08.06.08
Crewser – I’ll miss you
I got a letter in the post this morning and perhaps its contents will annoy some of you, but I have to say it made me smile and to be honest, I’ve been stressed off the scale in the past few months, so things that make me smile are most welcome.
It was posted to the Carey Auctioneers office in Enfield.
“For the attention of Ms Sarah Carey, Operator of GUBU blog”
The Crewser Artistic Spoof which has haunted your site and a few others for the last 18 months or so has been terminated as planned on July 31st last. You may not have suspected it but we did not know anything about politics when we started out on some other Blogs but we certainly do now.
Our presence was prolonged somewhat by interest from a small Irish independent TV production company who may do something based loosely on what went on (names changed of course). We were impressed by the fact that you never imposed blanket censorship and rolled with it even when it got hot and heavy. Fair play.
We did have some political advisors as you might imagine, people who knew Ireland particularly well, geographically and otherwise. We understand that a further similar “exercise” will commence in early October 2008. It will not involve GUBU and the theme and team will be different.
We could never understand how people could work themselves into a frenzy over politics until we got involved in this and then we saw ourselves getting sucked into the battle as it were. The Crewser had nothing to do with Conor Cruise O’Brien as you thought, it was a spoof name chosen after the consumption of alcohol over 2 years ago.
So you can get back to your blogging work safe in the knowledge that The Crewser has written his last lines. Thanks for being such a sport.
The Crewser (over and out)
PS And we always used IP Platinum as a sort of contraception”
So, we were had!!! And how we were! Talk about hook, line and sinker. People used to email me wondering about him. Of course I know it was a dreadful trick. Faking identity on the internet is inevitable and undermines one’s instinctive willingness (and a necessity somehow too) to treat visitors in good faith. Crewser DID take over and there were times when I wanted him to go away and troll someone else’s blog. But since I firmly believe that blogging is social networking and not an exercise in egomaniacal self-publishing (as some would accuse it), I ended up feeling about Crewser as one does a member of the family or an errant friend: drives you completely mad but you’re attached and after a few days absence I’d wonder where he was even if I had learned to ignore his inflammatory remarks (most of the time!!).
As for people going mad about politics; well, we care, even if at times it seems pointless. And maybe it is pointless. While I find myself tempted more and more to stick to the gardening and wondering why I waste mental energy getting angry about politics, fundamentally, I think caring places us above those who don’t care. But possessing a sense of humour and not taking ourselves too seriously is even more fundamental.
Sigh. End of an era 
Darren J. Prior said,
August 6, 2008 at 2:55 pm
???
Gavin said,
August 6, 2008 at 4:20 pm
As one of those who was apparently ‘had’, I have to say, what a pointless exercise.
Let’s troll blogs and wonder why people get worked up about politics? You could have not trolled and still reached the same conclusions about trolling.
As for ‘censorship’, banning trolls is entirely at the discretion of site owners, and in my case, Crewser was banned for ad hominem attacks.
Darren J. Prior said,
August 6, 2008 at 5:00 pm
How about the idea that the letter is a joke and the poster The Crewser will be back on the site again???
P O'Neill said,
August 6, 2008 at 5:48 pm
I’m sceptical. The Crewser was way too credible. He had references that your average prankster would never get — I recall one complaint about Paddy Cooney and “thundering disgrace” which I’m willing to bet more GUBU readers were born after that happened .
crocodile said,
August 6, 2008 at 5:59 pm
I don’t want to trust the unmasking either, and not just because I locked horns with the Crewser once or twice, and therefore can’t bear the thought that a gang of sniggering provocateurs was concocting knowingly smug and glib ripostes as they scorned my earnestness. I beleve there were times when the beast was genuinely wounded and times when the voice of pro-Bertie unreason was too genuine to be faked. If there is a political satirist behind the Crewser, he never hit a false note – the mark of a genius.
The joke is on us in another way, too. Fianna Fail won the election and the country is full of people who are willing to tell you that the tribunals should all be shut down because they’re anti-FF conspiracies in truth-seekers’ clothing.
There once was a figure called ‘Crewser’
Who liberals thought was a loser.
And now we’re displeased
We were just being teased
By a phantom conceived down the boozer.
Crewser RIP
Sarah said,
August 6, 2008 at 7:08 pm
Well look at it this way.
Crewser, whether in some bullshit post-modern, hyper-self-aware- conscious- Web 2.0 experimental mode or not, was a troll. Pure and simple. There were times when we knew better and reacted, when we knew perfectly well that we were being deliberately provoked. He did bugs us but by engaging we let him take over.
I think he/they definitely WERE FnFers. He/They do represent a strain of opinion that sees FF get elected election after election.
Sometimes I am shocked when I meet internet people and they turn out to be 12.
Maybe Crewser is 12 but perhaps a son\s of an FnFer and thus well schooled in the various myths.
The point is, whether he was a genuine FnFer or not, is that he came here deliberately to wind us up and he did. He was having a laugh at us, whether organised or not.
