Just realised it's on itv, so won't be Pearce but another crap commentator.

Apparently we are in the top 3% of Spotify listeners listening to 71,003 minutes of music so far in 2022. We listened to 81 different genres and our most listened to track was Fuccboi by Lausse the Cat… We listened to 1633 artists.

Pesky kids.

No.

Agreed. Second only to Gary Neville for me.

Yep, on football. GN is becoming irritating when wandering into other topics etc particularly politics. Has the right to an opinion like anyone else but turn down the volume and stop the lecturing. GN has improved punditry in general I think.

this absolute fruitcake

https://twitter.com/GBNEWS/status/1599110417195839488

Although he's a bit slow on the "Christmas is being banned" hysteria, should be playing that card by at latest mid-November.

Roy Keane. Someone that clearly is minted, but looks like you'd find him in a cardboard box under a bridge.

He's a f*cking idiot.

Pubs turfing out a full house at 10pm, who will no doubt soon be moaning about energy costs/inflation/brexit and whacking up their prices or shutting down

I'm guessing here, was it the Woodman?

That used to be irksome post match at Palace. Two pints and you'd have to glug the second.

I guess there were strict council imposed drinking times, and the staff were only paid for a set period of time.

Odd way to treat a captive set of clients you only get to see twice a month.

I'm genuinely happy that the womens game is doing so well and getting a lot more exposure but do we now really need to have a woman 'expert' in every studio explaining the game to us and the likes of Shearer, Lineker, Neville etc?

Starting to get on my tits.

Yeah, what would a woman who has played club and international football to the highest level know, eh? Why isn't she in the kitchen ffs?

It was The Pembroke in Coulsdon, though funnily enough I was thinking the same must have happened at The Woodman when I came back past it and all the lights were off!

Trumpets and bands at sports stadium especially at the cricket ,

I wasn't aware women's football had a highest level, from what little i have seen its about non league standard. I have nothing against women playing football, i just dont want it imposed on me, all the time.
Men are suitable to commentate and do analysis on mens games and women are suitable for womens games.

I’d take gender out the equation and ask how much does being a good player in general really matter to someone’s ability to analyse football? I’d rather listen to a journalist like say Ralph Honigstein than any of the pundits Sick Bucket named.

There’s a place for “what would you have done in that situation Alan” which means a good former player should always be on the panel, but I think the need for everyone to have been one is daft.

On the subject of women’s football though, I think Emma Hayes and Alex Scott are more insightful than the vast majority of men.

I'd listen to Alex Scott or Emma Hayes over Alan Shearer any day of the week

National anthems longer than the 37 seconds of God Save The Quing.
We don't need no stinking introduction or middle 8 or key changes.
Just get on with it.

Nope didn't say that at all, I just don't know what the point of her being there was really, well I do the point was purely based on political correctness, I find that a bit annoying.

Neymar's face.

Plus why do Brazil get to celebrate a goal, then get everyone over for a huddle, then go off and do a little dance? That’s 3 celebrations!

Fair point. That's yellow card territory.

Neymar

You could always just change your username to 'I live in 1968'.

After a couple of years playing with Patrick Bamford, Raphinha having to slum it alongside Neymar. So unfair !

You have doubled down on your sexism, well.done.

Brazil the man u of world football wankers.

He was probably moaning about all the "*******" on the telly a while back.

:supergrin:

A woman is on my television- PC gone mad!

I will see your Neymars face and raise you Richarlison.

I'll see both your Neymars and Richarlisons and raise you them flying in a barber from Paris just to cut their hair.

You’re giving the wankers too much credit, they’re not even the biggest team in their own country, never mind the world. Brazil are Real Madrid.

Not that I am complaining, but the women pundits and reporters on Argie sports shows are absolute stunners. Are we making progress by opening up the world of sports journalism and punditry by showing, for the most part, women who are pleasing to the camera? Are many of us red-blooded blokes merely concentrating on other things rather than the value of the words they are imparting?


