Banter -
- the playful and friendly exchange of teasing remarks
- chat that is playful, intelligent and original
I am a Leicester City supporter. It's the place of my birth, and I have grown up in the city. It is a city that has a relatively high ethnic population, and one that has been proud to promote cultural diversity and integration. Leicester is famous for this. Consequently, the football fans have been subjected to racist abuse from other fans over the years. One place I didn't expect racist chanting was in Bristol.
It was the usual kind of thing ("small town in Asia"), with a couple of new ones thrown in for good measure ("Leicester's a shithole, it smells of curry"). The section next to the away fans were united in voice, and probably couldn't stop laughing at the "banter". The irony is that some of these fans would probably have enjoyed a post-match curry themselves, after celebrating their victory over us. It's not as if there is a dearth of curry houses in Bristol. This is what makes this kind of chanting sad; when fans see it as "banter". "Oh, we're not being racist, it's just stereotypes/a bit of a laugh/pointing out the obvious/whatever...". Unfortunately, there are plenty of people out there who don't see a problem with what is casual racism. Okay, so it doesn't promote hatred - these aren't your stereotypical racist thugs singing this stuff, you know. This was the stuff of 1970s working mens' clubs.
But isn't racism a form of ignorance? Supposedly harmless chants like the ones the Bristol City fans were singing against the Leicester fans are based on ignorance at the very least. Should this be tolerated? I don't think that it should. If you start to justify such comments, where do draw the line? There are people who feel that they can justify the most hateful and inciteful racist attitudes. Why should ignorance be allowed to stand?
At half time, I asked one of the senior stewards is anything was going to be done about the chanting, and was told that 8 fans had been ejected, along with 3 Leicester fans for retaliating with "small town in Wales". Speaking to some friends, there was a divide as to whether being associated with the Welsh was just as racist as being Asian. To me, there is very little difference. Again, I don't think it's borne out of malice most of the time, just ignorance and immaturity. It's disappointing and somewhat embarrassing that fans can't support their teams, instead of trying to insult their opponents.
More concerning, as a Leicester fan, are the songs directed towards our Japanese import, Yuki Abe. The Japanese do not eat dogs. How would these people have reacted if they were told that when Gary Lineker made his debut for Grampus Eight, the locals were singing "he only eats frog's legs" or "Gary'll eat your horse"? It's factually as accurate, after all.
It's not clever, it's not funny, and it certainly doesn't meet my definition of "banter".
I haven't blogged for a while; I haven't really been in the mood. I've seen things and thought "that would make a good blog post", but when push came to shove, I just haven't been motivated.
The decision not to apply jobs until after our holiday looks to have backfired big time. On top of this, my failure (in my words) to secure pupillage compounds my own self-inflicted depression. I may be down, but I'm not giving up yet.
At this moment in time, my voluntary work is a shining light in these dark, bleak times. I am so close to completing my training, and have to complete assessed interviews with real people before I can be let loose. It's something that I'm looking forward to. Feeling like I'm doing something has lifted my spirits; it's a pity I have to wait two weeks, with it being unlikely that I'll be advising before the New Year.
One thing that has emerged today is the news that Sergeant Mark Andrews has successfully appealed against his conviction for assaulting Pamela Somerville. With the officers who were involved in the death of Ian Tomlinson not facing criminal charges, these are worrying times. How can the police expect to gain respect from the public when they are permitted to use disproportionate means to deal with us? When a male officer can throw a woman half his size into a cell, causing her injury, and have it justified on the grounds that "she was drunk", then what other excuses could be used to defend similar actions? Mr Justice Bean did say that Sgt Andrews "could have done things better"; yes, by keeping within legal limits, for a start.
Driving in the UK is no longer seen as a privilege, but a right. The minute a child turns 17, they are straight into a car; IT IS MY RIGHT.
In some countries, the ability to drive is a necessity. Hey, in some parts of the UK, it's a necessity. But the number of cars on our roads is out of proportion. Many of my neighbours will drive the 5 minutes to the local town, rather than walk. It's only 10 minutes. The parking and traffic lights make the car journey so long.
The need to be able to drive from door to door is becoming all to prevalent. Just look at the scramble for places at the entrance of supermarkets or shopping centres. If you actually like to park your car just a 30 second walk from your destination, chances are you won't be blocked in or find someone parked so close, you can't open your doors. As for spaces reserved for parents (er, hang on, you chose to have kids; shouldn't you have thought about the practicalities first?) or the disabled (you want to be treated like everyone else, but only when it suits you), those are actually fair game for anyone prepared to take the piss.
Today, I tried to argue with someone who drove over a pavement rather than drive around a car park properly. It (the fat oxygen thief in question) couldn't give me any reason for being such a twunt. It did mumble about me being a bitch, however.
This is just the start. Expect more car related rants in future.....
An American woman is bringing her charity work to the UK. It involves paying drug addicts to be sterilised.
Some may see this as a bribe at worst, or feel that the sad point is that the £200 she is offering to each addict will be wasted on more smack, crack or whatever. The thing is, these people will be finding a way of funding their habit. It's their choice to feed their addiction. At least the hits paid for by in this manner might mean someone isn't mugged or burgled.
