Quick hello!

A quick hello and update on stuff...

Hello.

OK, well ,it was nice to have a few days off work this week, although the weather turned a little for the worse, it was just nice to sit back with my lovely ladies and just forget about stuff. I didn't actually get anything productive done, but I did end up watching more films than I probably have in the last 20 years. We took out Netflix to try, and it has actually been very good so far.

A friend of mine through Twitter sent me a Jeff Bauman wristband. Most people have to ask what it represents, but I am happy to explain or point to my previous posts to show why I wear it.

Updates regarding my twitter wars (!), the last couple of weeks have been quite nasty again, with people still quoting ridiculously badly made videos and pixelly photographs. Some of the comments just recently have been nothing short of despicable, but thankfully we've managed to silence a lot of them with either simple facts or simple talking downs...

Aside from that, nothing much to report. I've been gathering some facts for some more posts, and collecting some photos and stuff so I hope to write about some different things. I also have some new things to moan about, so I shall get them off my chest in due course.

So, I'll be back again soon!

An overdue recap on the Boston bombings, victims and slander, how good (and bad) people can be, and my role as an activist (phew!)

In April, my last blog (I know...!), I wrote about my personal feelings regarding one of the many victims at the Boston bombings, Jeff Bauman. More on that later. Now, I return with the longest blog title ever seen, and some stunning, often chilling observations.

What I'm writing about today, is both verging on the unbelievable, the disturbing and the downright infuriating. In the time since I wrote my last piece, many issues have come to light. Social media has become both a blessing, and at times a hateful, spiteful place. You see, there are groups of people that really do believe that the bombings in Boston, the victims and the terrorists are all fake, staged and the work of the US government.

Conspiracy theories are as old as the hills, and come hand in hand with pretty much any major event or atrocity worldwide. Pearl Harbo(u)r was staged. The Apollo missions were an elaborate hoax. You name it, someone has questioned it, no matter how irrational it may seem. Boston has been no different, and maybe because of my own personal views, it has been magnified like a pinhead at 150x. It seems that for every ten people with sound minds realise what an awful thing happened, there's one that doubts. But not doubts - they swear they are right, convinced they have irrefutable proof of victims being actors, or the bombers being innocent...at times, it's been tough viewing. (At other times it's been farcically surreal.)

I read with bewilderment about how the whole incident was staged, and every photo you saw of injured people was all a big hoax. Those horrific wounds you might have seen? Make-up. Missing limbs? They were already amputees, hired by authorities to make it look 'real'. I kid you not. YouTube videos popped up everywhere, with chilling stills festooned with red circles pointing out the elements of hoax, overlaid with tense synthesizer music.

You can stop laughing - these people are serious - stay with me here.

I think every element, every person there has been analyzed to a saturation point. All based on varying quality jpegs and ropey timelapsed videos. And so it went on. I observed for a few more days, until I couldn't help but start to respond to these people. Especially when they slandered victims. So, I set up a secondary twitter account, and became something of an activist for the innocent people. I wanted to stop these people and their lies; I'm sure many victims may have used twitter and I didn't think it was right that they might well come across such slander.

So I began to reply. Reservedly at first, with simply replies like 'you're wrong here', or 'please think about what you tweet' etc. But this was either ignored or mocked. I was accused of being close minded, 'conditioned by the media, shampooed by the government'. (They like that one a lot.) I engaged with many people who obsessed with looking for 'proofs' of the whole thing being a false flag. I've had sickening, sad photos thrown at me with captions of 'explain this, then'. I've seen laughable photographic 'evidence' using Photoshop skills in line with an eight year old on Microsoft Paint. I've even been accused of being a paid FBI agent, out to quell all naysayers. But this isn't laughable. This isn't merely impressionable young people being influenced by adults who really should know better. It's all down to something even more unbelievable to be really, quite worrying about the influences of social media at it's very worst. I shall explain this, in a second. For now, here are some genuine examples of tweets I've faced recently.

