Caught! Organized, foul-mouthed abuse of opponents of Australian Labor Party. By David Penberthy.
Labor is under pressure to sever all ties with the foul-mouthed political YouTuber Friendlyjordies amid evidence linking him to several Facebook groups aimed at denigrating Coalition figures and boosting support for ALP candidates and MPs.
The left-wing blogger — who posted a 15-minute video this week describing Liberal MP Nicolle Flint as a “whiny little bitch” and “shit local member” who should “f..k off” from politics — is also the creator of a Facebook group called The Common Sense Brigade which has thousands of members across the country.
Friendlyjordies, whose real name is Jordan Shanks, set up the group last year. It now has chapters across Australia run by his followers according to strict rules demanding total loyalty to the ALP and urging members to join or campaign for Labor.
Shanks has amassed 343,000 followers on his Friendlyjordies Facebook page but it is his links to the The Common Sense Brigade that has the Morrison government asking whether he is working in concert with the ALP, or just an enthusiastic volunteer.
The Common Sense Brigade operates as a private group, with membership vetted to make sure only ALP supporters take part.
Members are then encouraged to target existing community chat forums on Facebook and post anti-Coalition material.
Lying for the left:
Examples include posts claiming that if re-elected the Morrison government will appoint anti-vax MP Craig Kelly as health minister and ban Covid vaccinations.
The technology magazine Gizmodo obtained a video earlier this year in which Shanks explained to his followers how the Common Sense Brigade groups should control messages to maximise damage to the Coalition and boost Labor.
In the video, titled ‘Emergency broadcast! General Jordies has some orders!’, Shanks calls for the creation of innocent-sounding community information groups on Facebook that can then be used by Common Sense Brigade members to spread anti-Coalition material. He says this will allow Common Sense Brigade members to “control the narrative”. …
The Common Sense Brigade group is also explicit in terms of demanding its members only support the ALP, with its rules section stating the group is aimed solely at driving the Coalition from office. …
ALP distancing itself, now that it has come to light:
Shanks’ attack on Ms Flint this week prompted the MP to contact YouTube asking whether he had breached its terms of use with his video, in which he also compares mining magnate Gina Rinehart to a pig, ABC 7.30 host Leigh Sales to a rat, Project co-host Lisa Wilkinson to a chimp and described former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian as a “penis snake”. …
Anthony Albanese has sought to distance himself from Shanks, telling Adelaide radio he does not support the blogger or his latest post. “I condemn it,” the Opposition Leader told FIVEaa. …
However, others in the ALP enjoy a warmer relationship with Shanks, who was a guest speaker at the 2016 NSW Labor conference and also ran a youth training session for NSW Labor in 2017.
NSW Labor senator Kristina Keneally let Shanks interview her at the Commonwealth Parliamentary Offices in Sydney, Deputy Labor leader Tanya Plibersek let him conduct an interview at her own mother’s house, while former prime minister Kevin Rudd has argued that Shanks deserves to be treated as a serious journalist.
The left relies on name-calling to suppress opposition, with smears that repel any normal person from public life. Now you know the internet name-calling is a deliberate and organized attempt to “control the narrative”.
The left’s politicians pretend to be clean, because it’s not them doing the dirty work — but their allies. Well here their allies just got caught, big time. The Sinn Fein had the IRA, the pre-1960 US Democrats had the KKK, and the Australian Labor Party has the Common Sense Brigade.
