tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post735888365474285641..comments2024-03-20T10:19:56.838+01:00Comments on the beatroot: 'England – it’s the foreigners what is to blame…'beatroothttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-83227811747818320402007-11-30T11:26:00.000+01:002007-11-30T11:26:00.000+01:00"Who are the guys wearing ultra white carefully la..."Who are the guys wearing ultra white carefully laundered and starched preppy clothes? My, my, what would ever happen if one perchance got a grass stain?"<BR/><BR/>You'd take them home and wash them?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-76944373282748099462007-11-28T02:13:00.000+01:002007-11-28T02:13:00.000+01:00Sportily?Who are the guys wearing ultra white care...Sportily?<BR/><BR/>Who are the guys wearing ultra white carefully laundered and starched preppy clothes? My, my, what would ever happen if one perchance got a grass stain?<BR/><BR/>3-2. Ow.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-18406633903006101942007-11-27T23:58:00.000+01:002007-11-27T23:58:00.000+01:00"But there is no 'law' of nature or society that s..."But there is no 'law' of nature or society that says that a national identity is the only identity that can unite people. WE all have much more in common than we do differences."<BR/><BR/>But national identity is inherently a two-step process<BR/>1. what do we have in common?<BR/>2. what makes us different?<BR/><BR/>You can't have one without the other.<BR/><BR/>As for the EU, I certainly have lots of criticisms of the entity, but on the other hand, the EU has a better track record of improving living standards of member states than any other trans-national organization. That gives it a little leeway in my book.michael farrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10232229721381140090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-1354006787528425172007-11-27T23:04:00.000+01:002007-11-27T23:04:00.000+01:00Come on...Baseball is cricket for folk who are spo...Come on...Baseball is cricket for folk who are sportily challenged.beatroothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-28017503590473343152007-11-27T22:58:00.000+01:002007-11-27T22:58:00.000+01:00And can't those geezers catch a ball without havin...<I>And can't those geezers catch a ball without having to wear BIG glove?</I><BR/><BR/>Maybe that English goalie should have tried two big gloves.<BR/><BR/>BTW, I don't watch pornography or cricket. Something about sticky wickets.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-80609211982041815142007-11-27T22:23:00.000+01:002007-11-27T22:23:00.000+01:00And Geez - if you want to get your eyeballs around...And Geez - if you want to get your eyeballs around a proper game where men catch the ball, bat ball (which often bounced and deviated off the ground at 100 mph, or spun in disguised ways), ...and at the same time WEARING LONG TROUSERS...<BR/><BR/>then have a look at this<BR/><BR/>http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ILmSAL7WTKA&feature=relatedbeatroothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-81525969233705201752007-11-27T22:14:00.000+01:002007-11-27T22:14:00.000+01:00jugoslavija's was a forced union, one directed fro...<I>jugoslavija's was a forced union, one directed from the outside, whilst the eu is a free decision from the inside of its member countries.</I><BR/><BR/>EU was and is an elite project, conceived and managed by ruling elites. There was no social movement for it and there is no real social movement to sustain it. That is Brussel's problem. Hence 'constitutions' which morph into 'Reform' treaties etc. <BR/><BR/>As far as Yugoslavia is concerned - then yeah, it failed. But there is no 'law' of nature or society that says that a national identity is the only identity that can unite people. WE all have much more in common than we do differences. Politics should be about finding that unity. The EU, however, is not it. <BR/><BR/>Geez - I never tried sliding into...dirt stuff...with my trousers on, let alone, off. <BR/><BR/>And can't those geezers catch a ball without having to wear BIG glove?beatroothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-50825132323847748932007-11-27T18:54:00.000+01:002007-11-27T18:54:00.000+01:00mjk: for once, jugoslavija's was a forced union, ...mjk: <I> for once, jugoslavija's was a forced union, one directed from the outside, whilst the eu is a free decision from the inside of its member countries.