Paul Kesterton

Creative Director. iPhoneographer. Golfist. I really like palindromes, but mostly I just love my stunt nuts. Thoughts are all my own…

[Paul Kesterton @PaulKesterton]

Personally, I think #HS2 is a fab idea. "Prepares to be disowned by my village." #notNewtonNimby

[Nathan Cofnas @nathancofnas]

I was just suspended by Ghent University. They will almost certainly fire me.

The decision was made by rector Petra De Sutter, a former leader of the Green Party.

[Konstantin Kisin @KonstantinKisin]

Weird how the people outraged by the "hounding" of Jason Arday delight in and encourage the actual hounding of the person who exposed him.

Arday was not fired from his job or denied employment opportunities. On the contrary, he was given and retained jobs for which he was not qualified and was rightly criticised for lying.

Cofnas, on the other hand, is actually being denied jobs and fired from them for bring Arday's lying to light.

[Matt Calkins @Matt_Calkins]

After 11 years as a sports columnist at the Seattle Times, I have decided to resign. It was entirely my choice, and it was not an easy one. The impetus was the Times declining to run a column I wrote from the perspective of two female student athletes who were opposed to competing against biological males. It was one of several pieces of mine that had been spiked, and I no longer felt like I could properly do my job as a columnist. I lay out the situation in greater detail in the link below, but I want to say that I enjoyed my time with the paper, find the talent there to be immense, and have no animosity toward anyone who works there. It was just time for a change.

https://t.co/NAhfUbmaPI

[Paul Kesterton @PaulKesterton]

This

[Richard Dawkins @RichardDawkins]

I am bewildered, and not very impressed, by the visceral, naked, irrational hatred spat out by some defenders of Jason Arday. If a Cambridge professor is accused of being an unqualified charlatan, the accusation might be racially motivated. On the other hand it might not, depending on the evidence. The correct question to ask is not, ”What is the colour of his skin” but “Is it in fact true that he is an unqualified charlatan?” Please examine the evidence before leaping to the assumption of racism.
As for the idea that journalists “piled in on him” and “hounded him to his death”, most attacks were against Cambridge University. Jason himself was widely regarded as an unfortunate victim of foolish promotion way beyond his ability to cope. In appointing him to a professorship for which he was manifestly unqualified – in ludicrously describing him as “the best in the world” – certain senior members of the university showed a level of patronising condescension towards black people that could fairly be described as racism, while at the same time making him tragically vulnerable to such attacks as came his way.

[Paul Kesterton @PaulKesterton]

@PatrickChristys I’ve blocked the Emergency Alerts, I don't want to be reminded they are signed off by the convicted fraudster Louise Haigh.

[The Free Speech Union @SpeechUnion]

Angela Rayner must explain why her government department has deleted all responses to the Working Group tasked with drafting the official definition of Islamophobia — now repackaged as “anti-Muslim hostility”.

The Free Speech Union exposed that all five members of the group had troubling links to Islamist groups.

This definition has revived Britain’s blasphemy laws via the back door for Islam alone. It is already having a chilling effect on free speech.

The public deserves to know why these responses were deleted.

[Daily Mail @DailyMail]

TV presenter who exposed people smugglers forced to flee home after police warned of death threats https://t.co/CklZTBUdBy

[Julia Hartley-Brewer @JuliaHB1]

The only person responsible for Jason Arday's death is Jason Arday.

He was a liar and a fraud who was rightly exposed for what he really was by academics and journalists who were simply doing their job.

No one forced Arday to make up lie after lie about his life. He chose to do that. And he did it for financial gain and to bask in the applause it brought him.

He used those lies to deceive people into giving him a job he didn't merit, a lucrative book deal he didn't deserve,  as well as fame and adulation he didn't earn. 

And when he was found out, he called in the police and expensive lawyers to shut his accusers up, and his failed students who complained were branded as racist.

Cambridge University and Jesus College enabled this liar by lauding him as brilliant when he wasn't even mediocre. They should ask themselves why they put their DEI religion above the need for fairness in their appointments processes, above the needs of Arday's students and, most importantly, above the truth.

Arday's family and friends should ask themselves why they chose not to speak out to expose his lies which they must have known to be untrue. 

The police should ask themselves why they thought it acceptable to investigate an academic and a journalist simply for asking questions about Arday's fraudulent CV. 

