acrossthepond

If you could ban a player for life I would've for that foul. You'll never see one as despicable again. Keane's on Haland is up there too - what a surprise, what cunt side and cunt manager did they both play for?

Can you imagine getting humped 4-0 off that shower of shit we played at SJP? It's hard to tell who the bigger chancer is, Silva or Solskjaer.

To be quite honest, I'm struggling to find much supporting evidence either. This is all remembered from a paper I wrote on the topic in high school, before internet research really existed. I got it out of some books and monographs written about the conflict, but I may be misremembering the level of Palestinian support for the UN plan. It's plausible that I had it wrong - this is an area I've studied a lot, but it's not the area of my professional expertise. This book, which is partially available online, does include some evidence supporting a Palestinian acceptance of partition. Some wanted to maintain good relations with Jews for economic reasons and others, as I said earlier, wanted partition in order to facilitate union with Jordan. King Abdallah of Jordan had always been pro-partition, probably because he had ambitions of regional dominance.

Well, I want to clarify what I stated earlier. The official Palestinian position was to reject partition, which they did, but that was a political stance. Privately they were willing to accept the UN partition and live alongside a Jewish state in Palestine, if changes to the partition deal could be made. However, the decision was made for them by the Arab states' decision to invade following the Israeli declaration of independence, Jordan in particular, since some Palestinians envisioned a union with Jordan. The history of the Palestinian and Israeli conflict since then has been tainted by interference from the other Arab states, all of whom thought they were somehow going to destroy a state that had already trounced them in 1948 when they were barely even a country. The reason for the extended resistance now is failure to adhere to 1948 borders. After the Israeli War of Independence, they seized more land that had not been part of the original partition, and following the 1967 war they added even more land that had historically been Arab. For example, the city of Jaffa (part of Tel Aviv) was supposed to belong to Palestine in the original partition because it had such a large Arab majority - that was ignored when it was seized in 1948. So the Palestinian position is kind of "you were happy to adhere to international agreements that created a country for you, but then once you had a country, you stopped holding to anything that would limit its expansion or let us have a country, including the original agreement."

Well, hang on. The Palestinians did consent to the UN partition plan of 1948. It was the other Arab states that refused "on their behalf", which was really one of the great tragedies of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

What's really impossible to tolerate is that a modern left-wing party in a developed country is still having anti-semitism problems in the 21st century. The only logical explanation is that there is actual institutional anti-semitism in Labour and they have failed to stamp it out. That lands at the doorstep of leadership. Take the Democrats, for example. One of their representatives made a comment that wasn't even anti-semitic, but touched upon some tropes that are associated with anti-semitism (it was a comment about pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC.) Immediately, party leadership stomped on her and forced an apology before it could get out of hand. The Republicans are trying to fan the flames but really aren't getting anywhere (largely because the vast majority of actual anti-semites in America vote Republican, while Jewish voters overwhelmingly vote Democrat.) Of course, Judaism and especially Israel hold a different place in US politics than they do in UK or European politics. Israel is the sacred cow that can never be directly criticized, here. All the same, Labour have done a wretched job of managing the situation and that is squarely down to Corbyn. He still thinks he is a 70's revolucionista, fighting for Tibet and Palestine and all the other oppressed people of the world while his own country is getting fucked over before his eyes, with his party complicit in such. What a joke.

Very interesting article, had never heard of the bloke and certainly not of the prince either. There must be a dozen Prince Abdullahs in Saudi. Equally interesting was this one: https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/47830726 Somebody posted not long ago about how Emre, at 38, is still playing internationally for Turkey. Looks clear now why that is - he's been rimming Erdogan. Plays for and captains his pet team, rubs shoulders with him at his mate Turan's wedding, and makes the same ridiculous political gestures he does. In 2013, the Egyptian military overthrew President Morsi, and Erdogan made a huge deal about how corrupt the coup was, and how it had been orchestrated by Israel, and he went around at rallies making a four-fingered gesture that was supposed to represent support for Morsi, who was Egypt's fourth president. Emre was playing for Konyaspor at the time and made the same gesture after he scored. Any respect I had for the racist little cunt evaporated instantly. I was in Istanbul at the time, as it happens, and as soon as any Turk found out that I was Egyptian they immediately started giving me a load of bullshit about how great Morsi was (he was an awful president, an Islamist in the thinnest of disguises), how terrible it was that the military had intervened (Egypt would be Somalia by now if they hadn't) and how their great president Erdogan had "evidence" that Mossad was behind the coup, which he was going to present in parliament any day now (obviously there is no such evidence.) It used to do my head in listening to this crap, as if anyone with even the barest capacity to think critically could believe the lies Erdogan tells. Of course, FIFA takes no action as the sitting president blatantly interferes in football. Basaksehir is owned by the fucking Ministry of Sports. It is 100% a government institution. It's as if the Crown bought Leyton Orient and pumped hundreds of millions into getting them to the Premier League title, bending the rules along the way. They have an average attendance of 5000, for fuck's sake. The entire club is tainted top to bottom by association with Erdogan and AKP. Sorry for the rant but any thought of Turkey leaves an awful taste in my mouth now. For decades Turkey was the model to follow for secular Muslim-majority states. Now the entire government has pretty openly embraced Islamism and chucked the Kemalist mentality which has sustained Turkey for almost 100 years. The ruling party lost local elections in Istanbul for the first time in decades. The next day they started putting up posters declaring they'd won and thanking Istanbul for their support. They've already overturned 7 electoral losses in to a Kurdish opposition party. It seems all but certain that they will try to declare the Istanbul election was rigged (in fact, government sources have already been unofficially calling it "the most stained election in our democratic history.") The place has turned into a banana republic in just a few years, and it makes me sad.

I think that's been the policy since long before Charnley, I remember some of the exposes that came out during the KK fallout outlining that transfer policy. It isn't sensible in any sort of financial way, so the only logical conclusion is that it was designed to provide excuses for when we don't spend money.

Would you say you'd rue it, or are you just Lyon? Personally I'd get bored-eaux after the first two or three puns, especially the unbel-Lille-ably bad ones.

Neither the government nor this edition of Parliament is fit for purpose I'm afraid. An SNP MP was just speaking and she was completely right: Parliament is trying to do in 2 or 3 days what May's worthless government should've had done in the preceding 2.5 years. It's an impossible task (and I mean the word impossible literally. It will not happen. It cannot be done.) This ship of fools is sinking fast, and taking the Union with it. Only a general election will suffice now. 1 year extension, general election, and get it sorted. New government, fresh Parliament with a clear majority...talk about unicorns. We're fucked.

It is, in English. Spanish speakers are more likely to call him "Miguelito" or something along those lines if they want to be familiar.

How many books full stop do you think he's read? "If you don't like my principles, that's fine. I have others." Fucking snake.

How's the treatment room at Hillsborough?

Is that tomorrow's paper, like? Seems like it should be dated a few weeks ago. I don't think "Pharaoh in Brussels" has much to do with it any longer. Next week after MV3 bombs utterly we'll be hearing about how Remainers in Parliament are like the Pharisees casting down Jesus, or some other such fucking shite.

Brilliant strike. We were well worth a point, all 3 I reckon but as always one-eyed refereeing from England's finest ensured it was always going to be difficult. Great end to a match, real determination to not lose.