</I><BR/><BR/>Which part of the inside, I wonder? You only need to check the recent statements by president Sarkozy, and read the V. Giscard d'Estaing's letter to Le Monde, to see how fundamental changes in the nature of the EU are being implemented, and how much the people of the individual countries have to say. And it is the people, not the politicians, whose support such a structure needs to survive.<BR/><BR/>mjk: <I> oh, give me the czech case, please... </I><BR/><BR/>The _Czech_ case? Not the Czecho-Slovak case? ;-)<BR/><BR/>mjk <I> no war, no deaths, one happy country </I><BR/><BR/>Actually, two separate countries now.<BR/><BR/>mjk: <I> and one that starts regretting the whole independence thing... </I><BR/><BR/>I haven't heard of any serious political movement trying to rebuild CS. Have you?<BR/><BR/><I> great example to be taught in nationalist schools! </I><BR/><BR/>By all means, I also prefer the Czecho-Slovak way. In fact, it does show that national states can be good neighbours _without_ being clamped together in one vise (C and S membership in the EU is only very recent).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-36715039963131951342007-11-27T18:24:00.000+01:002007-11-27T18:24:00.000+01:00Ever try sliding into second base without shorts, ...Ever try sliding into second base without shorts, BR?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-15919215363137294212007-11-27T18:11:00.000+01:002007-11-27T18:11:00.000+01:00A good rule of thumb for non Anglo-Saxons is that ...A good rule of thumb for non Anglo-Saxons is that they hate foreigners. Just not the ones they know.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-933568204824444032007-11-27T16:09:00.000+01:002007-11-27T16:09:00.000+01:00Ever try sliding into the dirt at second base with...<I><BR/>Ever try sliding into the dirt at second base with shorts, BR? Diving after a groundball in the infield?</I><BR/><BR/>That's the strangest question someone's asked me all day. <BR/><BR/>I don't think I have voluntarily slided in dirt, either with or without shorts...at least not when sober...<BR/><BR/><I>I'm not an athlete, I'm a baseball player</I><BR/><BR/>Is that why they all take 'performance enhancing drugs'? But which drug? They run around four bases and then have to go and sit down for half an hour. So I reckon they must be smoking weed. <BR/><BR/>Why is a team named after a female horse?beatroothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-75608381290514175162007-11-27T14:45:00.000+01:002007-11-27T14:45:00.000+01:00Ever try sliding into the dirt at second base with...Ever try sliding into the dirt at second base with shorts, BR? Diving after a groundball in the infield?<BR/><BR/>As far as laziness or lack of athleticism is concerned, I think it was best surmised by the great and rather rotund Polish baseball player John Kruk (now retired but formerly a first baseman with the Philadelphia Phillies --why is a team named after a female horse you will no doubt ask) who said something to the effect: I'm not an athlete, I'm a baseball player."<BR/><BR/>Nevertheless, I think hitting a baseball, thrown by a good pitcher, is the hardest thing to do consistently in sports. Look at Michael Jordan who tried to play baseball, but couldn't make the grade, after he retired from basketball. Then again, he probably would have sucked at sacar, too.<BR/><BR/>Of course, a lot of the most strident sports fans in the US see soccer as a sissy and altogether boring sport.<BR/><BR/>Too many fascists in England, too.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-33807976248643253612007-11-27T12:45:00.000+01:002007-11-27T12:45:00.000+01:00they've got an amazing potential and a lot of hear...they've got an amazing potential and a lot of heart... well, maybe i am wrong, maybe it's not shadows but ghosts what i perceive... let's just hope the ante pavelic' soup doesn't get to be dish of the day ever again...Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18266478987227837412noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-18043436123648439682007-11-27T12:27:00.000+01:002007-11-27T12:27:00.000+01:00I saw posters, but I don;t meet those attitudes am...I saw posters, but I don;t meet those attitudes among normal people (and I go to Croatia every year). And as far as EU is concerned, Croatia are the most advanced of all the Balkans apart from Slovenia and are, if truth be known, far ahead already of exsisting members in all sorts of ways - including Poland. <BR/><BR/>Just because we have Giertych does not make Poland catholic nationalist.beatroothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-18608185465707884302007-11-27T12:25:00.000+01:002007-11-27T12:25:00.000+01:00(nb. I've never been to Croatia, this is all secon...