You get the picture, and I'm sure you'll agree, it's far from pretty. I could share literally hundreds, but they all boil down to much the same conclusions and speculations. So the reason for a lot of these fake-cryers? Their support for the bombing suspects. They firmly believe the Tsarnaev brothers are innocent pawns in a bigger government game, and that they were set up. Because of their relatively young years, it's perhaps almost understandable that a lot of teenage girls may well find the thought of 'bad boys' attractive. This form of hybristophilia is by no means uncommon, but social media can add much fuel to an already high octane situation. Just search twitter with the #freejahar hashtag, and you'll see the craziness I see every day.

I've watched this whole thing as it's played out, sometimes in the thick of it, sometimes as an observer. There's no doubt that a lot of young (and not so young) people have been completely sucked into this belief. Easily led, naturally rebellious youngsters have hopped onto a bandwagon, all part of a cast that you just couldn't script. The wannabe rap 'artist' who gathered thousands of followers by claiming he knew and supported the suspects...the creepy conspiracy theorists, living in their basements to avoid the chemtrails that brainwash the rest of us into believing government hoaxes...the countless teenagers, who cry out against the government, yet hide their accounts from their parents...and then, there are the good people. The people who have the morals and respect to go to much greater lengths than I have to protect the dignity of those truly affected. I have become acquainted with many over the last couple of months, and it's been wonderful to help these people, however small that help might have been, to highlight and confront warped minds. These people have received threats, abuse and continual fights with being reported as 'haters' - something they really are not. They just believe in what's right, as I do, and I shall continue to do what I can to get these mindless few off their soapboxes. I guess, I'm living out the person I wish I could be sometimes, fearless, almost outspoken. It's a good and productive way to let off steam.

So, the battle goes on; and whereas many would think it's better to just leave it be, or walk away from such crackpots, I can't right now. And, for as long as it takes, I won't.

Now, as promised some thought pertaining to my last entry. I sent Jeff his drawing, and I wrote a short letter wishing him well etc. I didn't want to harp on about the obvious, so I tried to make it humorous, respectful and to just say I understood that my letter was one of thousands he may see, but my well wishes were not to be diluted by that.

The response from my last blog was heartening, because it echoed a lot of people's thoughts (the good people, of course.) I received a lot of good feedback from that article, which was more than I expected.

And, if you haven't followed Jeff's story and recovery like I have, there are some articles out there that are far better than I can write. This one is one of the best. Needless to say, the man has been through an awful lot, but continues to be an example of what bravery, resolve and support can achieve. And that's the sort of thing that I've been defending the last couple of months. 

My next blog, I promise, will be something less dramatic. and I will not leave it so long again (hey, I've been busy being a goodie!) - although if you're interested, I'll keep you updated with how my battles have been going...

I'm desensitised to things I see on the internet...oh, wait, no I'm not.

First of all, record reviews, updates on my new retro finds and other malarkey have been on hold for a while. I'll be back to those sometime soon.

A strange thing happened to me this week. The Boston bombings happened shortly before I left for work, and so I couldn't really keep up with the news much, other than I knew it was bad. As best as I could, by listening to the radio in the car radio and it's vague reporting on the way to work, or checking my phone at opportune moments. 

News was streaming in at an astonishing rate, and sometimes with astonishing inaccuracies - but obviously you don't know this at the time - and was flooding my social media streams. Shortly after arriving at work, and just before phoning home as I always do to check in as safe (!), I flicked through my Facebook timeline to see if there was any more news. 

In some ways, I wish I hadn't. A couple of friends had posted nothing else but graphic photos of injured, maimed people - posted possibly before these people even made it to hospital. I was actually angry. Was this to shock? Was it necessary? If I'd have come across these pictures, would my first instinct be to share them on Facebook, on Twitter? Not at all. I was shocked. Even a little upset if I'm honest. I was upset that people were clearly in a bad way, yet someone was poking a camera at them. I was upset that they could have been helping rather than snapping, filming. One or two pictures really bothered me. I had a troubled shift at work all night thinking about the photos and the people in them.

