The Immortality Project

The Immortality Project – or – Death and Denial – Guest Post by Humble Pie

Death has a tendency to put everything else into perspective.

My family recently suffered a bereavement. It wasn’t a sudden death but it was still far too quick and far too soon for any of us to get our heads around. As our loved one’s illness progressed, each of us, in our own way, began to prepare for the inevitable. In the end, whilst it was not unexpected, it was nevertheless very traumatic, for everyone concerned.

Grief is a strange and often debilitating set of emotions. Even now, a few months on, when the intense sadness and tears have given way (mostly) to disbelief, we still find it hard to fully comprehend what has happened. We might never completely ‘come to terms’ with that fact, however, we do accept that it DID happen, much as we all wish that it hadn’t.

Many of you will be familiar with the Kubler-Ross model of the five stages of grief; Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Acceptance. Well, I am aware of having experienced each of these stages over the last year, as well as a couple of others which I wasn’t prepared for (a lot of personal reflection, a little guilt and a not insignificant amount of pain).

It seems to me that the Rangers supporters have been purposefully ensnared in an interminable cycle of the first two stages of KR; alternating between the denial of the death of Rangers and anger at what they feel has been done to their beloved club then back again to denial. This, as any first year psychology student will tell you, is a very unhealthy state of mind which, if not addressed, can quickly lead to physiological and behavioural problems.

At its lowest level, for example, people throughout the ages have continued to set places at the dinner table for their long-dead loved ones. They know in their hearts that the person has died but are comforted by the familiarity of doing the same things that they have always done. However, in extreme cases people have even kept and maintained the actual cadavers of the deceased, dressed them, talked to them and watched TV with them, in a state of absolute denial.

In archaeology, accepting and recognising the inevitability of death through conducting ceremonial burial services is considered to be one of the very first signs of a civilised people. You see, grief is a uniquely human and cathartic process i.e. it can produce ‘a feeling of being cleansed emotionally, spiritually, or psychologically as a result of an intense emotional experience’.

In short, grief is ultimately a good thing which leads you through a series of natural psychological steps towards acknowledgement of an unalterable situation, allowing you to take stock, re-evaluate and start to move on with your own life in a positive way.

That is what should have happened with the fans of the old Rangers.

Instead, this ‘never-ending cycle of the undead’ was positively encouraged by those many unscrupulous individuals who saw a way of making a fast buck from maintaining the ‘Then, Now and Forever’ illusion. Worse still, this resurrection fantasy is being facilitated by the very people whom we have entrusted to stop this kind of thing from happening in the first place. If only the SFA or the MSM had told them the truth, they might have had a chance to actually face up to the situation.

Unfortunately, these two bodies were so complicit in Rangers demise, so right up to their necks in the brown smelly stuff, that they were too afraid to face the inevitable anger which would have rightly come their way. So, they made up grim fairy tales to feed to the bereaved souls about non-existent ‘holding companies’, the ethereal ‘club’ which transcends death and by suggesting that it is ‘all a matter of opinion’.

Ernest Becker, in his 1973 Pulitzer Prize winning book ‘The Denial of Death’, posits that “human civilization is no more than an elaborate, symbolic defence mechanism against the knowledge of our own mortality”. This fear of death acts as an emotional and intellectual response to our basic survival instincts.

‘By embarking on what Becker refers to as an ‘immortality project’, in which a person creates or becomes part of something which they feel will last forever, the person feels they too have become part of something eternal; something that will never die, compared to their physical body that will die one day’. When this ‘immortality project’ is threatened it leads inevitably to fear, depression, loss of identity and sense of purpose.

In that case, the initial reaction of the fans to the imminent demise of Rangers was entirely predictable and understandable. “No way, this can’t happen to us, we are the people”. However, as soon as the full realisation of their club’s inexorable slide into liquidation began to sink in, came the expected anger. But towards whom should their righteous wrath be directed?

“Who did this to us, who are these people?” they cried. “Not I”, said Sir Murray of the Mint, “for I was duped”, “Nor I”, said President Ogilvie, “for it was never my role”. “Nor I”, said Mr Smith, “for I never knew nothing or nothing”. “Not us”, squealed the media monkeys in unison, “for that’s what we were told”, “Nor us”, said the SPL “it was nothing to do with us”.