For some reason I don’t mind. I stopped being annoyed by him ages ago and he became another one of the gang. Perhaps part of my screwed up psychology. But there ya go.
Justin Mason said,
August 6, 2008 at 8:05 pm
Love the limerick, croc
I don’t know if I believe this either.
brian t said,
August 6, 2008 at 9:37 pm
“a small Irish independent TV production company”?
Translation: one guy – always a guy – and a camera. Talk about “poverty of imagination”, if this is how far people have to go to generate program ideas.
Sarah said,
August 6, 2008 at 9:50 pm
hee hee, bang on for the translation anyway.
Look, its a game. Either Crewser was a game, or the unmasking (even though we still don’t know who he is) is a game. Either way its a game.
V said,
August 7, 2008 at 4:53 pm
It was a troll, so what? Trolls are Trolls. We have a ton of them in everyday life. What can be proved by being an anonymous troll? In politics it’s already part of the toolbox. This idea of proving the futility of all discourse with a copy of Derrida in one hand and PhD in ‘French Constructivist Bolloxology’ in the other has started to wear thin since Foucault kicked the bucket. If Crewser had been witty and subversive instead of repetitive and dull, then it would have at least been entertaining.
Sarah said,
August 7, 2008 at 7:02 pm
good point.
you know why I think I wasn’t annoyed? Last week was so crazy and I was so pissed off with blogging that when it arrived I thought – well there you go, the whole thing is a joke. This is a sign.
Electron said,
August 7, 2008 at 11:58 pm
Sarah, don’t take it so seriously – the crewser always came across as a simpleton – winning elections was all that mattered – the shenanigans those FF cretins got up to was fair game in his little distorted world. Whether he was real or imaginary is immaterial – the arrogance he portrayed was FF through and through. Albi, can go to a ball, but is too frail to answer yes or no to corruption charges – give us a break, as a people under FF we’re in freefall – we’re in a unique state where the real and imaginary can be one and the same
John said,
August 8, 2008 at 9:08 pm
The economy is in such a tailspin at present that the Crewser had become more and more ridiculous as he/she tried to defend the indefensible. He brought what-aboutery to a fine art and suffered from a severe dose of
political myopia. He regards FF as Ireland and Ireland as FF. This view is not untypical of FF politicians who believe that they can see into people’s hearts and minds. I suspect that the Crewser would feel much happier if Ireland were a one party state. The Crewser is in all probability an FF politician.
Darren J. Prior said,
August 8, 2008 at 10:34 pm
“The economy is in such a tailspin at present that the Crewser had become more and more ridiculous as he/she tried to defend the indefensible.”
For what it’s worth the FF posters have disappeared from http://www.politics.ie over the last while- bar one from the North.
Electron said,
August 9, 2008 at 11:01 am
John,
FF is Ireland full stop – they control everything, the civil service included. It’s a serious situation and as one civil servant remarked to me – it could take twenty to thirty years to flush it out. The real problem now, is that the advice given to government by civil servants is FF advice – in effect, they’re advising themselves. This has been very evident in policy over the past number of years and it was interesting to hear the Central Bank the other day, talking up the economy, while stockbrokers were talking it down, a day or so before the social partnership talks were to begin – self interest at it’s best. I think that as a people, we’ve crossed the rubicon on our way to self destruction.
Niall said,
August 9, 2008 at 11:32 am
Wow. What a pointless exercise. The character was a joke, which is fine, but he was a bad joke. Artistic spoof? What exactly was artistic about it? Trolling is not art, it’s masturbation. If you find yourself masturbating constantly for two years, it probably means you’re a very frustrated person who should probably re-evaluate life.
It was always obvious that Crewser was either a loon or a troll. Sometimes he had a point, but this is true of most trolls and loons. I hope that those of you who engaged with him on a ‘serious’ level don’t feel too bad. It can be entertaining to engage trolls, but only if they’re interesting. Debating with a troll can lead to madness but only if you enter into the debate in the wrong spirit.
A troll is like a videogame character with limited AI. It’s frustrating as hell when the bastard tries to knock your block off and you can’t overcome him with ease, it’s worse still if he ever succeeds in landing a blow, and it’s hard not to read some sort of reason into his actions. But come the end of the day, it’s not a normal human that’s frustrating you. After playing for a while, you spot the patterns, notice the flaws and if you continue to engage with the creature for a long period of time, it’s becomes boring.
I don’t know if the Crewser character was constructed by a frustrated old fart with too much time on his hands, or a group of English students who set up an independent TV production company because their PHD proposals kept getting knocked back, but we probably shouldn’t care.
Darren J. Prior said,
August 9, 2008 at 1:33 pm
Electron,
I was told by a FF member in my area that my local FF TD would get me a job in the civil service. I was also told by another high up FF member in my area (although not an elected public rep.) that she could get me a job in journalism. Eh, no thanks.
