El Pibe

Well I've been touting Germany since the start, it's just they haven't loked all that world beating either. It's been a fabulous tournament so far but i think because of the lack of a really strong team rather than inspite of it. The real action begins in the knockouts anyway, but I really do think it's anyone's. Beside's it's strangely reassuring having Spain threatening to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory and being generally less than the sum of their parts, like order in the universe has been restored.

I do Otta. It has been better and we're missing our form strikers, but overall we (in this I mean Spain, not we England) have the greatest quality and that midfield is still the best. If Other teams had been playing to their potential, particularly German, then I'd happily give them the honour, but everyone has been patchy. Russia lokoed great and bombed out. Portugal impressed last night but were insipid before that.

My first reaction to UDT was cloud-cuckoo land, but then that's what I thought about razor's assertions about a frankly crap Chelsea side having nothing to fear from Barcelona. We have no Drogba, Rooney on his day I guess but he seems to suffer that same cowing fear when he dons the lions that has afflicted too many England players in the past! Let's hope he can be inspired by the young mob. They may not be playing especially well, but they are at least playing poisitively. It wasn't much fun watching Spain last night, too many opportunities to bury that game went spurned. We're still the best side in the tournament, juuuust, but I can see most quarter finalists able to undo them on a good day. Well, maybe not England ;-P Anyway, should be a good game tonight, come on England!!

"they never get enough power" As long as I have my shower before 7:00 or after 10:00 it's fine!! Given a choice of which I could do without it'd be the bath, but I would miss it. How about a deep square thing you can sit upright in, like the Japanese have?

Excellent NY TImes reportage on the MExican Drug Trade and the man at the top of it. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/17/magazine/how-a-mexican-drug-cartel-makes-its-billions.html?_r=2&pagewanted=all

A festival of colour, perhaps at some neutral date, November 5th perhaps?

Did a splurge on replacing missing/lost/vinyl Charlatans back catalogue. Dismissed as the also-rans of baggy, they've actually spoent twenty years changing, growing and producing some pretty decent stuff. Mind you have you seen Tim Burgess lately, I think his grip on reality may not be quite what it was!!

It's still on iPlayer.

I wished I'd stayed in with some harveys bristol cream last night. Come three in the morning i was out back of stab & wine. Like Danny Glover I'm getting to old for this shit.

Very useful Bob, gosh it's amazing how little I know about the game. Could you find one about how the goalie ought to try and keep the ball out of the net too please?

Striclty speaking Carroll's effectiveness will depend on whether he can get the ball in the goal.

I was also told on several occasions by several posters that I basically wasn't allowed an opinion as a moderator and found that quite dispiriting. I think I may have been trying to get away from the perception of grumpy old man around my old login, sadly it turns out that I'm a grumpy old man so not much I can do about that.

what otta said I fell into the sean mcGhabhananah camp of not just needing a break (I think I lasted about a month, pathetic really) but also the removal of responsibility. Despite my no longer being a moderator I actually still use the old login to do tidying up type moderation such as moving sales threads out of the about this forum section. Why do people keep putting them there I'll never know!

Gosh, how lovely, it has it all. A polite Huguenot, people trying to stay on topic, alan dale removing all his posts, Ted Max being witty AND a lounging!! And all those lovely lost posters, the place just isn't the same without Sean McGabhann, keef and snorky is it. *wipes tear of joy

I was still nervous at 2-0, but that was history nipping at the proverbial heels. Labouring at 4-0 sounds ridiculous, but there were only 10 or 15 minutes where Spain played like spain. It'll still be Germany though.

You were John Peel? Cool!

to be fair most of them are more flamer than troll. A good troll should get under your skin without you realising it's artifice. woodrot does a great job on marmoraman for instance. Plus I stronly suspect there's no posturing with more than a few posters on here.

"Would you speak to a random on the street in the same way you post on here ?" I guess depends what I'm doing. But on the whole I think so yes. I might be a little more diplomatic if I thought said random was behaving like a git though.

Also you are pretty much you if that helps. Is your old skool forumite an drunken ranter in his occasional posts? In which case that's EXACTLY what he's like in real life ;)

I think I'm generally nicer in real life. Not that I'm a complete arse on here, but I am a bit* of a grumpy old sod. *ok, a lot!

Tone bob, tone!!!!!!

Ironically, those you accuse of trolling are requesting civility. So quite the opposite in fact. PGC has been here from day 1, or about 12 at any rate, and is an honourable soul who has been a constructive influence, you would do well to follow her lead. I'm all upstart so feel free to ignore my advice and piss in the proverbial wind, I won't be offended, but all I ask is to avoid quickness to offence yourself.

Plus, can I be the first to express amazement at how long this remains unlounged?

Do what you will with the rest of us, but poke your ire at forum nobility like PGC at your own peril. I'd set your fazer to charm if I were you young man.

On those fine words we can definitely agree for once :)