“Who then?, we demand to know who these people are”, howled the horrified hordes. “T’was the Whyte knight”, they all concurred, “he alone caused this calamity”. “And the bampots”, sneered the slimy slug. “And the taxman”, puffed the pundits. “And the unseen hand of Mr Lawwell”, whispered the bilious bears from the safety of their den.

There were even those who tried to warn them, not least Hugh Adam, Phil Mac and RTC but they didn’t want to know. Even when their very own Messrs Green and Traynor spelt out, in no uncertain terms, that liquidation meant the death of their club, still they chose wilful ignorance. The MSM, with access to the same information, encouraged them to keep their heads firmly ensconced, ostrich stylee, on the banks of that ironically blue and white river in Egypt. Which just goes to show ‘you can lead a lamb to knowledge but you can’t make it think’

The point though is that the Rangers fans have heard the truth and once you have heard something you cannot unhear it. Even if you reject it, even if you deny it, it gnaws away at the back of your mind, infecting your subconscious.

Almost a year ago, I posted the following on TSFM. http://theinternetbampot.wordpress.com/2012/09/ in which I postulated that the SFA were too frightened to say anything which might imply that The Rangers were a new club.

Looking back at that post, I am amazed at how little the landscape has changed.

A year on and it has become apparent that the corporate cancer that destroyed Rangers has continued to metastasize in its new host. Charlotte’s revelations may have shown us that the rabbit hole goes much deeper than we first suspected. However, in my humble opinion, the information provided has only succeeded in ‘poisoning the well’ and deflecting attention from the main culprits in this disaster. Layer upon layer of complexity has been added to an already opaque story and the majority of her utterances appear designed to engage the more enquiring minds on this forum and consume their excess mental energy.

I know that some people are bored with this ‘debate’ but, to my mind, the single most important step for the redemption of Scottish football is the fan’s acceptance that The Rangers, who currently ply their trade in the SPFL First Division, are a new club. Once they have accepted that then everything else that they perceive has happened to them will begin to make sense. They will see that rather than everyone having a fly kick at them when they were down, most were actually trying to help them. It will also dawn on them that the very people who have been telling them that there is an anti-Rangers conspiracy against them are actually the same ones who are screwing them over.

Rangers were not relegated to div 3, The Rangers applied as a new club and were granted entry into the bottom tier of Scottish football. They are not banned from European competition, merely ineligible as a new club without the requisite financial ‘history’. Any reference to ‘rulings’ from ECA, ASA, the BBC Trust and any internal or so-called ‘independent’ enquiries are completely irrelevant, as none of these bodies are the final arbiter in this case. Scots Law is clear that there is no distinction between club and company after incorporation, when the company dies the club dies with it. That is not a matter of opinion, it is a matter of fact.

Sooner or later The Rangers fans are going to realise this fact and when they do, there will be hell to pay. Until they do, their new club can never become truly cleansed. Only then can they move on and only then can they join together with fans of other clubs to root out the real cancer at the heart of Scottish football.  That’s why the MSM and the SFA are still petrified to say anything. In the meantime the real creators of this disaster are sneakily positioning themselves further and further away from the scene of the crime.

I am sure the majority of us would happily accept a new Rangers, cleansed of its financial, emotional and supremacist baggage. A club that all decent Rangers fans could support without feeling any guilt about Rangers downfall or that they were being taken for mugs. The prospect of a new dawn in Scottish football, where sporting integrity took primacy and clubs lived within their means was very real. However, as usual the SFA couldn’t miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.

The truth is that Scottish football is in the state it is in, not because Rangers died but because those with the power and mandate to effect the prognosis sat back and did nothing. I am sure that they believe that ‘time heals all wounds’ and that the longer this injustice is allowed to stand the more likely it will be accepted by the man in the street. No doubt the authorities feel it is in the national interest to ‘let sleeping dogs lie’. However I cannot accept this. I believe that it is vital that we are able to face up to reality so we can move on for the benefit of all football supporters.

Scottish football is at a crossroads right now, I think we all feel it. Rampant corruption has become so mainstream that many of our fellow supporters have began to accept this as the norm. However, it just doesn’t sit right with me and I suspect that many regular contributors and readers of this blog feel likewise.