Electron said,
August 9, 2008 at 3:03 pm
Darren, that practice is widespread and is now accepted as the norm – it’s dangerous for a country, as it reinforces itself and leads to mediocrity in all areas. I was shocked when a civil servant denied that a certain document existed when I had an actual copy in my hand – from then on, I became very weary of the system and I avoid having anything to do with it, what so ever – I have no confidence in its impartiality. If this allowed to continue, we could descend into a South American type country.
Niall said,
August 9, 2008 at 6:28 pm
*looks outside*
South American you say…
Paddy Matthews said,
August 11, 2008 at 7:07 pm
Clientilism (with just a hint of bullying) is indeed widespread, but it’s hardly the monopoly of any one party:
“As suspected, when the boxes are opened and I am standing there to observe the papers come out of each box, the level of treachery from [X]’s own running mate is apparent. They had split the constituency between them. [Y] for the town of [A], [X] to take the rural votes. As the rural boxes are opened and eagle-eyed we call out the number one votes, all is revealed. Of 65 [Party 1] votes in [B], 50 go to [X], and 15 to [Y]. Who are the 15 voting for [Y]? The pattern is repeated in several other boxes. They’re supposed to vote for [X]. The fools think that they will not be found out. But the Taliban, our local branch of fundamentalist [Party 1] workers will acquire the register of those who voted. Those who didn’t vote at all will be on hit list no. 1. But the traitors who did vote and voted for the wrong guy will be quickly identified and hunted down and form hit list no. 2. [b]No pity for them if they need a planning permission or to be prioritised on the housing list![/b]”
Perhaps the blog owner could fill in the blanks there…
I remember reading that post 4 years ago at the time of the local elections and not being one bit surprised that [X] only scraped in on the last count in what was a generally good election for his party. Any candidate whose supporters conduct themselves with that sort of attitude deserves to lose.
And I’ll make this clear once again like I had to when I told Sarah that Graham Geraghty was a hopeless case as a Dáil candidate – I’m not a Fianna Fáil voter. Too many Fine Gaelers seem to think that they’re possessed of some innate genetic superiority. Believe me, they’re not. There are decent people in all parties, just as there are corrupt assholes in all parties.
Crewser was certainly a troll, but, unfortunately, his/her political analysis was no more simple-minded than a good many of his/her opponents.
Sarah said,
August 11, 2008 at 8:41 pm
http://www.sarahcarey.ie/2004/06/14/local-elections/
Electron said,
August 12, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Sarah, how about having a collection to send Crewser on a new adult course in UCD “ A Political History of corruption in Ireland” – it might help him to come out of his state of denial.
http://www.ucd.ie/adulted/courses/hn130.htm
sarah said,
August 12, 2008 at 7:05 pm
Might do it myself!
Anthony Sheridan said,
August 13, 2008 at 5:20 pm
Who’s this ‘we’ you speak of Sarah when you say “We were had!!! And how we were! Talk about hook, line and sinker.”
We at Public Enquiry challenged the Crewser on every point eventually forcing him to operate from the gutter of personal attacks. I agree with you that blogging is social networking but that does not mean that anything goes. Most blog editors (rightly) do not tolerate trolls.
I also suspect Sarah that you have allowed yourself to be had again. Consider the admissions by the Crewser in his letter. He knew nothing about politics; he formed his very strong opinions on Irish politics through an unnamed advisor and he chose his spoof name after a bout of alcohol consumption. His parting letter is, I suspect, just another childish spoof.
I personally suspect that he is an immature college student who has had his young mind ‘contaminated’ by some Fianna Fail backwoodsman. But no matter who he is we do know something about him with absolute certainty.
He does not possess the courage of his convictions, he is a coward who skulks behind anonymity and therefore does not deserve the respect of those who are prepared to put their names to their views.
Tom Cosgrave said,
August 14, 2008 at 6:08 pm
Surely if this individual or individuals, assuming the letter isn’t a wind up, would have a bit of integrity and reveal themselves?
Electron said,
August 14, 2008 at 7:43 pm
Tom, it’s a FF cute move to avoid facing up to criticism of their useless government – they’re so cute, but we all know their form by now. FF and integrity, now there’s wishful thinking at it best.
Rob Hickey said,
August 14, 2008 at 9:57 pm
OK – but how would you make a TV programmme about a shithead on a blog?
Even RTE wouldn’t buy that.
Tom N said,
August 15, 2008 at 5:57 pm
Methinks Crewser just grew tired and wanted an out that saved face. I will offer odds of 100 hundred to one (subject to a maximum bet of 5 euros per person for pragmatic reasons) that we will never see this documentary. No doubt if the Crewser is reading this, he will contact you Sarah to get my email. If he does contact you and you can verify that it is him (easily done by checking IP addresses) I will happily take the bet.
I reckon he was an FF plant. We will see a new troll emerg in the coming months. Sorry but not taking bets on that. Absolute certainty.