When I got home in the morning, I spoke to my wife about what I'd seen and how I felt. And she made me think, as she said that the photos are a necessary evil to an extent, no matter how bad something is, it still needs to be shown so that we all know how atrocious something may be. I could see her reasoning. I went to bed, still troubled, still thinking about the pictures I'd looked at that night.

Which begs the next question. Why did I look? Ok, when scrolling down your Facebook there's no warning about what will appear further down the page. Twitter hashtags for any news make photos a little easier to avoid, but not always. But it's a human trait isn't it? If we see a car accident on the motorway, we rubberneck and try to see a glimpse. You know you shouldn't look, but you can't help it. 'Grisly photo of bomb victim - WARNING' - yet your mouse hover over the link. Your finger ready to tap that address on the touchscreen. Your curiosity takes over - you know that you're more than likely going to reel back with a wince once you see it. 

But you still click.

I did, and have suffered for it. I'm not particularly squeamish of photographs (real life may be different), but what I saw really did bother me. Because it was real. It was visceral, full on and utterly shocking. I even felt a little queasy. But I kept looking, taking in the photograph, trying to desensitise myself to the horror on my screen.

I'm not going to show the photos of course, and I'm sure you've seen them, most certainly one. I'm not going to describe them either. I saw a lot of pictures that Tuesday. I didn't want to, but my ridiculously disobedient curiosity took me further, link to link. But aside from the shock, I also realised I was genuinely upset. And that is why I think I was bothered for the days that followed.

The main photo of course, was that of the man in the wheelchair who's legs had been destroyed. It was the first picture I saw, and the one I kept looking at. Once I'd got over the shocking graphic of the injuries, I looked further. Reasoned with the picture. It was almost iconic of the terrible thing that had happened. I felt bad for the man. Terribly sad. Straight away, I wanted to see if the man was ok, as far as he could be. I couldn't find much mention, just people posting the picture all over the place. I could accept this by now, but for some reason I needed to know if he was ok. Eventually, I found an article written just a few hours before I started looking, with a report that the man was obviously very poorly, but actually in a stable condition. I dug further, scanning the news reports and tweets. This led to me a page on Reddit, apparently posted from one of the man's friends, updating on his status also. Reading through the thread, there were some links to other photographs from the moments immediately after the bomb blast, and, maybe foolishly, my curiosity once again got the better of me and I opened a couple of the links. The photos were brutal, more shocking than the news photographer's picture. These were raw pictures of death and suffering, as it happened and because of their snapshot style, hit perhaps harder than any Canon EOS wielding pro could ever achieve. I'm not going to describe these pictures, other than to say that again, I was disturbed for a while, then shocked, then sad. I viewed them with a morbid, disgusted curiosity, and I was angry at myself for it. I wished there was something I could do, but then, I guessed did thousands of others.

The next day or two was kind of strange. I woke up thinking about not only the horrible images, but also of the man in them. My conscience was in turmoil about the ethics of photos like this being released. I spoke to my wife about my concerns, and she again convinced me of their relevance. She's good at that, and it's one of the things I love about her.

But I still was thinking constantly about Jeff Bauman Jr. The man who had had his photo splashed all over the world because he had been so badly injured, and had been captured in such a graphic way. 

Here is a story on Mr. Bauman Jr. that appeared the day after. (No graphic images on the page)
http://www.ibtimes.com/meet-jeff-bauman-boston-bombing-victim-graphic-wheelchair-photo-now-stable-condition-1196493#

Around the same time, a fund was set up to raise money for the horrendous medical bills that come with a stay in hospital in America. At the time, just a few hours in, almost $20,000 had already been raised. At the time of writing, the fund is at $220,000. 
And yes, I donated. I didn't think about it, just a small amount because I felt moved to. Again, it's hard to explain. But I wanted to, even by putting a few dollars into that fund, know that maybe I might have helped buy some medicine, or a bandage. Anything. And I felt so much better, better with myself because I had been annoyed at myself for looking at the pictures in the first place, and better because I might just have helped this young man, even in the smallest way. That's not self righteous, or indulgent, I genuinely felt good.

