Anyone who isn't proud to be British after our performance in Rio

[Mo Britain less Europe]

is either a foreigner or a c unt.

[Burney]

is either a foreigner or a c unt.

Would you care to explain exactly what it is about people you don't know successfully playing obscure sports that people only watch every four years that makes you 'proud'? Do you not feel you might be devaluing the concept of national pride ever so slightly by attaching it to something so meaningless and frivolous?

[Ash]

is either a foreigner or a c unt.

It's jolly good fun, but I can't help being a little bit persuaded by the argument but we are, Olympicistically, like the Soviet Union used to be. Our atheletes are civil servants, paid by the state with money raised from taxing the poor, to compete and succeed to make us feel good to distract from our somewhat mediocre and rather backward economy.

[Sir C]

It's jolly good fun, but I can't help being a little bit persuaded by the argument but we are, Olympicistically, like the Soviet Union used to be. Our atheletes are civil servants, paid by the state with money raised from taxing the poor, to compete and succeed to make us feel good to distract from our somewhat mediocre and rather backward economy.

I am intrigued by this Olympic tax on the poor, a. Pray expand upon your theme.

[Burney]

It's jolly good fun, but I can't help being a little bit persuaded by the argument but we are, Olympicistically, like the Soviet Union used to be. Our atheletes are civil servants, paid by the state with money raised from taxing the poor, to compete and succeed to make us feel good to distract from our somewhat mediocre and rather backward economy.

Well our economy is neither mediocre nor backward and the lottery isn't a tax, but I do agree that the overt politicisation of sport is one of the more unfortunate results of allowing people to compete as part of national teams. And it's not even as if it's decent sports. We're spunking all this money on **** sports.

[Mo Britain less Europe]

Would you care to explain exactly what it is about people you don't know successfully playing obscure sports that people only watch every four years that makes you 'proud'? Do you not feel you might be devaluing the concept of national pride ever so slightly by attaching it to something so meaningless and frivolous?

Easy. It proves if we set our minds to it and invest time and money we can do things better than other countries even when they are doing the same or more. Ergo: one is right to feel proud.

Meaningless? Everything in life is meaningless apart from eating, drinking, ****tind and ****ing. And yet we soldier on every day and give meaning to all sorts of things.

[Ash]

I am intrigued by this Olympic tax on the poor, a. Pray expand upon your theme.

Lottery money. It is the poorer elements that mostly do the lottery, is it not? They with no other hope of getting a few bob together. It looks like it while I am queueing behind them in the local shop.

[Pat Vegas]

Well our economy is neither mediocre nor backward and the lottery isn't a tax, but I do agree that the overt politicisation of sport is one of the more unfortunate results of allowing people to compete as part of national teams. And it's not even as if it's decent sports. We're spunking all this money on **** sports.

I thought it would all go away after the 2012 Olympics. Wanted to put on a good show for that imo.

Australia are no longer that great they used to be up there in the table. but now a few Olympics after Sydney well off the pace.

Things will return to normal in a couple more Olympics times

[Sir C]

Lottery money. It is the poorer elements that mostly do the lottery, is it not? They with no other hope of getting a few bob together. It looks like it while I am queueing behind them in the local shop.

Ah, I see. It's not actually a tax though, is it?

A pound for a dream, a. Cheap at half the price.

[Burney]

Easy. It proves if we set our minds to it and invest time and money we can do things better than other countries even when they are doing the same or more. Ergo: one is right to feel proud.

Meaningless? Everything in life is meaningless apart from eating, drinking, ****tind and ****ing. And yet we soldier on every day and give meaning to all sorts of things.

Well so could anyone else if they bothered spending the same amounts of time and money on it. :shrug: That's not a source for national pride, it's a question of priorities. Personally, I would question the logic of spending these quantities on what amounts to a national vanity project, but there you go.
If you choose to invest this vanity project with some personal meaning that's up to you, but the fact that they mean fùck all to me doesn't make me a foreigner or a ****.

[Pat Vegas]

Ah, I see. It's not actually a tax though, is it?

A pound for a dream, a. Cheap at half the price.

It's £2 now and they made it even less likely you'd win.

[Sir C]

Well so could anyone else if they bothered spending the same amounts of time and money on it. :shrug: That's not a source for national pride, it's a question of priorities. Personally, I would question the logic of spending these quantities on what amounts to a national vanity project, but there you go.
If you choose to invest this vanity project with some personal meaning that's up to you, but the fact that they mean fùck all to me doesn't make me a foreigner or a ****.

If that is so, (and it may well be), what you have proven is that any and all concepts of 'national pride' are essentially meaningless, for we are not, as you have pointed out, unique.

Is this why you refuse to defend the colours?

[Ash]

Well our economy is neither mediocre nor backward

Aww look, we've been bumping along the bottom for just about a decade now. I gather that productivity and investment are at low levels, which is not a sign of an advanced economy, and the balance of payments is terrrible. We need to start making things again. If Johnny German can do it, so can we. I don't buy this stuff about not having enough engineers. ~80% of the F1 industry is British, and you don't get much more engineery than that.

Of course, it could be worse. We could be unable to set our own interest rates and float our currency, but we shouldn't be subsisting on retail, call centres and finance.

[Burney]

If that is so, (and it may well be), what you have proven is that any and all concepts of 'national pride' are essentially meaningless, for we are not, as you have pointed out, unique.

Is this why you refuse to defend the colours?

We are unique in some things - as are other nations - but the ability to chuck money at sporting endeavour and thus improve results is not one of those things. Chelsea and Man City have been doing it for yonks and we don't see that as admirable.

I simply think that if you want to feel national pride, then there are better and more valid sources for it than our Olympics performances.