As long as those who choose to undergo such extreme measures do so having sat down with a medical professional, and the full implications are given to them, such measures should surely be encouraged. Bringing unwanted children into the world, to be provided for by The State is the alternative. Adult addicts can make choices; babies can't.
Of course, sterilisation is an option available on the NHS, and could be sought out by responsible drug users. However, anyone who has tried to get such treatment, regardless of their status and social lifestyle, will tell you it's not that easy.
The decision to cut Child Benefit for high earners has clearly upset the Yummy Mummies and Ladies What Lunch at my gym. The changing room this morning was full of high pitched bemoaning. One member, as she put her Radley bag into a locker, said "if I'd known the Tories would take away my Child Benefit, I'd never have voted them in".
I overheard another angry mother telling her friend that her husband and her "were thinking of trying for a boy this time, but it doesn't seem worth it, not now they're taking Child Benefit off of us". I didn't think it was the right time to express my relief that the changing room would be missing out on another perving little boy.
One of her companions said that "it seemed wrong that the Government [the previous administration, I hasten to add] wanted to increase birth rates, but were doing everything possible to put people off having children". I really wanted to point out the irony in this statement; I lost the feeling in the end of my tongue stopping myself. I wanted to ask what she thought about young, single mothers using the system, but I knew she wouldn't spot the hypocrisy in her own attitude. She then went on to say that her husband's pension would suffer because of this. Apparently, it's one of those stakeholder ones, and the credit crunch has depleted it enough without this on top of everything. I couldn't make it up.
Another friend joined in the tirade against this treachery committed by her beloved Tory party. "It's like we're being penalised because my ***** earns over £60,000 a year". I was surprised I got out of there alive, my heart was bleeding so much.
Child Benefit isn't great. It's £20.30 a week. For each extra child you have, you get £13.40. Considering the take home pay of someone earning £45k a year is around £631 a week, are these women really going to be missing out? They don't realise just how lucky they are that they have the choice not to work. Many families don't have that option, earning too much to claim any other benefit, but not enough to keep them in Per Una.
Also, this argument that the cuts are penalising mothers who choose to stay at home just doesn't stack up. Some of the knee jerk reactions in the media are pointing towards young mums and single parents. I hate to be the one to point it out, but these aren't the people who are going to be affected. Someone earning over £45 a year is likely to be over 30. Their partner, most likely, will be working until she decides to have kids. Then there's that important factor; it's a decision to have kids. They've made that choice.
As stated above, this cut will affect people taking home over £630ish a week. If that isn't enough to live on, even with 2 or 3 kids, then I'm sorry, what is? If someone is really struggling, then what are they spending their money on? Most of the Moaning Minnies at the gym drive new MPVs, usually Range Rovers, Mercedes, or BMW. Everything they wear is a label. If you can't afford to feed your kids, or keep a roof over their heads (surely number one priority as a parent) AND maintain a particular lifestyle TOUGH. Downsize to a smaller car, buy a semi-detached house, or serve own brand instant at your little coffee mornings. Grow your own nails. Just don't moan when you lose out on £20-£30 a week you clearly aren't going to miss.
If I see one more social networking, "copy and paste" status that says that the public services and especially the military are facing cuts whilst our taxes are going abroad to other countries, I swear I will scream.
In 2009, 0.52% of public spending was overseas aid. Now, I know I'm not a professor in Maths, but that is not really a huge sum of money to go towards helping those who need it. Considering how much money it's estimated is going into the pockets of our own citizens who are more content to sponge off of the State, I shouldn't be surprised the public is quick to shift the blame onto Johnny Foreigner.
I hated running at school. I hated the cold, I hated the pain, I hated the fact I could barely keep up with the slow, fat kids but most of all I hated running because I wanted to be bloody good at it. And I wasn't.
I've always enjoyed watching athletics. I can remember watching the first London Marathon on the TV as a kid. Every year after that, I would watch the coverage and tell myself "one day, I'll do it". I was right.
I said I was crap at running at school. I did have my moments. Usually on cooler, overcast days, with a fresh breeze in the air, and a low pollen count. I should have twigged something wasn't right when I clocked the best 400m time for our PE group (which was double my 100m time, run the week before in blistering sunshine, after which I collapsed fighting for breath), with seemingly little effort. I was 17 the day after my asthma was diagnosed. I wonder to this day, if it had been spotted earlier, could I have enjoyed distance running as much as I do these days?
I took up running in my mid-twenties as a way to keep fit. Since then, I've grown to love it. If illness or injury prevents me from going out, I get grumpy. I try to organise my day around a running session, not the other way around. It's easy to get addicted to. As well as the natural hormone release contributing to a feeling of well-being, for me, there's the feeling of self-improvement. Every time I run a route quicker, I don't just feel pleased with myself, it makes me want to go out and run it even more quicker. I like being able to say that I can run for miles; not from the perspective of belittling anyone who can't. I don't really care what anyone else can or can't do. No, I'm an asthmatic, exercise induced asthmatic at that, and one with dodgy joints. I might not be skinny, and I might not win any races. But I can run for miles. It's a sense of achievement that I personally feel proud of.
But I still want to do it quicker than last time ;-)
