Dear Friends I believe I should explain my action of abandoning the site late last week. I hope that you will stick with the post and I apologise for its length. I probably appeared rather petulant and some of you did not hesitate to state this opinion. You are, of course, entitled to your views and were actually quite justified, to a point. Others responded with very touching and sincere messages and I thank you wholeheartedly. I am an emotive individual and to know that so many took the time to post on my 'Goodbye' thread was heartening. It proves that we Charlton fans are a good bunch with strong ethics and a belief in fair play to one and all. There was a belief that I had decided to leave because of the appearance of J.Acworth. There is no truth to this whatsoever, and although he did need to be told about excessive thread-posting, he is obviously a Charlton fan and entitled to the use of this great site. I apologise to JA if he thought that his presence had offended me. The reason I threw my 'toys out of the pram' as Franco put it in his eloquently straight talking manner is as follows - I had made one of my robust and sweeping comments regarding black individuals of a certain ilk, and the need for the return of the death penalty. Perhaps my wording was a little unrestrained and may have been construed as being stereotypical to the extreme. I did not mean for this to offend and perhaps I should be a little more specific when describing sections of the community. I shall try a little harder in future. As a result of these comments, I received a fair backlash, but a few comments from brb, the Gillingham supporter, rubbed me up the wrong way. I must add at this juncture that brb has since apologised and I accept his generous words completely. He could not know the reaction his innocent comments would provoke. There are certainly no hard feelings and I would welcome his presence on the Charlton board with open arms. A certain comment relating to A2C's disliking of firemen and my possible agreement to this feeling was what had caused me to act the way I did. My father was a fireman for many years in South London and acted with immense courage and dedication throughout - as do all firefighters! Unfortunately, my father was badly injured when falling through a roof of a factory which had been set on fire by a gang of youths. He suffered life threatening injuries and was never able to fully recover from the fall. His movement was severly impaired and his ability to act in a strenous physical manner was never the same again. A few years later, when visiting relatives in Highbury, my uncle was set upon by a group of black youths. He was trying to stop his neighbour's car from being vandalised. The beating that he suffered left him brain damaged and, therefore, a once happy and vibrant man is now wheelchair bound and unable to recognise his own wife and children. At the time of the attack my father had tried to intervene but his physical failings left him unable to stop the brutality of the assault. He was heartbroken that he was unable to stop the violence sooner and thus save my uncle from such a prolonged and savage attack. No one blamed him but this did not soothe the guilt he was feeling. In his prime he was super fit, physically imposing and made of iron. The group of thugs were arrested and their sentencing was paltry. The judge did not punish them with any severity because he believed they did not intend to cause such grievous harm. Why? Because they wore soft basketball trainers and could not possibly know what damage they were causing. There was never a shred of remorse. The depressions of my father were all-consuming - despite attempts to improve his mental health for the sake of my mother and my siblings. One day, my father was not there, and that is all I will say on the matter. Some may say that I am justified in my hatred for certain sections of the community. Others tell me to let the anger go for the sake of my own sanity. I have tried and keep on trying to understand the actions of some individuals. I have worked with thousands of kids from disadvantaged backgrounds during my work with inner city councils. I have found work for some, educational support for others and helped countless young grls escape the degradation and destruction of prostitution. They are my successes and sources of pride. Sometimes I receive letters and e-mails from those I have helped and they show me their new homes, wives and husbands, children and possessions that they never believed that they could or would have. But sometimes it does not matter what one does for someone else. They do not want help. They are destined for terrible futures with the end result being addiction, prison or death. There are reasons for this obstinance which I will not go into. But I do know that I will continue to strive for the answers. As for the football; it was a joy to see us put in such a dogged shift at Meadow Lane. Our football at times was outstanding and it showed from Notts Co's perpetual fouling that we were running rings around them. Our support was immense - except for a couple of morons on the back row near where I was sitting. We were numerous, vocal and good natured as usual. Hollands was a rock and Hayes was very impressive, indeed. I did say that Waggy should retain his spot and that the arrival of Euell would spell the end for Benno. Also, the standard of play from the kids at half-time was wonderful. Their elaborate goal celebrations were a joy to watch and I am sure they will never forget their moment in the spotlight. I shall be at the match on Tuesday and again I am up for meeting any of you guys attending. Thank you for reading this very long post and cheers again for your kind words. Warmest regards, Ponders
With every action there is a reaction. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, and good on you for voicing yours. I for one am glad to see you back posting, this forum would be a poorer place without you. If everyone showed the bravery, courage and humility that many firefighters do, then the world would be a better place.
Welcome back mate.This forum is a better place with you. If i ever meet you , please remind me that i owe you a pint. BTW , Crack, i sent you a private message.
glad to see you back Ponders i'm up there tomorrow night so if I am able to somehow distinguish you I may well say hello
I can 100% sympathise with someone being angry at a group in society if they have personal reasons to do so, it is totally understandable. It is such a shame that i wasn't surprised that those black youths were given pathetic sentences.