(nb. I've never been to Croatia, this is all second-hand)<BR/><BR/>Croatia was pretty enthusiastically on the German side in WWII (one reason for Poland not siding with Croatia at all during the 90's despite their common Roman catholicism, if anything Polish bias tends towards the Serbs strangely enough).<BR/>Also symbols from the Ustasha were supposedly revived in 90's independent Croatia (supporters said the symbols pre-dated the nazi puppet state and shouldn't be tainted by it while critics said you could say the same thing about the swastika).<BR/><BR/>On the other hand, Hungary was also on the German side and that hasn't hurt Polish-Hungarian relations. And there's a streak of fascist-apologetics in Hungarian politics still (I've been in Hungary a lot and it's one of my favorite countries, but some of their political debates do freak me out a little).michael farrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10232229721381140090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-56938879808916790172007-11-27T10:29:00.000+01:002007-11-27T10:29:00.000+01:00anonymous: The end result, people of different cul...anonymous: <I>The end result, people of different cultures living as neighbours under the same legal system and common government, is similar.</I><BR/><BR/>and all terrorisms are the same, right? you start oversimplifying and you end up bombing the streets of bagdad instead of the mountains of afghanistan... for once, jugoslavija's was a forced union, one directed from the outside, whilst the eu is a free decision from the inside of its member countries. <BR/><BR/>anonymous: <I>Whether such a creation can survive the stresses of history (including profound political changes) depends on how compatible the cultures are. But looking at Yugoslavia, or even Czechoslovakia, one may have doubts.</I><BR/><BR/>oh, give me the czech case, please... no war, no deaths, one happy country and one that starts regretting the whole independence thing... great example to be taught in nationalist schools!<BR/><BR/>beatroot: <I>Croatia - too many fascists. Which British tabloid you read that one in, Geez?</I><BR/><BR/>no british tabloid needed, beatroot. hrvatka's is a special case, of course, having suffered (and inflicted) such a tragic war in still too recent of a time. but, should you drive across the dalmacija, you will see ante gotovina pictures everywhere, many claiming that people there prefer not to join the eu than to give him away. and yes, gotovina was their saviour from the serbian army. but he was also a war criminal. after that, you may visit rijeka, 300 kms. away from where the bullets and the bombs were flying. but do visit it on hrvatska's national day: oh man, it's scary... it would be fair to admit that the situation has improved highly in the past 5 to 10 years. but, if not clearly present, fascism is still in the shadows there.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18266478987227837412noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-81967663493739135222007-11-27T08:18:00.000+01:002007-11-27T08:18:00.000+01:00Croatia - too many fascists. Which British tabloid...Croatia - too many fascists. Which British tabloid you read that one in, Geez? <BR/><BR/>And how is baseball tough on the knees? In fact, apart from the pitcher, how is playing baseball tough on anything? They are so lazy they can;t even be bothered to carry their bat with them when they are running.beatroothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-46331865514731487812007-11-27T03:25:00.000+01:002007-11-27T03:25:00.000+01:00mjk: who is creating such structures? and where? ...mjk: <I> who is creating such structures? and where? </I><BR/><BR/>"By this Treaty, the HIGH CONTRACTING PARTIES establish among themselves a EUROPEAN UNION, hereinafter called 'the Union'." Currently metastasizing into new areas of competence.<BR/><BR/>mjk: <I> for it would be quite clumsy in historical terms to compare the artificial union of different nations to create a new state to the arrival of people from different cultures into an already perfectly defined country, right? </I><BR/><BR/>The end result, people of different cultures living as neighbours under the same legal system and common government, is similar. Whether such a creation can survive the stresses of history (including profound political changes) depends on how compatible the cultures are. But looking at Yugoslavia, or even Czechoslovakia, one may have doubts.