UNBELIEVABLE that he is going ahead with tomorrow as planned. I see the Nigerian fella offering Blatter support. Hmmm, let me give that some thought!
Just having an interesting conversation on facebook about Sepp Blatter. The point was raised that if he does go, where will FIFA get another President with a name that sounds like it's from the Hitch-hikers Guide to the Galaxy? From that oblique reference to the Ravenous Bug Blatter Beast of Traal, there are actually loads of HHGG quotes that fit Blatter, such as: “Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job.” “If there's anything more important than my ego around, I want it caught and shot now.” “Did I do anything wrong today," he said, "or has the world always been like this and I've been too wrapped up in myself to notice?” “Perhaps I'm old and tired, but I always think that the chances of finding out what really is going on are so absurdly remote that the only thing to do is to say hang the sense of it and just keep yourself occupied.”
How about this ... ? A total of 1,200 migrant workers have died so far in construction since the 2022 Qatar World Cup was awarded. They are mainly Nepali workers and the death toll is expected to reach in the region of 4,000 by the time the event is held. Here's a graph to show the huge extent of this atrocity since the WC was illegally awarded to Qatar. Blatter has blood on his hands. please log in to view this image Here's another ... please log in to view this image
The numbers are shocking, but I think I would have understood them without the graphic representations.
Mrs Maple and i were talking about these numbers just the night before the news broke about the FIFA 7 - we can hope for a significant improvement but summer is coming to Qatar and I see the rate of related deaths increasing from heat exhaustion as well as shoddy safety progrmmes. But I suppose that the safety programmes probably don't exist.regardless of whether they are shoddy or otherwise.
My apologies Strolls, they were added not to insult your intelligence but to not let the sheer scale of the chart shroud the fact that these are real people. That’s not just 1,200 faceless men; it’s 1,200 migrant workers who traveled far from home and their families, were forced to surrender their passports and live in squalid conditions for subsistence-level wages, until their untimely deaths. Meanwhile, FIFA executives have allegedly pocketed hundreds of millions of dollars in bribes to make sure Qatar received the honor of hosting the World Cup.
Those figures really are horrifying. The migrant workers in the Gulf States are essentially one step removed from slaves, indentured labourers would be a generous description. But slaves are usually treated better than this, because they have economic value to their owners. Without wishing to get into a sport/morality debate, I would be immensely proud if the FA simply withdrew from the qualifying process for the next two World Cups. If we can lure a couple of the bigger countries with us it devalues the competition. A shame for the players who miss out but there you go. The vote today will show exactly how corrupt FIFA is. Blatter will get back in because of the money he pumps into the Federations that support him, especially Africa and Asia, which can out vote Europe, because Fiji has exactly the same influence as Germany.
Are they??...were these workers chained to oars and flogged as they rowed across the Indian Ocean? or did they go there voluntarily? not condoning the figures though!
I'm currently watching the coverage of the FIFA election on the BBC website - it's both incredibly dull and also (because of the significance and potential fallout) surprisingly tense...
SECOND ROUND OF VOTING REQUIRED! 206 VOTES WERE VALID. PRINCE ALI WINS 73 VOTES SEPP BLATTER WINS 133 VOTES
****.... They are going for a second round of voting (in a two-horse race!) because nobody got a 2/3 majority. However, Blatter won the first round 133 to 73. This time, a massive swing is needed, because a straight majority is needed in round 2. Otherwise Blatter wins, and Football then has to decide whether it's going to show some backbone or cave in to the corrupt dictator. I fear for football, when the very people voting for him are most likely beneficiaries of his corruption.
FFS, sorry if this comes across as ageist but why don't Step Ladder retire. He's 79 and most likely does not need the money. Gutted about this but sadly not surprised. I really do hope this investigation destroys Sepp and FIFA!
Should UEFA (or even England (okay, you other Brits as well)) boycott the WC in Russia? I would say yes because we need to make a proper statement.
I've said it before, the big countries should do what they did in darts and set their own tournament. Sack off FIFA - democracy doesn't work. Host it in Europe 2 out of every 3 tournaments on rotation - so no bidding - it goes to England, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Belgium, Holland, etc Then get Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Mexico to sign up. And get another 4 from say Columbia, Chili, Russia, USA, etc to make up a core of 16 - as the 'top table'. Then have an open invitation for a further 16 'minnow' places for the 'whipping boys' that all have to pre-qualify. So no more England vs San Marino - let these shrimps - the likes of Andorra, the Cook Islands and Scotland - battle it out at an appropriate level. Get the likes of Pepsi, MasterCard, BurgerKing, etc to sponsor it as a 'clean' tournament. Viva European football! The home of football. Not some tin-pot regime in the Middle East or Africa. FIFA - and the rest of the corrupt, minnow federations - those not mentioned above - bow down to your footballing European overlords!
France voted for Blatter, yet even his best mate Platini told him to go. I'd be pretty p*ssed off if I was a French right now
