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Point taken ... I forgot you lived in Glasgow ... and the great weakness of retail central buying!Originally posted by Flosshilde View PostComment
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I'm not - I'm exquisitely pleased that they have come a cropper! (mind you, M&S's sales have been so poor recently that they seem to have come a cropper over everything).Originally posted by Northender View PostDon't be such a MISERY!
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Perhaps a certain Mr Wright will be able to revive their fortunes. All that I ask is that he doesn't persuade them drop their 'Dine in For Two For A Tenner' promotion. Had we bought the component parts of last weekend's Sunday supper separately, they would have set us back nearly £18.Comment
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Yes, I think their food sales have been quite bouyant, compared with clothing.Comment
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I think the serious French newspapers have said much the same about every defeat since Crecy haven't they?Originally posted by vinteuil View PostComment
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Wouldn't surprise me if the French are correct - the English (sorry, British, sorry the Brits) have always been cheats. Because they are also humbugs who love wallowing in a warm bath of sanctimonious self-righteousness they also believe themselves to be the only trustworthy nation on the planet. Or off it.Originally posted by vinteuil View Post
Le Monde I think said that the Engbrits won't let anyone look at their bicycles. Very suspicious.Comment
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I broadly agree with your comments here frenchfrank. However, the computer is useful in providing information about the fate of ex champions and also rans in many fields. I am always staggered by how many of them subsequently have huge problems. There have been a couple of interesting pieces today, particularly one from Ben Dirs reporting from ExCel. What I like about it is that, while in favour of the Olympics, he manages to convey the many downsides. What it isn't is the usual propaganda. For example:Originally posted by french frank View PostI'm not sure that this can be proved. Some people like physical exercise, some don't. 'Sport' involves competition and that for many people is what spurs them on to achieve their absolute best. To do that in the Olympic spirit of goodwill and friendship seems an entirely good thing.
But I'm not very interested in watching other people engage in sport. I saw the headline that Andy Murray had won gold and sort of muttered, 'Well done, our man' (satisfied mainly because I was glad for him that he had finally achieved something that had eluded him, and he deserved it).
But I am very gloomy that everything is so OTT these days, emotionally and in the media. Being a natural phlegmatic/stoic I'd rather give all this high emotional display a miss because (for me) it gets in the way of appreciating anything. But different people are what they are. Nothing to be done about it. No point in criticising.
But the money ...
A Norman chronicler once wrote that "London neither fears enemies or dreads being taken by storm". And so it is back at the boxing: Anthony Ogogo, his mum stricken in a hospital bed, collapses to his knees having beaten the world number one by judges' verdict, the scorecards unable to separate them. But the more notable reaction comes from Ievgen Khytrov: hopes mangled in such a cruel manner, he has the wherewithal to clap his conqueror, shake hands with his trainers and commend him on his victory. Some people equate the Olympics with glory but take a trip into the bowels of the ExCeL - the beaten athletes, the frustrated coaches, the empathetic team-mates - and you will conclude that the Games reek of failure.
Elsewhere, Steven Morrissey, who not so long ago upset many by parading the union flag - there were accusations of racism, subsequently withdrawn - expresses concerns about all the ramped up patriotism in an economic light. He makes a lot of sense. Many of us are very supportive of patriotic elements but not where the dire state of the economy is forgotten in the process:
"I am unable to watch the Olympics due to the blustering jingoism that drenches the event. Has England ever been quite so foul with patriotism?.......As I recently drove through Greece I noticed repeated graffiti seemingly everywhere on every available wall. In large blue letters it said WAKE UP WAKE UP. It could almost have been written with the British public in mind"
Meanwhile Coe has declared that being "beaten" by a judo expert for minor, allegedly hazy, disruption is "poetic justice". He dismisses the word used by the individual to describe her own actions, saying somewhat archly that he believes the term is "ippon". Well, the term for disqualification is "hansoku-make" and it can be awarded for infractions such as improper hold and false attacks. In the wider context, every right minded person should find this incident disturbing. The one arrested has denied the charge against him and has not yet been found guilty. Sadly, many think that the Lord is right. How can there now be a fair trial?Last edited by Guest; 06-08-12, 22:15.Comment
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The French, being ever-mindful of history, will never insult the Scots, so when they want to insult the British, which is their national sport, they substitute the word 'English'. I'd have thought everyone would have known that ...Originally posted by JohnSkelton View Post
I'm sure they truly adore Sir Christopher Hoy ...
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Nothing illegal here - and this quite a good summary.Originally posted by JohnSkelton View Post
It boils down to how badly each team/nation wants to win, and consequently how much money and research they're prepared to throw at the problem. In technical events like these where distances and times are measured in millimetres or thousandths of a second, the tiniest advantage can give you an edge. The same goes for the 10m air gun, archery, tennis or rowing. But it's also down to the physical and psychological preparation of the competitors, and there's no doubt Team GB has invested heavily in this. Look at the relative investment by their French equivalents and I suspect you'll find the answer. Like it or not, it's not cheating.
The current GB supremacy in track and road cycling must be a bitter pill for the French to swallow.
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Lats, I think you've got hold of the wrong end of the stick here.Originally posted by Lateralthinking1 View Post
The judoka in question was standing in the crowd behind the man who threw the bottle and she says she hit him on the back with her flat hand after he had thrown it. This drew security's/police's attention to him & he was dragged from the crowd and down the competitors' tunnel. If anyone 'beat' him it was likely to have been the police/security.
It is easy with hindsight to dismiss the throwing of a plastic bottle but at the time it must have been quite alarming.Comment
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For the sake of the country's mental health, can Nick not of a quiet word in this clown's ear ... ?Comment
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which clown scotty?Comment
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Originally Posted by scottycelt
Sir Christopher Hoy ..
Well John, since he has now won 6 Gold Medals as an Olympian, I don't think you need our assistance in the identification of that supreme sportsman.Originally posted by JohnSkelton View PostWho?
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John WComment
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