Which once more bought me back to the ethics of being able to see photos like the ones I saw. Had I not seen any of this, kept away from it and blocked the horror from my phone, computer or whatever...I may not have ever made that donation. So, in some uneasy way, I'm glad I saw the pictures. They moved me to do something. 
On the other hand, it's very difficult to imagine the effect the photos might have on the family and friends of Jeff Bauman Jr. They are never going to want to see them. Yet, the internet will forever show pictures of Jeff in that wheelchair, because it's almost been adopted as the iconic image of the atrocity. I just hope that they have the decency to censor them appropriately in the future.

Edit

Since I wrote much of this, I'm glad to say that Jeff's condition has continued to improve, and further articles written are giving more of his story. The fund has reached over $300,000 and is still going strong. And I have been in contact with his official support page, who said he'd 'absolutely love' a drawing of a Boston sports team.
I'm pretty sure I can manage that...
and, I wish Jeff all the best in his recuperation.




Here's some links which (should) be free of graphic images, but help tell the story better than I possibly could - if you haven't read them already.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/bomb-victim-helped-id-suspects-hospital-bed-article-1.1321582 - how Jeff Bauman helped identify the Boston bombers.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/apr/16/carlos-arredondo-hero-boston-marathon - The story about the man that saved Jeff Bauman's life, Carlos Arredondo.

http://www.gofundme.com/BucksforBauman - Fundraising page.

https://www.facebook.com/supportjeffandfamily - Facebook support page.


My very last word.
For the conspiracy theorists, the people that have said that this is all fake, including Jeff's injuries - ask yourself, would you tell him or his family, to their faces that it was fake? I very much doubt it. And how anyone could think like this, try and profit from things like this and exploit things like this - well, I've found out in the last few days that it angers me a lot - and I am far from an angry person. 
Hopefully, I'll have something nicer to report next time.

It's been so long, again.

It's been so long...again! My plans to be writing were waylaid by 101 other things, NOW I am truly blogging again (especially since I found out I can do it on the go, on my phone!)

Here's what I plan to talk about this week:

'Record Review' - A regular feature, this will take a critical look at the musical works of my favourite artists. I have my first one just about ready, in my head. I just need one more listen...

'Retro Review' - Not so much a review, but a piece on a game or gaming system I like(d). 

Plus, lots of rambling about where I live, used to live and my ever growing list of life's frustrations...

For now, from a personal view, at least artistically, I seem to have been heading in a new direction just lately. Partly due to circumstance - my kitchen is really not the most suitable art studio - rather than going through the absolute inconvenience of setting up and packing away whenever I want to do some painting, just recently I have returned to an old love, graphite. There's something very rewarding yet simple about working with a pencil. And it's been quite liberating, no pressure, no expectation, no worrying about using too much of this or that because it costs a fortune to replace...no, it's been very liberating. Just me, some pencils and a cartridge pad. It works well for all of us at Tearle Towers. And of course, the output is higher. Three drawings in four days work? Nice. And I didn't skimp with the smudgy stumps either. So, for now I'm strictly pencil. And doing lots of different subjects that I probably wouldn't touch in colour. Here's the latest:

I really did enjoy every minute of this, even the agony of creating that black background. There'll be more of this sort of thing I can tell you.


What do you mean, is it Beyonce?

Long time no see!

Having had absolutely no time recently to even write the simplest of blogs, I thought I'd write a small entry today just to show that I am still here and back to blogging again. Besides, I don't think there's a rule for how much you have to blog...is there?

