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Bigfella · 01-08-2008, 06:07 AM

what a bunch of whiners & hypocrites!

Can you imagine the reaction if an Australian player had been accused of hurling a racial epithet during a tour of India? The Aussies would need armed security just to leave the ground, and all the people here who are so intent on defending Harbhajan would be screaming 'racist'.

To the question of the thread, yes, the term 'monkey' is deeply offensive to people of African & East Asian origin. It is a term that has been used over centuries to suggest that they are closely related to apes - that they are subhuman. Hitler famously referred to the Japanese as 'painted monkeys'. In Europe, racist elements in the crowd at football games have taunted black players by throwing bananas on the pitch. I can't think of an equivalent term with which to degrade Indians, but if I ever heard someone use one I would be the first in line to *****slap the racist piece of ****.

Whatever the motivations of the Indian crowds (and I don't believe they were innocent), Harbhajan has no excuse. Before the series it was made clear to the Indian team that the term was deeply offensive to Symonds. The conspiracy theories surrounding this are just so much BS. It was clear from the reaction on the field that Symonds was angered & offended by what he heard. The ICC has recently instructed captains to report sledging of this type. Ponting was doing as instructed.

The hearing lasted 8 hours, so Mike Proctor clearly heard EVERY possible piece of evidence & took the time to weigh them up. No doubt this is proof that Proctor is a racist too. Hell, why not throw Bucknor into he mix. Perhaps he is a KKK member on the sly. Or maybe, just maybe, an Indian player with a long history of hotheaded behaviour did something stupid. Nah. Couldn't be.

As to the 'Australians are racist' crap, it is no more than I would expect. South Asian teams have a long & dishonourable history of crying 'racism' whenever they don't like a decision or a result. There is no doubt that white teams in past eras have been responsible for racism. They have cleaned up their act. Using the accusation every time you don't like a result is not only insulting to those wrongly accused, it is also insulting to all those who have genuinely suffered racial abuse.

I should also point out that after the behaviour of the Indian crowds this year & elements in the Australian crowd during the Sth African tour, police at Australian grounds were instructed to throw out anyone heard uttering racist abuse. Plainclothes officers were even stationed in the crowd for just this purpose. How many of those holding racist signs in India were thrown out? How many of those making racist gestures or hurling racist abuse in India were thrown out? Yeah, its the Australians who are racist.

In the past Australian teams touring the subcontinent used to complain about everything - the food, the weather, the crowds & the umpiring. We arrived in the country with all our excuses for losing ready to go. We had lost before we even arrived. Then about 20 years ago, we stopped making excuses. We started to engage with the locals. We stopped blaming the umpires. We started winning.

In the past 15 years Australia has beaten every team in the world in series at home and away. We have set records. We have won a string of World Cups. We are the best in the world. Why? because we have set up systems at every level that promote talent & excellence. We also focus on the basics (cricketers who fielded & ran between wickets as consistently badly as many Indian players rarely make it beyond grade level here). Most of all, our national team focusses on what IT does. No excuses. No cop outs.

Oh, as an aside, Australia lost the 'ashes' in England in 2005. It was a close & hard fought series in which a number of questionable umpiring decisions against Australia might well have been the difference between the two sides. or that would be how the story would be told if the result had been reversed. Did the Australians threaten to go home? did they throw a tantrum & demand a change of umpire? did they resort to racist abuse? No, they congratulated England on being the better team & went away determined to do better next time. In the return series last year we won 4-0.

Winners are grinners. Losers can please themselves.

01-08-2008, 06:07 AM	#22 (permalink)
Bigfella *Senior Contributor* Join Date: 01-12-07 Location: Melbourne Posts: 954 Country:	what a bunch of whiners & hypocrites! Can you imagine the reaction if an Australian player had been accused of hurling a racial epithet during a tour of India? The Aussies would need armed security just to leave the ground, and all the people here who are so intent on defending Harbhajan would be screaming 'racist'. To the question of the thread, yes, the term 'monkey' is deeply offensive to people of African & East Asian origin. It is a term that has been used over centuries to suggest that they are closely related to apes - that they are subhuman. Hitler famously referred to the Japanese as 'painted monkeys'. In Europe, racist elements in the crowd at football games have taunted black players by throwing bananas on the pitch. I can't think of an equivalent term with which to degrade Indians, but if I ever heard someone use one I would be the first in line to ***slap the racist piece of **. Whatever the motivations of the Indian crowds (and I don't believe they were innocent), Harbhajan has no excuse. Before the series it was made clear to the Indian team that the term was deeply offensive to Symonds. The conspiracy theories surrounding this are just so much BS. It was clear from the reaction on the field that Symonds was angered & offended by what he heard. The ICC has recently instructed captains to report sledging of this type. Ponting was doing as instructed. The hearing lasted 8 hours, so Mike Proctor clearly heard EVERY possible piece of evidence & took the time to weigh them up. No doubt this is proof that Proctor is a racist too. Hell, why not throw Bucknor into he mix. Perhaps he is a KKK member on the sly. Or maybe, just maybe, an Indian player with a long history of hotheaded behaviour did something stupid. Nah. Couldn't be. As to the 'Australians are racist' crap, it is no more than I would expect. South Asian teams have a long & dishonourable history of crying 'racism' whenever they don't like a decision or a result. There is no doubt that white teams in past eras have been responsible for racism. They have cleaned up their act. Using the accusation every time you don't like a result is not only insulting to those wrongly accused, it is also insulting to all those who have genuinely suffered racial abuse. I should also point out that after the behaviour of the Indian crowds this year & elements in the Australian crowd during the Sth African tour, police at Australian grounds were instructed to throw out anyone heard uttering racist abuse. Plainclothes officers were even stationed in the crowd for just this purpose. How many of those holding racist signs in India were thrown out? How many of those making racist gestures or hurling racist abuse in India were thrown out? Yeah, its the Australians who are racist. In the past Australian teams touring the subcontinent used to complain about everything - the food, the weather, the crowds & the umpiring. We arrived in the country with all our excuses for losing ready to go. We had lost before we even arrived. Then about 20 years ago, we stopped making excuses. We started to engage with the locals. We stopped blaming the umpires. We started winning. In the past 15 years Australia has beaten every team in the world in series at home and away. We have set records. We have won a string of World Cups. We are the best in the world. Why? because we have set up systems at every level that promote talent & excellence. We also focus on the basics (cricketers who fielded & ran between wickets as consistently badly as many Indian players rarely make it beyond grade level here). Most of all, our national team focusses on what IT does. No excuses. No cop outs. Oh, as an aside, Australia lost the 'ashes' in England in 2005. It was a close & hard fought series in which a number of questionable umpiring decisions against Australia might well have been the difference between the two sides. or that would be how the story would be told if the result had been reversed. Did the Australians threaten to go home? did they throw a tantrum & demand a change of umpire? did they resort to racist abuse? No, they congratulated England on being the better team & went away determined to do better next time. In the return series last year we won 4-0. Winners are grinners. Losers can please themselves.