Now there's tricky...... isn't it?

This taken from the FA web site.....

Following Sunday's FA Cup Semi-Final, The FA has been discussing the issue of Cardiff City entering the UEFA Cup next season should they win The FA Cup.

We will also continue to discuss this with The FA of Wales and UEFA.

At this stage we have not ruled out Cardiff City being entered into Europe via The FA Cup should they win it.

However, further conversations need to take place but we would expect to have final clarification on this before the end of the month - well before The Final takes place on 17 May........

So there you go. If the Welsh football club, Cardiff City win the FA Cup then they could qualify for the UEFA Cup next season - as one of England's representatives...

I wonder if the English Premier clubs, Aston Villa or Portsmouth - (one of which is likely to miss out on qualification) will go to the courts to challenge that decision, bearing in mind that the Welsh FA will be submitting a full allocation of clubs from their own Welsh League for participation in next season's competition?

Also, I have asked the PR people at the FA whether they will be playing the Welsh national anthem - 'Land of my Fathers' before the commencement of the FA Cup Final. I think it seems likely, bearing in mind that they played it after Cardiff's victory in the Semi-Finals. They haven't got back to me yet - will post it when they do......

A tale of two boxers - Calzaghe v Hatton....

Ahhh, Boxing. The noble art of all things pugillisticky. Horse linement, smelling salts, jock-straps, grease, snot, blood, sweat and bitten-off ears - love it or hate it, you just have to admire the toe-to-toe ballsyness of the protagonists. And because these guys are passionate people, they like to wrap themselves in the national identity of their birth - flags, anthems, supporters. Can you feel the proudyness of it all?

Ricky Hatton's big fight against Floyd Mayweather last December was a case in point. Before going out to Vegas, the Hitster proudly proclaimed he was fighting for Britain - and with God's help, he would bring the title back to these British shores - and everyone would feel very Britishy - and it would be yet another victory for our Britishy values - why, I bet Gordon have even laid on a nice cream tea at number 10, should Ricky have won .... Hoorah!...

The 'Hitman' dressed in his Manchester City coloured boxing shorts, shimmied and shadow boxed from dressing room to ring to the sound of patriotic British hoopla, Union flag to the fore, he stood to attention for the British national anthem of God Save the Queen and fought, for Britain against his classy opponent......

Ricky lost - but never mind, the media - and especially, the BBC, portrayed his display as plucky, brave - and British.
Ricky lost, which was a shame, because apparently, he wanted to win 'for Britain', for 'the British', for Queen and unionised country....

Compare and contrast with the Welshman, Joe Calzaghe's fight against Bernard Hopkins in Vegas last night.. In virtually every news cast, web report and radio bulletin (especially by the BBC) it left the listener/viewer/reader in no doubt as to where Calzaghe's origins came from...Apparently, Joe was fighting for 'Welsh pride', he was a 'Welsh dragon', and a 'fighter from the valleys'......

Calzaghe himself has often said that he is a boxer first, Welsh second and Italian third. But never mind what he thinks, he's British, right? Just like the Hitman, Joe is pure red white and blue...... So as Joe stood to attention in front of the flag of the Welsh dragon (maybe they couldn't find a union flag?) dressed in his Welsh colour-coded boxing gloves and his boxing shorts with the Welsh dragon emblazoned on the side of them - (no doubt covering his Welsh jock strap made from 100% Welsh pot noodles), what anthem did he listen to before getting ready to rumble? What tune defined his origins, his cultural DNA, his national ident?

Need you ask? God Save the Queen was nowhere as Sir Tom Jones, the 'Boyo from the San Fernando Valley' resplendent in blue suit, very tight Welsh dragon underpants and bright yellow daffodil (cos he's Welsh, you know, no, honestly, he is!) stepped onto the canvas to deliver Land Of My Fathers (Mae Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau)......

It was all very emotional, it must have been because in the crowd, in the posh seats, weeping quietly into her 8 foot long Welsh flag stood Catherine Zeta Jones......

Hey Joe, congratulations on your victory - and no doubt, First Minister of Wales, Rhodri Morgan will even now be laying on a bit of a tea of Welsh Lamb, Leek Pie and Lava Bread at the Assembly cafe....... while over at number 10,Gordon Brown grinds his teeth and wishes that Joe had been born British instead....

Tom Jones - he's Welsh and he's proud

Those English Democrats posters....

Oh, the faux outrage. Racist apparently, At the very least, grossly insulting to our northern neighbours.....

The read of the week was looking over the comments of Iain Dale's take on the story. While Iain was fairly ambivelent about the posters, quite a few of his readership appear to be members of 'Self Righteous Indignation Incorporated'.

Apparently, according to some of Iain's readers, political advertising has never before descended to such depths. Some even seem to think that political advertising is a noble arm of the professional communicator. The facts are rolled out before the public, they read, make a decision and vote appropriately.

Sorry, 'fraid it doesn't work like that. Politics is a dirty business. And politicians are the lowest of the low. They say they want to 'serve' the public - and to do that, they must put themselves forward for public office, sacrificing a no-doubt stellar business career in fizzy drinks and plastic widget production in order to get their hands up the backside of the parliamentary cash cow.... If they really wanted to serve the public, they'd be bog attendants or binmen.

Gordon Brown, Cameron and rest of the members of the best club in town don't 'serve' anyone but themselves. And as for the public - they are ruthlessly controlled at all times....

And the means of that control is 'they' say whatever they damn well like - any lies will do, just as long as the voters swallow it.

Back to the posters, When I first saw them, sure, it made me think - and yes, I knew some people would shout 'foul'...... but to be honest, I don't really care. With people in England routinely dying for the want of drugs available to anyone north of the border, in this case, the end justifies the means. I want democratic freedom for my country and a fair slice of the UK cash cake - and if that wish upsets some fragile souls, then that really is tough 'taters...

We've tried explaining the problems and injustices to a corrupt and self serving establishment - now, the gloves are off.

And finally, I will leave you with a few examples of past political adverts - all extolling the noble art of communication by our honest-John servants at Westminster, apparently.


Demon Eyes - Conservative Poster, demonising Labour leader Tony Blair with a crude and pathetic schoolboy colouring-in felt-tip hatchet job.


Flying Pigs - Labour poster tactfully showing Michael Howard as a flying pig - apparently, Labour hadn't realised that Mr Howard was a Jew.


The Straight Choice - Simon Hughes' slogan during the Bermondsey 'bi' election. Labour's candidate Peter Tatchell - a self confessed homosexual was systematically crushed, villified and rubbished by Hughes and his team - not because of Tatchell's politics, but because of his sexuality. Years later was it revealed that Hughes wasn't actually 'straight' after all - but as gay as Peter Tatchell...

Update....

Been doing lots of stuff for England lately - mostly collateral for the London Mayoral elections. And that is where the problems have arisen. London - and in particular, the London Elects office must have more odious Jobsworths per square yard than anywhere else in the country. They've taken the art of compliance to a whole new level.

And one night last week, I worked right through to the following morning trying to get some artwork for a tabloid to a printer in order to make a tight deadline.

The pressure is now off - and so I shall be resuming postings. The first of which will be a comment about the Eco-Town shortlist which will be announced today.