Karam Bales Profile picture
Jan 24, 2021 24 tweets 9 min read Read on X
1/ 🧵Gaslighting🧵 24/1/21

Dail Mail annoyed a lot of people with its teacher bashing today.
Also misrepresents the unions saying we are telling members not to do live lessons, NEU recently set up a hub where people can share best practice and resources.
2/ Seemed like a large part of the article was designed to make out as if many teachers aren't trying to provide quality education in difficult circumstances.

Also noted the picture shows he's using a premade resource, no issue with the resource but feels like he's over selling
3/ NEU Remote Education Hub
neu.org.uk/remote-educati…
4/ Then I saw who was sponsoring the initiative being praised in the Mail. Image
5/ Then someone told me about the man in the article. Image
6/ So I took a look at his Conservative Friends if Education group. This is from an article on Conservative Home in the summer. Image
7/ Little bit culture wars, makes out theirs too many tory hating hard lefties in education and Conservative values are under attack.

Values like misrepresenting the NEU and writing hit pieces on hard working education professionals? Image
8/ Then we get Halfon popping up to quote Jenny Harris that transmission isn't an issue in schools and workers are at no greater risk.

9/ However there are some serious questions that need to be answered regarding the evidence cited in the select committee.

@cyclingkev @MaryBoustedNEU Excellent questions here ImageImage
10/ For a more complete look at issues with the select committee
🧵here
11/ And now we have The Sun, The Times and The Telegraph all running pretty much identical stories.
Same quotes, same debatable facts.

"Increasing pressure from backbenchers and parent groups" You'd think there was a clamour for 30 kids, no masks, no SD in a few weeks. ImageImageImage
12/ Which parents group campaign are Sun, Times and Telegraph backing?

UsForThem, same astroturfing group invited to meet ministers, PM and provide evidence to a Education Select Committee
bylinetimes.com/2021/01/21/par…
14/ Teaming up with skeptic groups ImageImage
15/ And which backbenchers are calling for quickly getting schools fully open but without suggesting what additional measures are needed to make them safer than our disasterous December
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID_Rec…
16/ And now, due to the amount of media speculation whipped up by his associates, Halfon will now be asking an Urgent Question on when schools go back.
Will they debate additional safety measures, rota etc?
No they will offer a false binary choice.
17/ This is how the political narrative is manipulated, a small hydra like group speaking the same message from many mouths, a narrow group pretending to be a broad cross section, the "will of the people"

Its a tried and tested tactic,does work😔
🧵Ends
18/ Update: Invictus the online initiative from the Mail story, which is basically a Tory Party outfit, is also a private tutoring company, the free lessons appear to be a business promotion.

Example here
invictaacademy.com/11-plus-prepar…
19/ Isn't this a conflict of interest, Tory initiative attacks teachers and unions whilst also promoting a private tutoring company sponsored by the Secretary of State?

The promotion and influence of astroturfing lobbyists with Tory links, lockdown skeptic MPs, smells rotten.
20/ 🧵Update: ONS Occupational Deaths Survey came out, the headline statistic today was "teachers at no greater risk" No mention of support staff as usual.

The headline should be reassuring, but as always the devils in the details.

Details⬇️
21/ However at least the guardian have started looking into UsForThem
amp.theguardian.com/education/2021…
22/ The more people look into UsForThem the more dodgy they look. Clone operations in US, Germany and others.
23/ Times today says only 3% of primary schools had outbreaks, only problem is many outbreaks weren't officially classed as outbreaks.
I know heads that were told after multiple cases was told to stop contacting PHE

See this head and others who replied
24/ So how did the Urgent Question go?
Williamson didn't attend, and it appears there will be no attempt to improve inadequete measures we had in December.

Ignoring transmission in schools means lockdown 4 is a possibility?

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More from @karamballes

Aug 26
🧵So Musk has decided to go off on one about the UK again

Migrants, Rape Gangs, Lucy Connolly, tweeting Tommy Robinson, and backing Rupert Lowe over Nigel Farage

Just before Farage goes to the US in September and as big antimigrant protests are planned shortly afterwards Image
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2/ Some similarities to before the Southport attack and subsequent riots, creating a narrative and setting conditions to prime potential rioters for the next event that can be used as a match to start the fires
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3/ Musk offers to fund legal actions in the UK Image
Read 10 tweets
Aug 23
1/ Lucy Connollys appeal was funded by the Free Speech Union
Allison Pearson of the FSU led the media in supporting Connolly and promoted the crowdfunder that raised over £150k for Connolly (after Lawrence Fox took a 7% cut as it was his crowdfunding site that was used Image
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2/ The FSU was set up with support of Peter Thiel
James Orr a founding member of FSU is also on the Edmund Burke Foundation's board which organises NatCon, that Orr is also on the board of

JD Vance is Thiels minion, previously spent a record $15 million on getting Vance elected
3/ Vance has been leading the US attacks on free speech in the UK

The FSU has been busy backing anti-abortion and anti-trans legal cases, working alongside Christian Concern and US ADF, an important NatCon group

Vance is linked to NatCon
Read 11 tweets
Jul 13
Why is @Tony_Diver giving a full page interview to Malhotra in the Telegraph?
The self-titled "leading cardiologist" has become an antivax hero, who has to publish his papers via his own journal because they are as dodgy as anything Wakefield put out

Deeply irresponsible Image
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The platforming of disinformation grifters in mainstream papers, particularly Telegraph, Express, Daily Mail, GB News and TalkTv is contributing to the increase in vax hesitancy
People will die because of shoddy journalism from likes of @Tony_Diver
@Tony_Diver 3/ Describing Malhotra as "serious public prominence" and promoting his antivax papers without pointing out that he set up the journal it's printed in, is frankly dishonest journalism Image
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Read 17 tweets
Jun 6
1/ Telegraph and Toby Young claiming "culture nationalism" being included is the latest attack by Labour on Free Speech is a lie

The Conservatives added this to Prevent in 2023 Image
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2/ From my October 2023 article for @BylineTimes on the updated Prevent training Image
@BylineTimes 3/ While they misrepresent Conservative policy to attack Labour complaining that cultural Nationalism was too broad a term, they didn't have a problem that socialism was also added to Prevent at the same time
bylinetimes.com/2023/10/19/ter…
Read 10 tweets
Feb 14
1/ So Toby Young, now a member of the house of Lords is directly receiving support from Musk, a member of a foreign government Image
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2/ This is after the FSU jumped onto a case of a teacher appealing against a school for being dismissed for their online posts, the case was being backed by Christian Concern and FDU piggybacked as an intervener Image
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3/ Worth noting the case centred around a petition from CitizenGo, an organisation identified as being part of a US/Russian network designed to undermine sexuality and reproductive rights Image
Read 7 tweets
Feb 4
🧵Trump 2.0 

While much of the UK media has focused on DEI, tariffs and confirmation hearings there's been less focus on what appears to be an attack on the US constitution, purges of people and scientific information, and efforts to supress opposition and scrutiny
2/ First a quick look at the pardoned Jan 6 rioters as an example

3/ The interim Attorney General for DC had defended some of the rioters

Read 23 tweets

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