[Ash]

Ah, I see. It's not actually a tax though, is it?

A stealthy one imo.


A pound for a dream, a. Cheap at half the price.

I'm bloody tempted to start buying tickets, tbh. It could be ME!

[Sir C]

We are unique in some things - as are other nations - but the ability to chuck money at sporting endeavour and thus improve results is not one of those things. Chelsea and Man City have been doing it for yonks and we don't see that as admirable.

I simply think that if you want to feel national pride, then there are better and more valid sources for it than our Olympics performances.

Isn't the issue with Chelsea and Man City that they have vastly more money to throw at the issue than anyone else? One finds it hard to imagine that, overtly or not, China and Australia spend less than us on elite sport, which would suggest to me that we have excelled on a relatively level playing field.

wd us.

[Burney]

Aww look, we've been bumping along the bottom for just about a decade now. I gather that productivity and investment are at low levels, which is not a sign of an advanced economy, and the balance of payments is terrrible. We need to start making things again. If Johnny German can do it, so can we. I don't buy this stuff about not having enough engineers. ~80% of the F1 industry is British, and you don't get much more engineery than that.

Of course, it could be worse. We could be unable to set our own interest rates and float our currency, but we shouldn't be subsisting on retail, call centres and finance.

:hehe: Most of the world would kill to be 'bumping along the bottom' as we are. Also, we do produce engineers, but the best and brightest of them get sucked into the City, which pays them vastly more than any manufacturing or engineering concern ever will. Those engineers who end up in F1, defence or aerospace are the ones who have either resisted that siren song or never got the offer in the first place.

[Burney]

Isn't the issue with Chelsea and Man City that they have vastly more money to throw at the issue than anyone else? One finds it hard to imagine that, overtly or not, China and Australia spend less than us on elite sport, which would suggest to me that we have excelled on a relatively level playing field.

wd us.


I would agree that, if you deem Olympic success to be a worthwhile ambition (I personally don't) it was pretty clever to introduce a bounteous income stream for investment in sport that isn't reliant on taxation. I would also agree that the process of picking winners and funding them to the almost total exclusion of anyone else is an effective (if rather ruthless) process.
And in fact, Australia has spent nowhere near as much as we have on their Olympic team (about half, I believe). It's impossible to say with China because it's China.
These are where we have done things well. However, I don't see them as particularly a source of national pride since I don't believe the game was worth the candle.

[Sir C]

I would agree that, if you deem Olympic success to be a worthwhile ambition (I personally don't) it was pretty clever to introduce a bounteous income stream for investment in sport that isn't reliant on taxation. I would also agree that the process of picking winners and funding them to the almost total exclusion of anyone else is an effective (if rather ruthless) process.
And in fact, Australia has spent nowhere near as much as we have on their Olympic team (about half, I believe). It's impossible to say with China because it's China.
These are where we have done things well. However, I don't see them as particularly a source of national pride since I don't believe the game was worth the candle.

There are all sorts of sports at the Olympics, old chap. I mean, a fellow might not be keen on synchronised swimming or BMW biking, but surely amongst the myriad other sports on offer you can find something worthwhile?

Are you of the view that cricket is the only worthwhile sport? If so, may I congratulate you on this perfectly remarkable exhibition of single(narrow)-mindedness?

[Mo Britain less Europe]

Some people like the feeling of being a bit ****. I don't. Sports as we know damn well is not just sport, it's business. So if our sportspeople are doing well it's gotta be good for this country.

[Burney]

There are all sorts of sports at the Olympics, old chap. I mean, a fellow might not be keen on synchronised swimming or BMW biking, but surely amongst the myriad other sports on offer you can find something worthwhile?

Are you of the view that cricket is the only worthwhile sport? If so, may I congratulate you on this perfectly remarkable exhibition of single(narrow)-mindedness?

Actually, no, there's no sport in the Olympics that's worthwhile. If they were worthwhile, they would stand alone and not need the Olympics to sustain them. And, for those sports that do exist successfully outside the Olympic structure (e.g. football, tennis, golf), their Olympic events are simply second or third-rate versions of the real thing.

In fact, I would much rather have seen the Lottery funding spent on the revival of good school sporting facilities, training and equipment. That would have a far more beneficial effect on the long-term welfare of this country than the Olympics. However, it wouldn't be as visible, so it's a non-starter.

[Ganpati's Goonerz--AFC's Aboriginal Fertility Cult]

And in fact, Australia has spent nowhere near as much as we have on their Olympic team (about half, I believe). It's impossible to say with China because it's China.


So we spend twice as much, but have a population 2.7 times the size and won 3.4 times as many golds as them.

Seems we did rather well. Less spending per head and more golds per head. Stick that up your ashes whitewash you bunch of convicts. I have written to the SMH about this. Doubt they'll publish it.

[Mo Britain less Europe]

Actually, no, there's no sport in the Olympics that's worthwhile. If they were worthwhile, they would stand alone and not need the Olympics to sustain them. And, for those sports that do exist successfully outside the Olympic structure (e.g. football, tennis, golf), their Olympic events are simply second or third-rate versions of the real thing.

In fact, I would much rather have seen the Lottery funding spent on the revival of good school sporting facilities, training and equipment. That would have a far more beneficial effect on the long-term welfare of this country than the Olympics. However, it wouldn't be as visible, so it's a non-starter.

You have far more in common with Corbyn and his new model levellers than I would have thought.

[C&B]

Would you care to explain exactly what it is about people you don't know successfully playing obscure sports that people only watch every four years that makes you 'proud'? Do you not feel you might be devaluing the concept of national pride ever so slightly by attaching it to something so meaningless and frivolous?

I think the thing to remember here is the pain and misery it appears to be causing the French and Aussies. Worth every penny imo.