Owen Jones is open for comment (Guardian link)

[magicrainbowbeans]

Comments are open:

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/feb/18/labour-candidates-left-leadership-race-members#comments

And it says comments close at 3.30 so be quick if you have something to say!

I bet they’ll be deleting any gender critical comments faster than you can press “post”! Everything I post on the Guardian gets deleted these days.

Im on a deadline now so cant read through - had a quick scan but no mention of gendergate?

It must be overloaded, can’t even type a comment never mind post it !

Over 1700 comments. Some of the pertinent ones for this board...

Trans rights aren't a vote-winner in the broader population. Maybe Sir Kier isn't as daft as he looks. 104 up votes

The candidates aren't far behind of course, now that Dawn Butler has said 'A child is born without sex at the beginning but anyway...'.
If you think babies are born without sex you shouldn't be allowed to leave secondary school, let alone take a leadership position in what used to be a serious political party. 77 up votes

“There is also exasperation from the rival camps that while the two women in the race are being criticised for their unabashed support for trans rights, the sole man isn’t facing detailed scrutiny on the issue.”

Yes. If only Labour could come up with a settled position on Trans rights they would regain the working class vote in a trice. We worry about little else in the north. 72 up votes

Think that is the first ever article in The Guardian where I've seen even vague GC comments allowed to stand. Maybe those in charge are rethinking the issue.

I suspect too many posts to go through quickly. They will be polished and 'reeducated' later

Hilarious. I sometimes wonder if Jones has got his ideas about what 'the left' is from the loopier Christian Patriarchalists I used to know who caricatured it as 'tax everything that moves, and purge regularly'.

Love this one:

Yes. If only Labour could come up with a settled position on Trans rights they would regain the working class vote in a trice. We worry about little else in the north.

I cannot get it to load past the first 100. I hope the GC posts are left to stand. Probably not though?

GCAcademic: Everything I post on the Guardian gets deleted these days.

Yes, the irony of calling that section Comment is Free, especially when you think of the rest of that quote: "but facts are sacred"!

I used to love the Guardian.

I didn't even know you could still post there

" There is also exasperation from the rival camps that while the two women in the race are being criticised for their unabashed support for trans rights, the sole man isn’t facing detailed scrutiny on the issue."

They are not being criticised because they are women, they are being criticised as they want to purge women from the party. Starmer's position is not great but he stopped short of that extreme measure. He has been a bit of coward for ducking the issue but at least he is not a complete fool.

I wonder if he’s just been soft targeted by the lobbyists because, y’know, women’s and nice but lack critical thinking?

Pretty much all the GC comments have been deleted now.

No! 😮

They'll do the 'comments on this piece were opened in error' next, because certain "facts" are sacred.
Quick, Guardian, write something about pronouns and pregnant men.