This is global it seems.

https://www.sportskeeda.com/football...all-presenters


https://www.rt.com/sport/479598-spoo...na-sexism-row/

Oh whatever, if you say so.

Maybe I should've been more specific, that French woman who was in the studio during the France game who was explaining to the nation and Rio Ferdinand how defending works got on my nerves.

Is that allowed or have I tripled down on my sexism?

It’s blatant in the UK with female presenters who aren’t former footballers, like Lindsey Hipgrave, Laura Woods, several off transfer deadline day who I can’t name off the top of my head. Their male counterparts don’t have to be stunners.

A bit of a rehash this one, but calling the phone company (in this case AT&T) in regard to a letter they sent me stating they tried emailing me but the email in my account would appear wrong. The email in my profile in my online account is correct. The email they quoted as trying was a discontinued AOL account from probably 25 years ago!

Anyway get connected to a pleasant lady who I'm guessing resides in India. After some confusing back and forth she finds the offending erroneous email and corrects it.

Then the trouble starts... the all encompassing, "While we are waiting to get that change confirmed, I have been looking at your account and..." Red flag to a bull time.

At every suggestion rejected by me, she had a comeback, and a follow-up deal that ranged from multiply lines, cable TV deals, and a iPhone 12 for "just" $1. At which point my blood is up and about to hang-up on her. We were both pretty cordial about my out bust of discontent with the call, and I'm pretty sure I could hear a male voice in the background coaching her over the top of about 20 other voices in the background making her very hard to comprehend.

Told her in the end, if I wanted to get a new phone, or change my plan, I would do it on my terms and walk into the AT&T store that is about a mile from my house and take care of it without the sales pitch.

Don't get me started on trying to understand the minutia of the phone bill...

Well yes that would be a more reasonable point of view than suggesting that female pundits are only there because of political correctness.

Cabled internet connection dropping out grrrrrrrrrr

Was starting a new thread in the Politics section about Germany and the attempted coup that happened today and moved my hand like jedi on the keyboard and it vanished. Can't be asked to type it out again. Feck it

Well why are they there, then? Perhaps you could expand rather than posting condescending one liners.

And I’m not referring to presenters but pundits, specifically. There have been numerous (good) presenters and commentators who’ve been women - Jacquie Oatley is the leading example (IMO), so it’s not an issue of gender but double standards.

Why is it a prerequisite for every white man who wishes to be a pundit at the elite level to have also played football at the elite level - regardless of how ******* awful the majority of them are at their jobs? And yet we now must ensure a woman is in the studio, despite the fact she never played mens football at any level?

FWIW, I don’t think punditry recruitment should have anything to do with peoples playing careers. If they did play football, that can be a bonus, but it shouldn’t be essential. This approach would improve punditry substantially whilst naturally opening up the landscape to people from all different backgrounds (including women).

Throwing a couple of women footballers in the studio for the sake of "diversity" is a regressive token gesture that condescending idiots such as yourself dishonestly frame as progress. And it never ceases to bemuse me that people pretend otherwise.

I actually agree with the majority of what you've said here even if you do think I am an idiot.

But I don't think that women are more visible in the men's game just for the sake of diversity or "political correctness". That would suggest that they don't offer any value to the programme and are just there to tick a box. Alex Jones, Eni Aluko etc are very good at analysing games and speaking engagingly about what they're discussing. They play(ed) at the highest level of woman's football and are more than qualified enough to speak to a BBC audience about what tactical approach a team is taking or what their view is on the main talking points at half time. They haven't played at the same level as the likes of Rio Ferdinand but very few male pundits have either.

Womens football is far, far more popular than it used to be and I think a lot of viewers find these pundits more refreshing than men who walk into these roles and offer nothing but cliches and unresearched nonsense. A lot of female pundits, in my view, have a good balance of understanding the game and being able to present that knowledge effectively. If it results in more young women getting involved in sports reporting as a result then thats great as well.