Holy s**t Ponders...!! That is a truly harrowing story mate. One that i can't even begin to comprehend in terms of the catastrophic effect it must have had on you and your family. As I've said previously, my father was a fireman for 25 years. He passed away a few years back at the relatively young age of 57. His death was a direct result of complications brought about by the work he did for so may years. He died before seeing me get married or meeting his two beautiful grandsons (one of whom was named after the grandfather he has never met). This is without doubt the greatest sorce of sadness in my life to date! Just like modern day firefighters, he put his life on the line on a daily basis to preserve the lives of complete strangers. Anyone who fails to see the significance in the work they do is an absolute f*****g numb nut. For what it's worth, I fully 110% agree with your view on what should be done with the vermin who acted so disgracefully both during the riots that wrecked our once great country and those who blight the lives of good honest hard working folks like yourself. My sincerest apologies for my 'toys out of the pram' comment. That was my inept attempt at lightening the mood believe it or not . Unfortunately I have a real flair for straight talking and shooting from the lip which often rubs people up the wrong way. Thankfully, those closest to me love me in spite of this flaw in my makeup... Anyway, you're a valued member of 'Not606 Team Charlton' so welcome home Ponders
Strewth Ponders. I thought it must have been something deeply personal that had caused you to leave, but I could never have imagined anything like this. It's very good to have you back.
We didn't always agree on football matters Ponders but that's what we're hear for. Personal differences should be nothing to do with it and the fact you felt the need to announce an departure and then justify yourself in this manner has been a shame and something you should never have had to do. I do hope this is just the beginning of your renewed posting.
I do not think this is Ponders saying he is returning but rather explaining his actions. However, as I stated on your other thread I do hope you reconsider mate I have known brb for many many years and he would never have posted that comment had he known your situation. You may/may not have read the original comment by a 606 poster (he is not on here) which was met with total derision by all other posters when it was originally made and the first to pour scorn was brb. As I said I do hope you reconsider AllHell
Whatever has happened- surely this is now a line drawn under it, and we can get back to CAFC (as well as other random topics). Ponders, whilst I admit to have read nothing from the riot thread, nor this thread, continue to stick around as I want to kick your ass in the prediction threads
Ponders, I certainly disagreed with a lot of your points on the riot thread. If that was a cause of offense, i sincerely appologise. My feeling was that it was a number of conflicting views and people airing their opinions, as one gets on a forume, but in no case did I mean to disrespect you or your family, so if I was one of those who made you leave, I hope you'll reconsider, as this is after all a football forum, not a political one, so maybe we could all just get back to the Colchester build-up.
Quite a harrowing story really PEA and can understand why you have views that you do. Agree that it's best to draw a line under it and it would be a shame if you decided not to post here anymore.
Once again, thank you all so very much for your kind and heart-warming sentiments. I agree that the emphasis should be on Charlton and perhaps other subject matter is best left for the general chat arena. However, I should have, as others did, stayed clear of such a topic and kept my overly robust views to myself. Sometimes I can't help myself and get carried away by it all. Just one of my flaws, I suppose. Franco: I did not take any offence from your words and in fact was really quite grounded by your frankness. You are a great character and in no way should you change your approach to such matters. Your post shows your humility, warmth and strength of family values. I congratulate you for this. Ken Shabby: You have no need to apologise. You have the right to your opinion and I appreciate the depth of your sentiments. Thank you. Stu: I don't drink, so perhaps you could buy me a pie? Yum. Oh well, it is done now and I hope to continue posting after a short break away from the computer screen. I have a back-log of books to work through and the missus won't allow me near another Waterstones until I make a dent in it. By the way: a 2-1 win for us tonight. COYR!
I shall chime in at the very end and say great to have you back ponders, no need for a farewell now ! Seperately, to hear or 'read' the word "strewth" was a massive breath of fresh air, down here i thought i was about the last user of such english ! Cheers Tewkes
Welcome back Ponders, and sorry to hear the dreadful tales of your Dad and Uncle. I had a gut feeling that someone in your family must have had a run in with some anti-social morons in the past, but did'nt imagine it would have been quite so bad. There is something to be said for Charles Bronson, you know. !
welcome back ponders thanks for sticking up for my emails im sorry about your story i to have had simular with all these looters over the past few weeks ,so i think weve all suffered over what happened just hope they get tough sentenses which i doubt very much.I couldnt believe the latest story in tonights standard aparantly they are going give looters jobs ?can u believe this government?these people should be forced to do all the crappy jobs under the sun if are made to work.welcome back ponders!
I'm genuinely touched Ponders, I really am...!! Itâs nice to know Iâm amongst people who are thick skinned enough to put up with me⦠Iâm very happy that you are set to return home to the bosom of our Not606 Charlton family. However, I must confess that Iâm a little concerned about this love fest turning into a scene from âBrokeback Mountainâ⦠Whilst weâre all pleased to see you return Ponders. Iâm pretty sure a certain Mr Benson is none too happy⦠Iâve got to say the Benno bashing hasnât been quite the same without your input⦠. Welcome back pal...
