So there's a petition been created to get Phil's membership of the Leagues Club reinstated - please sign it - with your actual name if you're a member especially, and distribute it far and wide via Facebook, Twitter and email. Each time someone signs it the petition website sends an email to the club :-)
Phil's suspension was done so he can't stand for the Leagues Club Board or vote in the election. It's not about where you can have a drink after a game. The Board are trying to dictate the content of this website, thus cutting off free speech and the right of every member to have a say.
The Petition:
"The suspension of Phil Sims' membership from the Club that controls his beloved Parramatta Eels means that Sim cannot vote or stand for election to the Club which owns the Eels. This is a clear abuse of the Board's power and a transparent attempt to shut down any opposition to the current regime.
We the undersigned wish to see Phil Sim's membership suspension reversed.
Sim stood for the Football Club elections in December on the ParraFirst ticket. It was shortly after the election that Sim was informed his membership of both the Leagues Club and the Football Club had been suspended.
The Board's actions in suspending Sim's membership appears to be retaliation for content appearing on Sim's social media website 1Eyed Eel. This suggests that it is attempting to stifle any discussion relating to the performance of the Board prior to the elections in May. It has wider ramifications for free speech and democratic elections in Australia. The Board has in effect demanded that Sim fundamentally change the way in which content is generated and filtered on the 1Eyed Eel website to ensure that any negative comments relating to the Club or it’s Board members are not published.
Sim was told his suspension related to posts by members on his 1Eyed Eel website including a photoshopped picture depicting Chairman Roy Spagnolo controlling a 'puppet' Eric Grothe Junior, who at the time was standing for the Football Club Election on Spagnolo's ticket. Sim refused to remove this post, and others depicting the current Board in a negative light, maintaining that the members of 1Eyed Eel had the fundamental right to express their opinion provided that they did not defame anyone.
Content on 1Eyed Eel is generated by the site's nearly 3,000 members. The site attracts more than 10,000 unique visits per week from members and non-members. Comments are not filtered prior to posting but will be moderated if they don't conform to the site's Code of Conduct. Sim’s moderation policy for the site ensures that political comment is not deleted unless it is deemed to be defamatory. Supporters of any faction within the Club are able to post comment provided it is not deemed to be defamatory."
Incidentally - the blogs which were deemed to be offensive can be found here and here.
Update: You can also see the photo which caused so much angst here
Replies
Oi - Mods - this should be in Top Blogs!
I can't believe Roy is so upset that a newspaper article written by a Walkley award winning journalist was linked to on this site. Like so many articles on rugby league, members post links to stories that are available on the internet, and that's all I did.
I wrote this on the blog in question, after Crow said that Roy had joined our site;
"If Roy wasn't happy with the story he would have had his legal eagles on to the case. That the story remained unchallenged and there was no apology from SMH then we can only assume the story is correct.
Roy, if there is anything wrong with this story please come on the site and tell us. We are happy to hear your side. Indeed, you have been conspicuously absent from the debate, instead leaving it to a couple of cardboard cutout former players to run your campaign."
Especially as it had already been posted a couple of times on this site! I'd sack my advisors if I were Roy, taking on the internet is really dumb.
Blah Blah Blah - just sIgn the petition Sinners!
It's not about going to the Leagues Club - it's about who has control of the NRL team - Because the Leagues Club owns the Parramatta Eels, and the current Board is trying to stop any discussion about how the Club is run.
Also Sinners, every time someone doesn't sign this a unicorn dies.
Done
Signed
Signed.
PLEASE SIGN THIS PETITION, IF YOU BELIEVE IN THE RIGHT TO FREE SPEECH AND ARE THE SORT OF PERSON THAT STAND UP AND IS COUNTED WHEN WRONG HAS BEEN DONE, STAND UP FOR A FELLOW EELS FAN IN PHIL, A GUY THAT HAS GIVEN US ALL THIS FINE SITE AND A LOYAL SUPPORTER OF OUR CLUB.
SIGN THIS PETITION AND SUPPORT A MATE AND A FELLOW SUPPORTER, THE TIME IS NOW, TO SHOW YOUR SUPPORT, BROTHERS IN ARMS..
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