This whole discussion about women pundits is just so redundant. Question the tv channels for not doing it before now, but don't question the right or wrong of it just because the pundit has tits.
There's absolutely no need for a pundit to have played the game as a top professional. How many refs were formally top professional footballers? Yet they seem to have a solid grasp of the game (allegedly :D)... the point is, anyone can have an opinion about events on the pitch, tactics etc (look at this website ffs!) and if what they say has merit then they qualify as a pundit.
The choice of pundit should be more about their ability to talk about their opinions in a persuasive, intelligent, entertaining if you like, easy to understand way. In short, a good communicator.

Am very annoyed at myself for beginning to warm to Simon Jordan. Have started watching him on Talksport and he absolutely runs rings around everyone. He destroyed Piers Morgan over his Ronaldo interview. The ex-footballers who get a gig on the show are totally out of their league when they try to debate him. Their only comeback is calling him a public schoolboy -- which he isn't -- and a failed club owner which he is. Still a wanker, just not as much of one, as I once had him down as.

No World Cup football on telly for a second night in row. Especially when I have free time to watch. Her indoors is excited that now she can watch her Christmas movies she recorded.
Oh well could be worse could be some cooking or baking programs

Razors - I am fine with it. Nice to have the break. I have some work to be doing, which I am quite advanced on now - house jobs and family duties. Grandnips here. I need to accrue the brownie points to allow me at least games 2, 3, 4 this next couple of days. I am happy to forego the Brasil love fest.

Things happen for a reason.

It annoys me that Iran have executed a protestor and there are more to follow. Under some pretence of offending god or some such shite.

It annoys me more that geopolitics and other factors means that we all don't club together and fecking rid the world of the whole system.

Yeah, I understand why not, and I understand that getting involved in that whole are is a nightmare that can never be sorted, and leads to all kinds of long term shite.

However, I can't stand the idea of a systemic bunch of absolute filth that work together to avoid any due process and just kangaroo court this victim, and many others.

For good measure, Russia (and many others - who knows UK/USA who feckin cares) going well overboard on a stupid basketball player and using her as a hostage until some prisoner swap deal can be done. Internationl Arms Dealer in exchange for Weed Resin User. That would have been deal of the decade on Swap Shop.

Where is the humanity in all of these people that make these decisions?

Rude waiting staff
What is a forced service charge these days.
Just another tax.

Starting to resent going out for meals due to poor value, poor service and poor experience.

Might have previously mentioned this, but I had a check a few months ago with a 'kitchen administration fee' added on. This was before the expected 20% tip.

Advert for samsung saying Happy Holidays, no its Christmas

The whole point of a tip was to encourage good service.
Instead everyone just gets 20% flat fee.

I was always told that TIPS stood for, TO Insure Prompts Service.
Then some Grammanista put me right and said it should be Ensure not Insure. So there went that one.

A much better post than my clumsy, poorly worded initial outburst. Thanks.

Agree with most of that, except the PC bit. The French woman I mentioned, I think she was there because she's a woman.

I'm genuinely delighted that women's football is booming. I have a 16 year old daughter who plays, loves going to Palace and is really starting to understand the game. It gives me and us a massive amount of pleasure,

I suspect the whole tips thing in The US exists so restaurante owners can get away with fleecing their staff on wages. The model should be fought againt elsewhere.

Probably And your nationalism;)

The custom started in Europe but the yanks especially in New York have brought it to a new level. What annoys me is when owners of business's look for tips. It used to be if the owner of a bar served you, if you left him a tip he would return it. Now you go into a shop or laundromat and the only person there is the proprietor who always now seems to have a begging bowl next to them on the counter.

Japan has it right. No such thing as tips in Japan.

If you accidentally left your change at the table they'd follow you outside to make sure you got it back.

Assuming you’re referring to restaurants that automatically add a service charge to their bills Stav, if the service is rude/crap and unworthy of a tip, then just ask them to remove it from your bill, it’s no drama.