We have quite lost our way and we live in a society which spends vast amounts of money paying people like Jack Irvine to ensure that we stay lost. The mainstream media treat us like little imbeciles and demand that we conform to their assumed ‘professional superiority’. The PR machine plays up to our stereotypes and feeds our fantasies while the poorest people pay to swallow their poisonous propaganda and relentless trivia.

So what can we do ? Clearly, battering out a few blog posts and strongly worded letters to the various authorities involved has been rewarded by the square root of FA.

How can we make this an opportunity for growth rather than contributing to the destruction of Scottish football ? It is not good enough to tear down a system unless we have a better system to replace it. However, I believe that it is not the system itself which is broken. It is that those charged with administering the system are hopelessly corrupted, hugely conflicted and unable to apply their rules without fear or favour.

By their incapacity and inaction (wilful or otherwise) the SFA have facilitated a motley crew of various spivs, chancers and con-artists to glean the last few meagre pickings from the bones of the emaciated loyal supporters of this new club purporting to be the once mighty Rangers. They have permitted these ne’er-do-wells to collectively appropriate many tens of millions of pounds from the Rangers fans, the creditors and the public purse. They have already allowed this corporate malignancy to spread to a new host, ‘The Rangers’, and the absence of ‘moral hazard’ makes it more likely that the disease will continue to spread.

Benjamin Franklin once said, “‘Nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”

Someone else once said, “The wages of sin are death, but by the time taxes are taken out, it’s just sort of a tired feeling.”

I sense that we are all beginning to get tired of this. It is time to stand together, all football fans, face the facts and direct our anger against the officers of the SFA who have allowed this sham to develop into a catastrophe.

I have no doubt that my humble opinions expressed here will raise the ire of many deluded souls. However, I am comfortable in the knowledge that the only people who get mad at you for speaking the truth are those that are living a lie.

RIP Big Man.

 

3,959 thoughts on “The Immortality Project


  1. My impression of how the conversation went with Jim Spence and his boss. “Jim you take yourself off somewhere warm for a week and I’ll make sure that we get a message out round the press that we support you and condemn your treatment” Jim replies “Oh cheers”

    The BBC put together a small piece and send it out to various papers in the hope that nobody publishes it. The piece itself is the ultimate sit on the fence article and it dares not mention those unspeakable words ” died Club” for fear of getting the facts straight and reprisals. Also cause it’s likely his team (his boss at the BBC). The fact that they cannot even publish the details as a major news items on their website speaks volumes. Jim I’d leave and resign from the NUJ.


  2. Barcabhoy says:
    September 16, 2013 at 11:21 pm

    That’s a reasonable view, but, I keep coming back to Mr Green’s assertion that they had bought the history, ie titles, which leads me to Ecoboys view point. I’m afraid the only way to get this cleared up is for someone at board level at the SFA to explain it, but it won’t be credible if it’s either Mr Regan or Mr Ogilvy.


  3. Will it work?

    EDIT: Obviously not back to the drawing board 🙁

    EDIT: Who’s a clever bhoy then? 🙂

    Yesss!! Back of the net.


  4. Its difficult to make a comment that doesn’t merely repeat an opinion that has been previously expressed. The arguments have been often exercised but in some ways we find ourselves no further forward; at least in the sense of bringing these complex matters to a wider audience. The MSM are determined not to seek the truth.

    There have been a number of opportunities for the football authorities to bring the game back to reality. The current case in point is the LNS enquiry. This exercise was obviously deeply flawed if not indeed perverse. Personally I think perverse is the more accurate description. ‘Rangers’ should have suffered title stripping for fielding players that were incorrectly registered. The pretence that the EBT’s were loans and not payments is a fairytale and anyone with an ounce of common sense can see this.

    So how many titles would ‘Rangers’ have relinquished in a just world? Five, six….

    Would they have lost one of the fabled stars that adorns their kit? Almost certainly.

    So the reality is that we don’t really have a national sport. We have a national pantomime.

    Except these theatrics are not light-hearted. For some they are very serious indeed.

    Sport has been commandeered as a breeding ground for bitterness and hatred. Football did not create these circumstances but it has been allowed to slip into its grasp. I’m not sure it can be easily extricated. Until it does however the game will suffer and those who ‘govern’ its wellbeing will continue to believe they are acting for a greater good. This outlook is of course entirely ill conceived.

