The poppy money raised is paid to the Royal British Legion, is to commemorate all fallen British soldiers who died in all wars and is increasingly used as a propaganda tool in an increasingly militarised world.
Why should a footballer have to engage in this rubbish?
I wish the UK would get the poppy back to what it was originally intended for: A private show of respect one day a year for WW1 instead of a jingoistic parade that lasts a whole month and is forced upon the lapel of everyone that appears on UK tv.
Placing the poppy on football jerseys is crass. As is rolling out the military at every premiership game, X Factor finals, Britain’s Got talent, Saturday night take-away etc.
Reminds me of 1930s Germany.
Last edited by Fixer82; 12/11/2018 at 9:49 PM.
I was in London last week for the first time in nearly two decades, and the poppy was everywhere, and this was several days before the 11th. Every second person, every train, buses, buildings, boats all covered in them. I saw one person wearing five, and another wearing one that appeared to have some jewelry embedded.
It was all well and good when we visited the display outside Westminister Abbey, which I thought was well put-together and a suitable place to use the poppy for its intended purpose. But I couldn't help but feel the remainder was strangely off-putting. It's hard not to feel uncomfortable not wearing one when everyone around you is, like you're being silently judged.
Or, to make an on-topic comment, James McClean is well within his rights not to wear one, and to be affronted by any suggestion that he should. It's treatment by British press and culture has become fetish-like.
Author of Never Felt Better (History, Film Reviews).
* JMC was criticised initially just because he didn't wear one, not due to his chippiness, support for SF or any other reason
* anyone else doing so would have been similarly slated- whether they were German, Argentine, Iraqi, Serb, Pacifist, Left-wing or whatever. So hardly anyone else has followed his lead
* the 'season' will almost certainly recur next year and will be just as bad. Potentially it may be worse, say if Brexit goes even more chaotically than expected, or if Betty Windsor dies aged 93 (in which case think of recent weeks as a dress rehearsal)
* if Varadkar, Ni Riadh etc want to join that's up to them. They won't get much credit that I can see- and also it encourages exaggerated outrage at home. To what end?
Last edited by Gather round; 12/11/2018 at 1:20 PM.
has Nemanja Matić?Originally Posted by Gather round;1982336* [B
Yes, he has.
I don’t think it’s fair to say the rest of Europe was lying down. That’s a pretty Anglo-centric view of the war, just as forgetting Russia’s critical role was.
https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/footb...hester-united/
https://www.express.co.uk/sport/foot...m-Man-Utd-news
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/sp...ngs-child.html
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/46099843
If you're suggesting that McClean gets much worse (which I accept), I suggest it's because of his personal chippiness/ politics rather than any general anti-Irish bias.
Heh. In my experience of Stoke City's k-d support (and I live in Staffordshire), they'd struggle to find Derby and Crewe on a map, let alone Derry and Creggan
I am aware of that Fixer, just as there were some slave masters in training among the African group also. There is good and bad everywhere.
All in all there were 80 - 90K Irish slaves in the Caribbean, including the Sugar Slaves of Barbados, many of whom were transported from Cork I believe.
The Virginia Company of London were the driving force behind the slavery. Their goal was to reap the goods (cotton, tobacco) in places like Virginia and the Carribean on the backs of the Irish and the African slaves.
Russia most definitely played a critical role in WWII. The Germans were decimated on that front. But think of France whom (in the famous words of Brian Clough - there Tets I am making a football reference to keep it relevant) let the Germans come through in three days. Holland, if I recall, put up no resistence. Italy went to the other side and Spain - did they even join the Allied forces? The Norwegian resistence deserves special mention for their obstruction of Germany's bid to bulild the atomic bomb but essentially it was left to the British and Americans to defend Europe.
This twitter account is a must see at this time of year -
https://twitter.com/giantpoppywatch
If the Irish slaves tried to form their own 'colony' in Montserrat, as in use the land to support themselves behind the backs of the British colonists, then fair play to them.
And just so ya know, I support James McClean's right to make his own mind up. I think it's crazy what he's putting himself through but I support his right to have a choice.
Thats funny alright, one on a bin lorry, could be a pishtake but its hard to say!
I was attacked in a pub once when I was living in London. Some clown took it upon himself to walk around the pub and ask all customers to buy a poppy. I politely declined and no more. The fella had a melt down, absolute melt down, and went on a full blown anti Irish tirade. Had to be thrown out of the place, but other customers chipped in with some rubbish too. Wasn't too bothered (i am like that!), but it really wasn't because I was Irish, but I felt that with the war in Iraq it was all a bit of a joke. Was around the time of tony blair and his lying. Its just war propaganda IMHO, and fair dues to James for having the balls to stand by his principles. In fact I feel quite a lot of British people support his views.
I agree with Stuttgart88, I found a lot of ordinary people didn't wear one, but you'd never guess that if you watched the TV. In fact I often wonder how I lived in the UK for so long and this poppy rubbish passed me by a lot of the time!
This sums it up for me
https://twitter.com/kayburley/status...171394?lang=en
Folding my way into the big money!!!
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