It’s horses for courses, I’ll still tip cash on top of a fixed service charge to anyone who goes above and beyond the norm to make our visit better than I expected.

It’s not a tax at all.

The big tip hunters here in Nashville are the musicians. They all plead poverty although all the ones I know personally do very well. At the weekends when the tourists are mob handed the begging bowl comes around every half an hour. To request a song can cost you a small fortune.
A barmaid I know was telling me that the band that plays on the weekend where she works have a sign saying they will play 'such and such a song" for $100. She said one Sunday they played it seven times. You got to remember everyone is on stag or Hen parties. They're all pissed or drugged. The $100 is so outrageous that they've got to do it. Ten of them - ten bucks a head and the next thing they're yahoooing around to "take me home feckin country road' or some other shit kicking ditty.

My local shop owning butcher has a tip jar. Cheeky bugger.

I'll send my students my transfer details for the days I absolutely nail a grammar point. FFS

Anything above 15% is obscene. It's time people took a step back. In costly cities like NY or London I suspect a couple or family can run up a decent Bill in a fairly good or better restaurant. The idea of being expected to add 25 or 30% to that is just ridiculous. $200 bill plus add $60 for the tip because if you added just $40 you may be asked if there was a problem with the meal or service.

'Oh...you won't be allowed to eat there again' - BBSer that is part of the problem.

It all goes back to the idea of leaving a dollar for every beer you buy. What's it now, 5 bucks tip for each beer?

When I am on it, I always insist they take the service charge off the bill and then pay by credit card and leave a seperate tip in cash. Only way I can be sure the staff get the cash.

Many have been unduly appreciative suggesting to me that tips are at best managed by owners or at worst stolen by them.

Spotify Wrapped.

Just f*ck off.

Accidently clicking the wrong link and ending up on the Harry and Meghan thread

Grow some, you pussy.

Buying tins of tuna and then finding there isn't a ring pull.

When your ADHD son's teacher says he could do really well but needs to focus more in class. If I'd heard this once it would be annoying, but it's rarer not to hear it.

A lot of times we say this only to find out afterwards the child is ADHD.

Breaking the ring pull on tins of tuna.

:D

He has a comprehensive additional needs plan that all his teachers should have read, so I'm afraid that's not the excuse here. Had the same with my older son, who has ADHD and ASD and a comprehensive EHCP but was constantly being told by teachers to 'sit still', 'stop fidgeting' and 'look at me when I'm talking to you'. One of the biggest challenges as a parent of a child with SEN is educating teachers I'm afraid.

That said, there have been some excellent teachers who get it, and when they do they really make a huge difference.

Who else remembers the early days of 'ring-pull'? Mostly drinks. The rings detatched completely and streets were littered with them. They were a saleable novelty and adverts were accompanied by the ditty "Gimmee that ring" and the the pop/hiss of the ringpull to the tune of the Pipkins' "Gimmee Dat Ding". It did beat having to carry a can-piercer in your pocket all the time, though.

Thank goodness for advances in technology, even if it does fail once in a while :D

I remember getting a top score from my sports teacher who wrote that I had made great improvement in this final term which was odd because I had a cartilage problem and operation that had me schooled at home for the whole term. If I had stayed off longer I might have made the Olympics!

On a more serious note - how is ADHD diagnosed these days? Is it reliant on the observance of a set of behaviours and the absence of any other proven explanation or has it advanced to include specific tests? I know there is a wide variance of the condition and it's impacts but wondered if they had produced any hard recognisable tests for it. At least it is recognised these days albeit not remembered by the sounds of it.

Break off the tongue and use it to power flick the ring painfully into Fotherington-Thomas' left earhole :p

Are you still single?

Or any can type product. Or buying a can that does not have ring pulls. Oh, how we used to live - constantly at the risk of a hospital visit.

Have you heard of this majick new technological device called a "tin opener"?

