Is Gareth Southgate a bigger threat to the Union than Nicola Sturgeon? Right now, Gareth is the nation’s sweetheart. The English nation’s, anyway.
e’d be hard to dislike. There is nothing bumptious about the England manager. He doesn’t see himself as a Special One and has taken responsibility for the failure of his team to win on penalties.
He’s been supportive and protective of his young players targeted by racist abuse. His decency and decorum is the mark of the man.
His level-headed sincerity certainly isn’t representative of the pre-match hysteria which swept the national media and for days and days reduced all other news events to minor league.
But in leading his team to almost-victory Gareth has — however unintentionally — helped emphasise the rift between England and its northern neighbour in particular.
It’s not England’s success that gets people’s goat in other parts of the UK.
It’s the relentless, utter saturation coverage, the gloating, the boasting, the Football’s Coming Home (has it occurred to fans that their theme song might actually be a hex on the team?).
It’s supposedly objective national news broadcasters talking about their unbridled excitement in the run-up to this one game and sports commentators lepping around the studio when England scores.
It’s Boris Johnson doing up the facade of Number 10 like a sports bar with England flags and bunting.
This, let us not forget, is the official seat of the Prime Minister of the whole United Kingdom — not just the bit of it that got through to the Euros final.
Would he have decked it out with the Saltire if Scotland had made it through? About as much chance of that as decorating it with the GAWA flag if we’d done it.
Boris talks up the Union, but doesn’t give the impression that he cares for any component part of it other than his own home turf.
His Number 10 display flags up how little he understands or cares that the other three nations have had it up to here with England overkill. Nicola Sturgeon must have been doing cartwheels round SNP HQ.
In Scotland, in particular, gratuitous displays of English chauvinism really don’t go down well at all.
So, if Boris had wanted to further get up Scottish noses (as he has done) this was a good way to go about it.
What he really wanted to do, of course, was capitalise shamelessly on the feelgood potential of a possible England win.
But they lost, the post-match analysis was dominated by online racist abuse of young players and the PM took flak for previous comments he’d made which were interpreted by some as fanning the flames.
Not such a great result, then.
I don’t blame the genuine England fans for having a ball. I’m all for people having fun. I felt sorry for the girl who cried off sick from work, but, unfortunately, featured prominently in TV coverage and was spotted and then sacked by the boss.
I felt sorry for the team when they lost. I would have felt sorry for Italy if they’d lost.
I think the Anyone But England thing that happens here is all too often nasty and pathetic. I don’t hate England. I just think they need to ratchet down the bombast.
The commentators, in particular, need to get a grip. But at least they have the excuse of being genuinely interested in the game.
As opposed to using it as a means of boosting a section of voter support.
The UK, despite what it’s detractors say (and hope), is unlikely to unravel anytime soon. But the fracture lines are there.
With Boris in Downing Street, Nicola Sturgeon has been handed a home win as she argues for independence.
His posh boy, England-centric image grates. He’s not popular in Wales, either. And who really loves him here?
He talks up the UK as One Team United. But if Boris wants to be more UK, he needs to be a little less England.
In the current atmosphere, a wiser PM would be treading carefully, doing all in his power to promote cohesion.
And, yes, okay, this was only something as inconsequential as a football game. But it showed BoJo in his true colours. As PM, you should bear in mind the sensibilities of the entire nation you serve.
To answer the question then — no, I don’t really think Gareth Southgate is the biggest threat to the Union.
I think Boris Johnson is.
Scientists plumb the depths of stupidity
Australian scientists feel we shouldn’t demonise sharks. Kinder language, they say, would help dispel the idea that sharks are “ravenous, mindless, man-eating monsters”.
Harsh words, admittedly, but also occasionally, pretty accurate.
The preferred phrase is now “negative interaction with a shark”. Which presumably covers everything up to, and including, being eaten alive.
Also “attacks” should be referred to as “bites”. I’m not sure “bites” makes Jaws sound any less ravenous, mindless and man-eating.
A creative? That’s rich
Who wants to be a billionaire? Billionaire Sir Richard Branson says he doesn’t like the label. He says he’d prefer to be known as “a creative who creates special things that people can enjoy”.
Surely, Sir Rich is being too modest? I suppose, when you’re a billionaire, you can choose to call yourself whatever you like.
And he and his fellow billionaires (Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg et al) are, indeed, creatives who create “special things”.
Mostly billions for themselves.
Another slap in face for innocent victims
Speaking to MPs about the Government’s amnesty plan for Troubles murders, Secretary of State Brandon Lewis says it is “a painful recognition of the reality of where we are”.
Before the announcement was made, paramilitaries had been fully briefed.
Not their victims. But bosses of the illegal terror gangs which inflicted so much misery and suffering in this place.
To me, that just about sums it all up. Murderers kowtowed to. Victims ignored.
That’s the truly painful recognition of the reality of where we are.
