Sunday 19 February 2012

But his mother wants for nothing

While driving to work today I was a taken by a news story on the radio. The story was of the lack of openly gay footballers and the fact that they were rarer than Iranian striptease dance troops. Now the story in itself was about as insightful as one where a fat person can’t get in a seat on a plane and had to pay for two, but it was the reaction of the presenter and the contributor on the phone that caught my attention. The BBC bod seemed incredulous that things like this were happening in this day and age, whereas Max Clifford saw the situation very differently and took a much more practical standpoint. People live in the real world not the middle classed, liberal darling love-in that some might think. Picking up litter and the incorrect use of apostrophes really aren't that important.

If a footballer did come out and openly admitted to being gay his life would become a misery every Saturday around 3pm. The opposition fans would tear him to bits and when he made a mistake the home fans would join in as well. How dreadful you may say, but it’s a fact and short of arresting 23,000 football fans every Saturday afternoon it ain't changing anytime soon. Like it or not football is a working class sport and no matter how many prawn sandwiches they sell and how expensive they make the tickets the majority of the football fans in the ground will either drink Stella, have a tattoo with Mum on it or own a dog that can bite through granite. How about that for a target audience? Also imagine if the player was black as well.
The abuse meted out by the terraces is pretty bad on a good day, the fans will seize on anything to either get under the players skin or make themselves sound ‘ard en tuff. People think that racism has been kicked out of the game; you couldn’t be further from the truth. People don’t chant racist songs anymore because they are all on camera and they’d get booted out double quick, but if a player doesn’t look like they do in the mirror then this is emphasised to everyone listening using a multitude of colourful adjectives added to questions about the heritage of his parents or his ability to perform certain acts on water borne foul. Apparently lacing someone else’s boots is very important here as well. Bigotry is bigotry and if people want to make a point, however crass, they’ll do it from the terraces and no one in a cardigan is going to stop them.
Now poorer, less educated people do it more because they don’t know any better and most don’t care what other people think. If anyone takes umbrage then they’ll just punch them in the face anyway. Rich people on the other hand do care about what other people think because you can’t look down your nose at others if people know your shit stinks like the rest of us. In fact I think this is even more annoying, they should know better. Their parents paid good money sending them to boarding school and all that half of them have to show for it is a silly accent, a refined appreciation of tweed and the ability to bullshit about the quality of post modern cubic purple periods, while eating stupid small sandwiches and quaffing exceedingly expensive bubbly.
 I’m reminded of the sketch with Dudley Moore, Peter Cook and John Cleese and while the world has changed, it hasn’t changed that much. The clothes you wear and the way you talk don't make the man but it sure does fool a lot of people. As I've said before money is just a way of keeping score with people at the top thinking they are better than the rest because with it they can buy things that other rich people think are really important and poorer people envy because it says so in the papers. It does seem that bigotry is one of the few things that does transcend class; doesn't that give you a warm glow.
While we live in a more tolerant age where most people get a much fairer crack of the whip the world is still a hard nosed, nasty place where most people are just looking out for number one and they wouldn't think twice before cutting you up just so they can get 3 feet further down the road. Bigotry is easy, it takes no effort you just shut your eyes and say the first thing that comes into your head. Tolerance and compassion takes a bit of effort that most people would rather spend on something altogether more profitable. 

And another thing; why take the worst Star Wars film and redo it in 3D, it's still going to be average at best, it will just be a bit more bumpy that's all, stupid idea. 

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