    Expect no assistance from the MSM;
    or the governing authorities;
    or the judiciary.

    Those that read here may well have been enlightened by a special knowledge. It is a privileged position. It will not be made manifest by any journalist (notable exceptions acknowledged). It will not be recognised by any authority. It has probably always been this way in some wider sense. We are experiencing this for the first time but I suspect many others have seen this in the past. Expect no revelation; the truth should be sufficient.


  5. PhilMacGiollaBhain says:
    September 16, 2013 at 11:38 pm

    I take your point on that and do acknowledge that I will be ill informed on the support he has had from the NUJ.

    Having read again the undernoted from the Drum and elsewhere will the NUJ be following up on the BBC’s response ?. Why also have they (the BBC) avoided the main issue surrounding the abuse, I think I know the answer, in fact we all do.

    Paul Holleran, NUJ organiser for Scotland, told The Drum that he was happy with the steps that BBC Scotland had taken: “The BBC has offered its total support to Jim
    Read more at http://www.thedrum.com/news/2013/09/10/bbc-scotland-presenter-jim-spence-remain-backing-management-and-nuj-after-rangers#U7dC6rjTK30lOIkQ.99


  6. Danish Pastry says:
    September 16, 2013 at 10:18 am
    36 1 Rate This

    This photo was linked to on twitter by @scotzine

    http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7437/9753350674_d444815416.jpg

    DP: the banner was unfurled by Aberdeen fans in the Main Stand at Firhill on Saturday to widespread applause. As I was at the game, I don’t know if any mention was made of it by radio journalists, but it was not referred to on the Sportscene coverage of our pasting…. 🙁


  7. @briggsbhoy
    Paul Holleran is a top class union official-I know him well.
    He is handling this situation well and will get the best result for our member.
    I can’t say any more than that on a public forum, but the NUJ is very lucky in having excellent full time officials and I’ve been involved in Trade Union Activity since I was 19.


  8. I’m not sure if this has been commented on already tonight, having just joined the fray, but I thought that given the reaction to any anti-Rangers sentiment of late, Sportsound pundit Michael Stewart’s comments on the Ian Black fiasco were extremely honest and brave at the same time. Tom English tried to keep up, but Stewart was not in the mood for giving any ground on the outrageous decision to give Black a 3 match ban for betting against his own team winning a game 3 times. Good on him. This boy clearly speaks his mind. Kenny MacIntyre was so surprised by his forthrightness that he asked if he knew Black. He was immediately smacked down by Stewart, “I played with him” … I’m now a fan


  9. Following on from John Clarke’s letter to William Hill –

    Bookies these days are very creative about what can be bet on in a football match, all the ‘in play’ stuff and the ability to bet on the bits and bobs of a game as well as the score. So, William Hill, Ladbrokes etc, how about if punters could also bet in play on whether or not each player is crooked? Seriously, looking at the Swansea v Liverpool game last night, what if the odds on Shelvey being at it were low before the game and when he scored for Swansea, then shot up as he gave away one, then two goals, then came crashing down again when he had a hand in the equaliser! Think of the money that might have changed hands during the game on that one, a clear financial opportunity for the online gambling firms.

    Of course, after the game, each player would have to come clean and say if he had been playing to win or not, but there would be no sanction for admitting it (pretty much as at present) and at least it might make Scottish football honest again, or at least honestly corrupt.

    Apologies if anyone has already proposed such a scheme. If not, then any gambling firms reading this, please contact me so I can negotiate my finder’s fee with you.


  10. And did the BBC say how many messages they had received in support of Jim Spence to set against the 400 they had criticising him? I realise its not just about quantity, but the figure of 400 got around pretty quickly, so to have the opposing figure would have been good to see being publicised, whatever it was.


  11. The Herald this morning have a headline article about Black being ‘sorry’ which is quoted verbatim from his in-house interview at Rangers, with no real insight or challenge. At least both Tom English and Michael Stewart last night basically scorned in-house interviews, pointing out that everything is agreed in advance. My challenge to them would be who in the wider Scottish Media would have the spine to ask more searching questions of Black face to face, given the opportunity. The consequences of such questions would be threats and intimidation from the blue bag brigade on the pavement – we already know that to be the case. Going back to the Herald, they are one of the papers who did not print the BBC statement re-Jim Spence. A failing newspaper couldn’t be trying to appeal to the neanderthals, could it?