The BBC and Arday's many other deluded cheerleaders should ask themselves why they were so desperate to believe Arday's outlandish claims in the face of all the evidence.

The thousands of the great and the good in academia, politics, media and law who signed the Good Law Project letter backing Arday should ask themselves why, without any justification, they outrageously branded Arday's critics as racists who just wanted to bring down a successful black man because of the colour of his skin.

All of these people made their own contributions to Jason Arday's life. And arguably all of them contributed in some way to his decision to take his own life when his fantastical claims were finally exposed for what they really were: lies.

The idea that those who exposed Arday as a lying fraudster are to blame for his death is as laughable as it is outrageous. 

The idea that Arday was "hounded" to his death is absurd. He chose to tell every single lie himself and he even chose to continue those lies in his resignation letter from Cambridge. He is not the victim. He is the perpetrator.

The claim that Arday's downfall was only a front page story because he was black is also ridiculous. He chose to tell the lies that made him a front page story in the first place. 

I feel sorry for those who loved him. It is very sad that he has chosen to take his own life rather than face the consequences of his own actions, which should have resulted in a criminal conviction for fraud. 

But actions have consequences. This isn't about right and left. It's about right and wrong.

[Paul Kesterton @PaulKesterton]

@Hulyaa90s 68

[Paul Kesterton @PaulKesterton]

@Mimiiben1 63

[Allison Pearson @AllisonPearson]

No, Andy Burnham. All parts of the country do NOT need to “play their part” and take hordes of illegal migrants who pose a threat to their communities.
You, and the Government, need to play your part and stop thousands upon thousands breaking into Britain.
Thanks. @andyburnham

[The Free Speech Union @SpeechUnion]

Wildlife presenter and FSU member Anneka Svenska was told to take a “thinking skills course”, accept a police record or face arrest after two police officers turned up at her door.

Ms Svenska was left “shaking” when officers appeared at her home in Kent to inform her that she was the subject of a complaint from MBR Acres — the only UK site that breeds dogs for animal testing — after she posted a video online in January criticising the way the beagle testing site disposes of dead animals.

The company accused her of “making false allegations”.

Police alleged that she had committed an offence under Section 179 of the Online Safety Act. Introduced by the last Conservative government, the provision makes it an offence, punishable by up to 51 weeks in prison, to knowingly spread false information likely to cause harm.

The FSU warned while the legislation was going through Parliament that it could be weaponised in precisely this way to silence legitimate political speech.

We were right.

Ms Svenska sought legal advice and refused to accept the “community resolution”, which would have required her to complete two online thinking skills courses within two weeks and would have seen her recorded as an “offender”, potentially appearing on a DBS check.

In the end, the police dropped the case and no further action was taken.

Speaking to The Telegraph, Ms Svenska said: “I was definitely intimidated by the police; I was actually shaking underneath. This, to me, was an absolute violation.”

Lord Young of Acton, General Secretary of the Free Speech Union, said: “The Online Safety Act was proposed as a way of keeping children safe online.

“Instead, overzealous police officers are using it to spare large companies the blushes of criticism from campaigners. Thankfully, Anneka had the good sense to reject this community disposal.

“Otherwise, she would have been saddled with this record for doing nothing more than exercising her democratic rights to free speech.”

Read more below and watch our video 👇

[Lucy Connolly @LucyTCWife]

Apparently the government can’t interfere in individual cases such as PC Harper killers.

Well let me tell you, Andy. There was plenty of government interference whilst I was banged up.

Maybe ask your mate Yvette Cooper about her meeting with the prison governor at HMP Peterborough on the 24th July last year?
That according to her didn’t happen!!
She was happy to interfere in my case.

Maybe you could ask your pals why my childcare ROTL application was blocked from the off.
Could you also ask why I didn’t get a ROTL of any way shape or form, even though rapists and murderers get resettlement ROTL.

It seems the government pick and choose what they involve themselves in.

@andyburnham

[The Free Speech Union @SpeechUnion]

The Metropolitan Police have some serious questions to answer.

Why on earth did they decide it was appropriate to launch a four-month investigation into Times Higher Education journalist Jack Grove after he emailed Professor Jason Arday a series of legitimate questions about his academic record?

Surely they should be spending their limited resources on investigating real crimes?

And in what world did the Met police officer who informed Grove that no further action would be taken think it appropriate to tell him to refrain from contacting Professor Arday again because it might be detrimental to his “mental health”?

