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Monday 12 July 2021

Unforgivable



On and on it goes. The post-match racism furore has solid links to political, bureaucratic and activist intentions to keep racism debates bubbling away. Spend years artificially raising the political profile of racism, slant it towards the majority racial group and we have a permanent problem with no way to backtrack. Too many dumb moves have been made, too much political opportunism and malice have thumbs on the scales of debate.

Resentment, ridicule and an inability to lighten the general situation are direct consequences of government policy, self-serving bureaucracy, irresponsible politicians, media and activist outfits. To my mind we would have been in a better situation if we had allowed the issue to find its own level via free speech. Humour would have taken the edge off for example. Obvious really.

As things stand there is no easy way for this situation to be improved because possible avenues for improvement have been blocked by government and the usual suspects. It is very late in the day, but free speech could be a start. But of course that one has been blocked too.

5 comments:

Sam Vega said...

Yes, the MSM (as ever, with the BBC leading) have been extremely keen on lecturing the majority in this country that racism is rife in football (and everywhere else) and that we need to eliminate it. Apparently, there are some shocking comments on twitter, etc., and this is deplorable.

So what are they going to do about it? I suspect that the racism on twitter is entirely down to (a) a small number of disappointed and aggrieved fans who express themselves in this way because the old sexual and toilet terms are now less powerful than racial abuse; (b) a small number of adolescent oppositional types who once would have written on toilet walls and desecrated churches; and (c) an infinitesimally small group who hate black people. Had we won, and Rashford's cleverness had paid off, he would be adored by all except group (c). And still, what are the BBC going to do about it? Ban the internet? Pass laws to compel huge organisations like facebook to come to heel? Give us all a good scolding?

So yes, they racialised football. Sadiq Khan, for example, tweeted that without immigration there would be no England team. The BBC ran a lengthy article on the racism faced by Raheem Sterling. And then, having set all this up, three black guys (all undoubted football geniuses) miss their penalties, while the white guys happen to score. What do they think is going to happen now?

It's the sporting equivalent of Sasha Johnson being shot in the head by (apparently) a black criminal. It's almost as if the universe is going into irony overdrive to tell us something.

Sobers said...

Do we actually know what has been said? Because I'm not prepared to take the media's word that what was said was actually 'racist' just because they say so. It could have been just abuse for having f*cked up, which the media then call racism because its aimed a black person. When Ollie Robinson's texts came out the MSM described them as containing vile racism and sexism. I imagined all manner of nastiness, only to discover the actual texts were basically bad taste jokes. So no, I'll make my own judgements as to what is nasty and what isn't, I'm not going to take the usual suspects word for it, they have an agenda to push and are not honest at all.

Andy5759 said...

I prefer to think of it as bad manners. If the target of the abuse has ginger hair then that would be the descriptor, or wore glasses, or was black. Criticism is fine where merited, making it more personal by picking out something the target can do nothing about is just bad manners.

I agree with Sam, his group (c) is very small indeed. Left to learn life's lessons they would disappear altogether. Instead they are constantly being reminded of their irrational hatred by the race baiters. Nag a man enough and he will do the opposite but they know that.

Scrobs. said...

'Fraid I'm beginning to agree with some people, that Southgate was in on an FA plan to get the three penalty takers on for the last few, and sadly, the whole lot went a*** about t**.

A K Haart said...

Sam - yes it is like the universe going into an irony overdrive. A neat way of putting it, yet not likely to feature on the BBC which is a pity. Sadiq Khan's comment could be construed as racist, but where it counts it won't be.

Sobers - that's my view, I don't trust the media to report it accurately. The media are partly responsible too in that they hyped up the match to an absurd degree. They can't simply walk away from that.

Andy - I think Sam's group (c) is small too and you are right, it would be better to think of it as bad manners. Play it down, dismiss it as oafish and move on feels like a more sensible approach to me.

Scrobs - deciding it on penalties seems feeble to me, but TV people probably like the way it ramps up the tension.