So I have no particular subject today, just a general 'I'm back' post. I have however, been thinking of some things to blog about in the coming entries and have lots to write about. As ever, some will be of interest, some will be of no interest to anyone but myself (probably), and some will be completely random (likely).

Anyway, it's nice to be writing again, and to be back on here :-)

The worst day (in sports) ever...

Before I begin this entry, apologies for not posting anything recently, time has been a huge factor and other things have taken priority. But, it has allowed me to think of some more hugely exciting things to write about. I'll start those things one day.

As I have posted before, I've been watching NFL football for most of my life now, and have seen some great, awful and downright ugly moments during my viewing career.
But one moment, one game, one play will always live with me and never be forgotten for it's impact on a (then) young fan. After all, what do you do when your hero is destroyed in front of your very eyes?

In 1990, my team, the San Francisco 49ers were virtually unstoppable, and well on course to contend for their fifth Super Bowl championship, and third in a row. All that stood between them and a berth in the big game, were a team that had grown in rivalry over the last ten years, the New York Giants. No strangers to each other, each time the two teams met was like two trains meeting head on. Physical games, blowout games, tight defensive struggles - these two had developed a rivalry of truly bitter proportions.

The Giants, with their blue collar, hard hitting ethos, and San Francisco, cool, businesslike and almost cocky - and with much justification. Giants/49ers games were rarely pretty, but always eventful.

I'd had a dislike for the Giants since my first full season watching the NFL, and seeing them destroy my team in the 1986/87 playoffs. The Giants went on to win it all that year, and, to be fair, were the best team in the league. Seeing Jim Burt's clean hit on new hero Joe Montana and knocking him senseless though, certainly didn't endear me in any way to New York's men in blue...

Between then and 1990, the two teams had met another 4 times, with San Francisco winning each meeting. The rivalry was there, and you had the feeling that New York were due a win - but with the 49ers juggernaut at full speed, surely it wouldn't be this year, would it?

January 20th, 1991 is a date etched in my sporting memory forever. The game was a classic defensive struggle, nothing between the two teams and as hard hitting and physical as these two had ever been. (One thing of note from the above clip, Jim Burt was now a 49er, and squaring up with a lot of former teammates.) Coming into the fourth quarter, and with the score a taut, edgy 13-9 to San Francisco, the 49ers and Joe Montana were looking to drive downfield and hopefully build a bit of a cushion between them and the Giants.

I mentioned Jim Burt again, because he perhaps contributed to the Giants mentality in the last 15 minutes of play. A low hit on Giants quarterback Jeff Hostetler around the knees clearly hurt Hostetler, although he would play on. However, this didn't go unnoticed by the Giants defense, who from that point wanted revenge. And revenge meant there was only one person they were interesting in getting to...

On a third down play, Montana was forced to the outside whilst looking for a receiver downfield. Giants linebacker Lawrence Taylor tried to get to Montana, who slowed up in his run just long enough to make Taylor miss. However, unseen by Montana, defensive end Leonard Marshall had been battling and scrambling over to the right to get through the line , and, with Montana's back in his sights, launched his 288lb frame at the unaware, 195lb Montana. The results were devastating.

I'd seen Joe Montana hurt before, and he'd had injuries before. But this was different. I had a sickly feeling in the pit of my stomach, because I knew even then, that there was more to this hit than a piece of highlight film. My spirits rose as Joe slowly moved to a kneeling position. He was tough, frail looking maybe, but no-one ever questioned his toughness. Teammates and team physicians ran over. Joe was sitting again now, and concerns were growing - this looked more serious than first thought. It was a huge hit, but Joe would get up. Surely.

