling Sgt Paul Storey a double rapist? He bullied me at school. Two of his colleagues reported him for rape and sexual assault. “Due process” meant he kept his job for two years, was never prosecuted, but an internal investigation by the police concluded he raped two women. He has not been found guilty in a court of law, but he is a rapist, is he not?

Stop misrepresenting what I said - I raised the issue of the social consequences for someone wrongly accused of rape which you well know.

[Dunners]

Is Billy Bragg a lefty?

[Dunners]

Is Jeremy Corbyn a lefty?

[Dunners]

(Looks like I chose the right time to buy shares in McVities)

[Dunners]

Is Len McCluskey a lefty?

[oxo]

The graphics dont look right. There's a timestamp thats in the wrong place. Some of the text is blurry. It may just be a mock up from messages the Times have seen and I guess thats fine.

The above 'screenshot' is from Twitter. Anyone got access to The Times or somewhere else that may show the messages?

If you were going to fake a text exchange to frame someone you wouldn’t do it in a way that might make incredulous types suspicious

[Long slender neck]

The graphics dont look right. There's a timestamp thats in the wrong place. Some of the text is blurry. It may just be a mock up from messages the Times have seen and I guess thats fine.

The above 'screenshot' is from Twitter. Anyone got access to The Times or somewhere else that may show the messages?

If you were going to fake a text exchange to frame someone you wouldn’t do it in a way that might make incredulous types suspicious

As I say, it is probably just a poor mockup. Really, they shouldnt try to make it look real. Either post a screenshot or just post the text from them.

[Max B Gold]

Agree with CEB on that. Quite a few of the conspiracies he platforms - or 'just asks questions about' - are also espoused by the far right for their own ends and agendas but, as far as I know, he's never got into all the Great Replacement sh*t that often goes along with it or anything like that. Too convenient to write him off as fash.

He's a very intelligent narcissist. I suspect his strategy has been to build as big a following as possible because his ego craves it and to monetise it. He's not fussy about what topics he has to use to stir the pot.

An anti capitalist and overall anti establishment stance draws in the individualistic unmoored crank left and the angry and lonesome far right who live almost exclusively online.

I'm not ruling out the possibility that he built this layer of protective followers knowing full well his previous criminality would catch up with him one day and the useful idiots could then be mobilised to defend him.

[oxo]

As I say, it is probably just a poor mockup. Really, they shouldnt try to make it look real. Either post a screenshot or just post the text from them.

It’s probably poor photos of the onscreen messages pasted together to show the whole exchange.

Either way I don’t think it makes any sense to dwell on it — there are no plausible scenarios under which the fact they look bit sh*t could indicate anything untoward.

[Max B Gold]

Is Billy Bragg a lefty?

Is there a prize if I answer this and get it right?