To be fair, every forecast for the economy that I’ve ever seen has been frankly fucking miles off. Considering the variables they have with Brexit, these forecasts aren’t worth the faeces they’re written with.
I’m no fan of Brexit, but the wankers that put out these forecasts deserve a cockpunch (wrong thread). Sometimes, a “we’re not sure, but most of the stuff that we can predict seems on the negative side” line makes you look a lot less stupid.
FIFA have commenced disciplinary proceedings against the Welsh FA and Irish FA because ’ some of the fans were wearing poppies’.
Guardian report https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/nov/23/welsh-football-association-charged-fifa-spectators-wearing-poppies
It’s about time we told this governing body where to place it’s rule book and do a Brexit on them - how fcuking dare they.
Absolutely fuming about this, to remember the dead is now a political act. Piffle
I actually have some sympathy with FIFA here. As an international organisation they are looking at the context with respect to other countries, and if they allow poppies it is precedent setting. There are countries that would argue their own remembrances are apolitical and we would have a very different view in the country. I seem to remember Ireland wore something relating to the Eater Rising, for example.
I don’t really understand why there is such a clamour for these overt and mawkish displays, almost daring people to disagree. There are plenty of ways to do a dignified and respectful remembrance that doesn’t break the rules.
The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month has been Remembrance day for almost 100 years in which we remember the lives lost in conflict in the name of our country, it is not specific to any one conflict or act of war.
FIFA, at least in my book do not have any right to interfere with a countries tradition of Remembrance whatsoever.
Perhaps given the sensitivity of the date they should not have scheduled the sporting events on this day. Like FIFA this tradition is quite rightly inflexible as to changing dates.
FIFA have a set of rules that everyone signed up to.
Or there’s no sponsorship money in letting them wear poppies
As you said earlier, it would be setting a precedent. It’s better just to say no and then it’s fair to everyone.
But where do you draw the line ? According to the OED, the primary definition of the word ‘political’ is
Relating to the government or public affairs of a country
So doesn’t that make the Three Lions and the Cross of St George political symbols, at least in their origin ? In fact aren’t all national symbols (flags, anthems, national colours etc) political with a small p ? They don’t seem any less political, to me at least, than poppies. If you were to push this daft ruling to its logical daft conclusion then one team would be playing in black and one in white and the colours would be decided by the toss of a coin (not a national coin though, because, horror of horrors, that might have a political symbol on it).
I reckon football has got bigger problems than this to worry about.
VB
No.
I agree, I don’t think there’s any need for footballers to be wearing them for the 90 minutes of a game.It wasn’t deemed obligatory 20-30 years ago. Indeed, this year it was starting to seem like TV presenters & other public figures were being shamed into wearing poppies whether they felt it was appropriate or not. It is possible to support the efforts of the British Legion and to remember those who died without wearing one.
The more time that passes it will slip from peoples memory especially as those in the wars die of old age. Anything that keeps remembrance strong is a good thing.
Brilliant ! It’s rare to see the entire argument laid out so clearly 
.
I’ve thought a bit more though and now I’m worried that it’s even worse than we feared. Do you think the Cross of St George might have any sort of religious connection ? I reckon our only chance is to fess up and retire from the competition now before they ban us from everything for ever.
VB
I honestly think you’re over-analysing it. There are a set of rules laid out by FIFA, and we sign up to them. The team strip is agreed beforehand.
Good job. We wouldn’t want them looking too closely at the origins of the 3 lions or the Welsh dragon.
As the moment is past should this not be resigned to the bucket of shit that is the Wendyball thread ?
You had one job.
Honestly I’ve thought about it for less than a few minutes in total. The claim that there can be a rule-based way of deciding which symbols are acceptable and which are not fell to pieces as soon as the breeze blew on it. By way of analysis:
On Nov 12th 2011 it is OK for England to wear poppy armbands at Wembley.
5 years pass in which no poppy-related bad things happen.
On Nov 11th 2016 it is not OK for England and Scotland to wear poppy armbands at Wembley (despite both sides agreeing that they want to).
As analysis goes I don’t think it’s Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason is it ?
It’s handed one more weapon to Mail readers who don’t like ‘meddling foreigners’ though. Sooner or later we might wish that we’d spoken up against that.
VB
FIFA’s non-action in 2011 leaves them on shaky ground. I don’t know what they were doing then, probably organising pool-parties with bent heads of state. But the rules are pretty clear, and I agree with them.
Equally, why did we start doing this in 2011? Again, it’s become like some kind of remembrance arms-race (unfortunate analogy). If you aren’t remembering as much as me, you must be some kind of unpatriotic degenerate. etc etc. I find it incredibly depressing.
No.
VB
“on all Playing Equipment items [which include jerseys] used on, or brought into (permanently or temporarily), the Pitch Area, for all Matches, any form of advertising… of political, religious, commercial, personal statements, images and/or other announcements, is strictly prohibited”.