The faces on the 49er sideline seemed to say otherwise, they knew this was bad. Now, Joe was lying down again, and the team doctors were talking to him. In between replays of the hit, and pictures of Giants defenders celebrating on the sideline, Joe could be seen gesturing, nodding and breathing very heavily. Another replay. Then, Joe was getting up, supported by the doctors. But  this wasn't Joe Montana getting up. Ashen faced, clammy looking - Joe looked shellshocked. This wasn't Joe Cool. Joe Montana didn't break. But I was looking at Joe Montana, broken quarterback, and I really didn't like it. The game didn't matter anymore, because even if we'd have won, Joe wouldn't have been there. It was irrelevant. I wanted to know how Joe was. The game passed and the Giants won - but I don't remember much of the last few moments anyway. I was honestly distraught.

Back then, it was hard to find news on the NFL - obviously we had no internet, only magazines and newspapers to try and find out anything that was going on. Over the weeks, the news started to filter through. On that hit, Montana suffered a bruised sternum (I don't have much knowledge of sternums), a broken rib and what was termed 'a severe concussion'. Montana also had a broken finger, which he claimed Marshall deliberately snapped back as he was crushing Montana under him.

Joe Montana didn't play again until late 1992. It was the end of a glorious era in San Francisco - after the 1990 game many big names from the team moved on. Eventually, Joe did too. It was a time I had very little interest in the NFL. And it cemented my hatred of the New York Football Giants forever.

An NFL franchise in London? Yer 'avin' a larf, Guv'nor.

Back around 1986, I read an article about the growth of American Football in the United Kingdom. In the article, then San Diego Chargers quarterback Dan Fouts raved about the possibility of an NFL team based in London, citing only logistics as being a potential stumbling block. 

Back around October 2012, I read an article about the growth of American Football in the United Kingdom. In the article, current Patriots owner Robert Kraft raved about the possibility of an NFL team based in London, although with no immediate mention of potential stumbling blocks. 

Similar stories, 26 years apart. In 1986, British fans were at a frenzy; viewing figures on Channel 4 were still standing up well in the 4 years it had been on our screens, the Dallas Cowboys and Chicago Bears had enthralled an enthusiastic (and soggy) British crowd at Wembley Stadium (and that's the proper one, with twin towers...) and the NFL was unleashing a merchandise marketing offensive that was drawing in more and more young fans. Teams were appearing all over the green fields of the British Isles, and whilst the athletic standards were not by any means professional, no one could doubt the enthusiasm that the players played with. 

26 years on, and NFL in the UK is at a similar juncture to the one it was at in 1986. After a lull in following during the mid to late 90's (a lot due to less TV coverage here), the popularity has grown again to such a point that there is talk of basing a pro team in the UK. And for me, that sets alarm bells ringing. In 1986, as an excitable young NFL fan, it was a hugely exciting prospect. But as an older, marginally wiser if no less excitable fan, I can see more reasons to not see this happen than I would like.

Without getting into deep details, my personal view is that it's essentially a bad idea for many reasons. The obvious arguments are the logistics borne from the distance between certain teams, especially those on the West Coast. Whilst the distance from the East Coast to here is relatively similar to the distance between Eastern and Western America, there is still a lot of mileage to cover in a regular season. Some excellent arguments are written here, on the NFL-Ireland site: http://nfl-ireland.com/2012/10/nfl-international-series-london-lacking/. This also perhaps explains the situation better than I can write, and perhaps gives one of the better thought out reasonings of why a London franchise may not be the best thing for global expansion of the NFL. If a new team was to be created, that would mean for league parity another team would come into existence as well - and I feel that would dilute an already tight talent pool still further. When I started watching NFL there were 28 teams. At present there is 32 teams in the league. Would 34 be too many? I think so. 

So while UK fans are split into three probably fairly even camps, the No's, the Yes's and the Couldn't Care Lesses, how about the view from America? Let's take a look at some genuine comments I pulled from various Facebook threads around the time that Kraft paid a huge lip service to the notion. The question here was simply 'Should the NFL base a team in London?' 