Professor Jason Arday tried to use the police as a tool to silence a journalist who was simply doing his job. On top of that, he called Carter-Ruck — a notoriously aggressive law firm — which suggested that Grove’s investigation could have a racial dimension.

Powerful people should not be allowed to use the police to shield themselves from legitimate scrutiny.

The Free Speech Union’s General Secretary, Lord Young of Acton, has written to the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police demanding an explanation.

[Paul Kesterton @PaulKesterton]

Quite right

[Allison Pearson @AllisonPearson]

No, Andy Burnham. All parts of the country do NOT need to “play their part” and take hordes of illegal migrants who pose a threat to their communities.
You, and the Government, need to play your part and stop thousands upon thousands breaking into Britain.
Thanks. @andyburnham

[Paul Kesterton @PaulKesterton]

I hope this isn’t real

[NewsForce @Newsforce]

“Modern england”: man stopped by police after buying a baseball bat

A young man reportedly bought a baseball bat and was stopped by police immediately after leaving the store for carrying a “weapon.”

The bat was still sealed in its original plastic packaging.

Buying sports equipment and walking out of a shop shouldn’t look like a scene from a crime documentary.

[Bernie @Artemisfornow]

It’s ok when they do it - The new Net Zero energy minister who supported adding VAT to independent schools, so the system was fairer, er … sends her 3 children to private school.

Because when you’re a very wealthy socialist married to a banker, apparently only everyone else should be equal 🤡

[Toby Young @toadmeister]

A detective who helped jail a paedophile for 23 years has been sacked and placed on the same blacklist as rapists and murderers for criticising trans strip-search rules. https://t.co/STF4yoEvAs

[Tommy Robinson 🇬🇧 @TRobinsonNewEra]

Absolute state of this.

Young lad purchases a baseball bat in "Modern England".

As soon as he leaves the store, police grab him for "carrying a weapon".

The bat is literally still in it's plastic covering.

[Allison Pearson @AllisonPearson]

Since Jason Arday, I’ve been thinking about getting into Cambridge, and what it meant.

The culmination of years of headbanging hard work. Being a “swot” at school because I handed in homework instead of being popular. Yes, in a comprehensive the choice was that stark.

Carrying Tesco’s bags full of books home from the library on the bus for weeks. Piling the books high to create a rampart around my single bed.
Telling myself, “If you read all those books you’ll be good enough to get in.”

Some of the books I read - all of Graham Greene - were not considered “literature”. Not of the first rank, dear. I didn’t know.

As much Shakespeare as I could pack in - the big 4 Tragedies, all of the comedies. All of Austen, Forster (even Maurice FFS), lots of Dickens, Anna Karenina (devastating, wonderful).

I stopped going to school because I needed to read more, much much more. To be good enough to get in.

The Head of Sixth Form summoned me and said, “If you carry on like this you’ll fail your A levels.”

Ha! She hadn’t got a clue. I was working so far beyond A levels. Besides, I had to finish all the books in the rampart. Time was running out.

So hard, the entrance papers. Translating Proust into English. How?

Then, a passage of George Eliot I recognised - thank you God! Then pretending that I’d read Oliver Twist when I’d only seen the film. I called it Oliver! in my essay. With an exclamation mark - how crass. But the dons didn’t know the musical, maybe. I don’t know.

The only lie I told to get into Cambridge. Oliver! “All we ever get is groo-ell!” A really small, forgivable lie, I think, because the work of becoming good enough was so immense, so lonely.

But the surge of pride when I made it. Good enough to get into that unattainable place.

And now, we know that same Cambridge let in someone with two GCSEs - PE and textiles. A man who lied and lied and lied.

They didn’t just let Jason Arday in, they made him a Professor, one of those scholars kids like me revered. We were in awe - imagine being taught by those great minds.

Christ, Cambridge. What a betrayal of all of us who strove so hard to be good enough to deserve you. Who put you on a pedestal, who really truly thought reading hundreds of books was the price of admission, a price you willingly paid.

So much for the brightest and the best. It’s so disgusting on every level, waving in someone utterly unworthy, barely literate for crying out loud. A man at the mercy of the English language, not its master and commander.

A know-nothing Professor, a vacuous, fashionable fraudster hired to give lectures to kids like me.

So Cambridge could look “diverse” and, in so doing, renounced its ancient power which made so many like me strive to be good enough.