The diagnostic process may have changed - my youngest was diagnosed 6 years ago - but at that point it was an evidence gathering exercise. They considered home, school and social settings and also what they saw in interviews with the person being diagnosed. It wasn't easy to get a diagnosis, contrary to what a lot of people seem to think, although it was much easier than getting them an autism diagnosis, which took several years, and my youngest was misdiagnosed by the first consultant who concluded that he couldn't be autistic because he was popular and had lots of friends.

In general in my experience, teachers and other professionals seem to fall into three camps:

The ones that understand and make accommodations accordingly. Unsurprisingly my children have excelled in these classes.

The ones that don't understand but are willing to learn and can be bought onside with patience

The ones that think it's nonsense and just bad behaviour. These tend to be older teachers, although not always, and should probably be encouraged to retire.

Or, has happened to me this week, a ring pull that just snaps off.

Apologies didn’t see post above.

Yeah that sounds very familiar. We have family friends that have been through the same thing with schools etc.. They reckon it doesn't help that there isn't a simple test. As a result it's considered by some as vague and mysterious and as a term it's mis-used as a self diagnosed label for anyone that is unruly and seems to diminish the response to those with the genuine issues. Generally speaking we all tend to be a bit ill informed and so I feel your pain as they say.

Thanks for sharing that, Will. A couple of observations from me -

- doing the first needn't and shouldn't be dependent on having a diagnosis.
- if only the third category were just older teachers, and not, for example, prominent government advisers.

I have a friend who adopted two children with his wife. The eldest, a boy, has ADHD which was thought to be caused by his mother's drinking and taking drugs with the baby in utero.

He comes round and tells us about what's going on sometimes. His son has a number of behaviours that are a real challenge - he bolts quite often and is normally found quite far away from home. Usually he gets to the local supermarket where the staff know him quite well now. I find the idea of my children legging it out of the house or climbing out of the garden quite stressful, so god knows how they cope.

They have issues with one set of grandparents where the grandfather just believes it all to be naughtiness and would quite like to smack him.

I absolutely agree on both those points. There seems to be a misconception that ADHD diagnoses are handed out like sweets. In my experience, and that of the people I know and come into contact with, that's simply not true.

This is an interesting one to me, and shows the danger of confusing cause and correlation. There are studies that suggest that ADHD is higher in children whose mothers have alcohol or drug dependency. BUT, there are also plenty of studies that show alcohol and drug dependency is higher in adults with ADHD, presumably as a method of self medication. Chuck in the fact that girls and women were far less likely to get an ADHD diagnosis, and that there's lot of evidence that ADHD is genetic, and it may just be a case that the ADHD gene is passed down and it has nothing to do with alcohol or drug abuse.

I'm kind of lairy about these sort of connections, because parents of children with SEN like autism and ADHD spend a lot of time blaming themselves in various ways, or being blamed by various agencies.

Anyway, apologies. I've probably diverted this thread enough.

Foetal alcohol syndrome is definitely a thing, but equally I agree with you entirely about "parental blame" - there was some really good research published last year on children's services approach to parent carers of disabled children.

Really interesting and no need to apologise. I appreciate you sharing your insights/experience.

Getting back to the office to find people have heated up their tuna in the communal microwave :wallbash:

Ooooh. This is a rich vein. I believe we have been here before.

Footballers taking their shirt off to celebrate scoring a goal.

Absolutely agree it’s disrespecting the club shirt

It always comes across as, "look at me, I get paid loads of money to sculpt this temple in the gym each day with my personal nutritionist on standby.":rolleyes:

Yeah, sounds fishy to me

All I’m saying is, there’s a time and a plaice for it.

I hate 'Christmassy' tunes piped over shop PAs.

And yet, found myself unwittingly singing along in Sainsbury's this evening...'Walking along, singing a song, walking in a Freedman Wonderland'

:lux:

It gives me a migraine, or at least a bad haddock.

The camera angle for penalty shoot outs. I much prefer the usual sideways angle than the one behind the player.

Chopsticks.

**** 'em knife and fork definitely better.