Oh dear. American's aren't overly keen on the idea either, it would seem. A point about the second to last comment. I have seen numerous similar statements, that we should be given the pointless and uncompetitive jolly day out that is the Pro Bowl. Evidently, to some US fans, us UK fans would be quite happy with this. We stopped going to preseason games at Wembley a long time ago because they were clearly not competitive or meaningful enough. It's unlikely the British fan would tolerate something like the Pro Bowl.

Moving on, and some more words of wisdom.

The World League/NFL Europe also often crops up as an argument, and there is a point there to a certain degree. But again,  knowledgable fans were still feeling shortchanged in the skill stakes; and nothing was as good as watching real NFL teams that we were more used to seeing in the first place. The NFL should take heed that we are an incredibly fickle sports nation, and view change and development with pessimistic eyes. NFL Europe failed for us because there was little consistency from season to season. Players, teams and venues changed often and made it hard to build a solid fanbase. There was also much less coverage on TV.

I can understand some views that there are more deserving cities in the US alone that would be guaranteed to support and uphold their own NFL team. But what I can't understand is some fans who clearly don't want the NFL to work overseas because it's 'their' sport. You know, the sport that is a mutation of Rugby and Soccer(ball)? It is nothing but an American take on these games, and perhaps this should be remembered by some of them. I also disagree with the common notion that we don't like the NFL in this country anyway. It might still be a lower tier sport over here, but the generalisation that no-one likes it is something that many Americans are wrong about. Although, I have read numerous comments from the other side of the fence, with British people dismissing the NFL as a novelty sport (and the age old cries of padded men in motorcycle helmets of course) - and maybe herein lies another obstacle. There are clearly cultural differences at work here, as much as anything else. Whilst some of us choose to embrace this culture, it does go against the grain of the British stiff upper lip. The average British sports fan doesn't have much interest in the NFL, and the cross Atlantic distrust seems to operate both ways.

So, all in all there is still a stalemate. Whilst realistically, the idea of an International team is probably the wrong route to take, the subject will stay hot for a good while yet. In my eyes, if the NFL wants to up it's profile overseas, support the grassroots game. Grow the fanbase by really getting behind the amateurs who play in this country. Go back to flooding the marketplace with merchandise - we are still not seeing goods anywhere near like the volume we enjoyed 25 years ago. Whilst we get more TV coverage, the efforts still aren't enough to make it mainstream. The time difference means that a lot of TV coverage is purely for the hardcore, and without opening other avenues the sport will never flourish at the rate needed to sustain a team here. The arguments for not having a British franchise still clearly outweigh the positives that could come of it. I can't see it happening anytime soon, and to be honest, I don't think it's in the best interests of the sport to entertain it. The International Series every year is irrelevant, people will always attend, but should not be the yardstick used by the League to gauge favour amongst us. But, quotes such as potential London team names:

The London Limeys 
The South Bank Bear Baiters 
The Sex Pistols 
The Lost Empire 
The Snaggleteeth

The Wembley Willies

The London Tallywackers

The Great Brittan Gingivitis

The London Tea Sippers

And the general impression that Americans have of us:

Isn't England full of a bunch of guys that have a tea parties everyday? They don't seem like the type of guys who like a man's sport (football).   seem to open the culture gap even wider. Oh dear. Again.

Genuine quotes - take them as you will. Whilst not directly abusive, they do hint at some of the impressions we as 'Brits' seem to give out, and for some reason it really annoys me. I'm presuming that these people have never been over here. It's frustrating to read so many replies to articles that are along this same vein. I gave up trying to correct them. Whether they are the majority or the minority I can't say. But there is opposition nonetheless, and I do sympathise. I just wish that their claims were backed up with more reasoning.

Amazing to think that really, we are in a similar position to that all those years ago. If it was no more than a notion back then, what's changed today? The world is no smaller, the game is likely no more popular. The rise in interest is only comparable to the first wave of interest - it is not, in my opinion any stronger than that. Maybe the NFL could think of better ways to further it's following overseas; at the moment expansion is not the answer.