Two (Facebook) lives are better than one

A recent ruling by the Liverpool Standards Committee has made it official.  We have more than one life.

A couple of weeks ago, a decision was made not to take action against Sharon Green for posting a picture of a class of disabled children, giving them the names of Labour's cabinet, because of a ruling in Ken Livingstone's favour that gave politicians a right to behave disgracefully as long as they are not acting in an "official capacity".

All fine and dandy - don't agree with it, but do understand it.

However, I think Liverpool's Standard Board have gotten their interpretation wrong.  Because the infraction was on Facebook.

Ken Livingstone called a journalist a nazi.  At one definitive point in time.  It passed.  It was not said again.  Ken Livingstone had the opportunity to say it again.  He could have got up in the morning, poured a bowl of cornflakes, picked up his phone and called him a nazi.  But he didn't.

We are able to investigate that single moment of time - evaluate context and Ken Livingstone's status at that point and make a judgement about that action.

Sharon Green's disgraceful picture was on her Facebook for three months.  For the infinite points in time over three months it was visible.  Understanding new media is also to understand time and the neverending nature of it.  Think of it as being hit by a ball.  Having a ball thrown at you once is bad enough - setting up a machine to throw an infinite amount of balls in your general direction so that you can walk into them is much worse.

Her defence against the accusations were that the offence was not made in her official capacity as a councillor, which leads me to two counter-defences:

Firstly, at some point during those three months she was acting in her official capacity. The moment she walked into a council building or handed out a card, or delivered a leaflet with her name on she was acting in an official capacity.  And in my mind even if she was a million miles from the nearest computer, then the photograph was instantly in breach of the standards code at that moment in time.

Secondly, is the entirely reasonable view that we cannot have two lives at once.  Apparently, because the Facebook profile does not belong to Councillor Sharon Green the disgraceful behaviour doesn't count.  Sharon Green is therefore not the same person as Councillor Sharon Green on Facebook.  Unless she has two different facebook accounts (and I still don't consider that valid) then it is simply not valid to believe the public or anyone else will make that distinction.

Would an employer overlook a inflammatory racist rant on the radio, just because you weren't in work at the time?  Or, another way, how does the public know when the official councillor starts and ends? The truth is they don't.  and neither should the standards board.