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-48834435144292861072007-11-27T01:55:00.000+01:002007-11-27T01:55:00.000+01:00Anti-Canadian. Heh? Not Anti-American. By not rec...Anti-Canadian. Heh? Not Anti-American. By not recognizing Canadians play football and have their own league.<BR/><BR/>No shorts coz it would be too tough on the knees. And nowadays most bb players wear very long pants, not knickers. And basketball players shorts are down over their knees, too. <BR/><BR/>Croatia? Too many fascists.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-51237643493060362672007-11-27T01:02:00.000+01:002007-11-27T01:02:00.000+01:00I absolutely agree beatroot. I'm very interested i...I absolutely agree beatroot. I'm very interested in history and one of the more interesting aspects is comparing historical realities with public perceptions.<BR/><BR/>In general what the public thinks is caused by cultural memes, which in this globalised world gives the media a lot of influence. As you say, if we all start expecting Eastern Europeans to have fangs and beat up British workers before stealing their jobs then eventually people will start to believe that nonsense.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-83249031669485993602007-11-26T21:53:00.000+01:002007-11-26T21:53:00.000+01:00Geez. How is what I am saying anti-American? You j...Geez. How is what I am saying anti-American? You just have weird sports, played by folk in Edwardian dress. Fact. Why don;t baseball players and footballers wear shorts - like everyone else? <BR/><BR/>An what's wrong with Croatia? It's one of my fav countries. <BR/><BR/>Guy. Totally. I agree that the media is out of step with normal people in Britain. But I have also met with stereotype thinking that these media peddled myths regurge on a regular basis. So they need to be opposed before they have an effect.beatroothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-79286672977566985582007-11-26T21:51:00.000+01:002007-11-26T21:51:00.000+01:00This comment has been removed by the author.beatroothttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11242716221133886807noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-55250616525677038362007-11-26T20:53:00.000+01:002007-11-26T20:53:00.000+01:00I'd respond Ho, Ho, Ho but that's not allowed anym...I'd respond Ho, Ho, Ho but that's not allowed anymore so HeHeHe.<BR/><BR/>Then again, I'd feel even better about it if it wasn't Croatia....Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-52184736747955398492007-11-26T19:42:00.000+01:002007-11-26T19:42:00.000+01:00While we're here, isn't this the _second_ embarass...While we're here, isn't this the _second_ embarassing defeat to Croatia by England in recent years? <BR/><BR/>Face it, you're Croatia's bitch.michael farrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10232229721381140090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13112593.post-67036220052525063762007-11-26T18:38:00.000+01:002007-11-26T18:38:00.000+01:00"the only group left for the British middle class ..."the only group left for the British middle class to feel superior to. Saddos..."<BR/><BR/>Is that really the case? Around Hammersmith the Eastern Europeans are probably the second most popular immigrant group after the Aussie/Kiwi's. Sure nobody likes the Russian fat cats or the Romanian gypsies but in general the attitude is positive, particuarly towards the Polish (though that might be to do with the nice Polish cafe).<BR/><BR/>I can think of immigrant groups though of much worse like Pakistanis and Nigerians.<BR/><BR/>For me there are two stories in all this bloated football tosh. Firstly is the idea that English players are doing worse because of celebrity and money. And that, much like with British builders, the Eastern Europeans do it cheaper, easier and better (which surely is an admission of superiority?). <BR/><BR/>Secondly is the reaction: banning foreign players. This is common now in British culture: ban, don't nurture. The emphasis is on legislation and protectionism (how very European). <BR/><BR/>Frankly more foreign players is a good thing because it just means that English (or Scottish, or Welsh or whoever) have to work harder rather than resting on the laurels of geography.<BR/><BR/>Eastern Europeans take far more flak in the media than in real life. And considerng the balls the MSM in Britain generally pumps out that merely means its all of a level.<BR/><BR/>"Well of course I meant ice hockey. How popular is it in the UK for that matter?"<BR/><BR/>Very much a minority sport, there just isn't the ice available. Hockey is slightly more popular, particuarly with girls.<BR/><BR/>-GuyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com