  12. Jagsman says:
    September 17, 2013 at 12:27 am
    19 0 Rate This

    Danish Pastry says:
    September 16, 2013 at 10:18 am
    36 1 Rate This

    This photo was linked to on twitter by @scotzine

    http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7437/9753350674_d444815416.jpg

    DP: the banner was unfurled by Aberdeen fans in the Main Stand at Firhill on Saturday to widespread applause. As I was at the game, I don’t know if any mention was made of it by radio journalists, but it was not referred to on the Sportscene coverage of our pasting….
    ———-

    Cheers Jagsman. I’ve seen a few photos of the banner outside the BBC building 🙂

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BUHuWP8CcAA6aZz.jpg:large


  13. Silent Partner says:
    September 17, 2013 at 1:09 am
    ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
    Agree with your comments on Stewart – interesting that he’s one of many ex-pros who have came out and condemned in the strongest terms not only Black, but also TributeAct FC for their handling of the situation. Stewart (and English) also made several references to the way Sandaza was treated by comparison.


  14. I know he’s not flavour of the month, or any of month, but I missed this from HK yesterday. Interesting link between corruption and the death of sport. Gambling is the theme, but as we’ve seen the game can be ‘fixed’ in other ways by the high heid yins.
    ————–
    By Hugh Keevins
    Cricket corruption expert in stern warning to football chiefs over gambling

    IAN SMITH warns that any relaxation of the rules governing betting could lead to disastrous consequences and even the death of the game …

    http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/other-sports/cricket/corruption-expert-warns-must-no-2277045


  15. You may have seen the recent campaign whereby Paddy Power has partnered Stonewall, the sexual equality charity, to ask footballers to show their support for gay players by wearing rainbow coloured boot laces.
    Every footballer at the 134 professional clubs in the UK has been sent the laces.
    Now, while the sentiment is laudable, we have a situation where a prominent betting company is engaging with every professional in the country. There is even a poster with the euphemistic tag line “We don’t care which team you play for”.

    http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/article/1211890/paddy-power-joins-stonewall-campaign-back-gay-footballers

    Clearly this is a double entendre meaning that it doesn’t matter what your sexual preferences are and that they will accept bets from anyone (even those that play for The Rangers?)!

    It is equally clearly, imho, that the recent Black “punishment” was straddling the line of sending a message to the football community about betting whilst simultaneously keeping the betting industry onside.

    They were never going to ban the player for any lengthy period and presumably he’ll not be stupid enough to activate the suspended ban….although he is from Tranent, so that cannot be ruled out entirely.


  16. Phil, re support for Jim Spence. Can you give us any examples please?


  17. Black got a 3 game ban because he put the bet on with Ladbrokes and not William Hill.


  18. Tic 6709 says:
    September 17, 2013 at 8:15 am
    0 0 Rate This
    Black got a 3 game ban because he put the bet on and got caught.
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    Fixed that for you.


  19. From tennis, a reminder of how to apply the rules
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/tennis/24116444

    Croatia’s Marin Cilic has been suspended for nine months after the world number 24 tested positive for banned supplement nikethamide.

    “I wish to emphasise that I have never knowingly or deliberately
    taken any banned substances in my life
    and that I am opposed to any use
    of performance-enhancing substances in sport.”

    The International Tennis Federation said an independent tribunal
    found that Cilic had inadvertently ingested the nikethamide as a result of taking the tablets
    and “did not intend to enhance his performance in doing so”.

    Cilic reached the last 16 at the Munich Open but that result is now null and void,
    while ranking points and prize money won since that tournament and up until his suspension
    will be forfeited.

    To the SFA Board –
    Stewart Regan came to the SFA from Yorkshire County Cricket Club.
    Send him back along with CO
    and get someone in from the LTA

    Anyone for -indoor- tennis ?


  20. Wobbly at 7:59

    They were never going to ban the player for any lengthy period and presumably he’ll not be stupid enough to activate the suspended ban….although he is from Tranent, so that cannot be ruled out entirely.
    ————————————————————————————————————————————————–

    There was a young man from Tranent,
    Whose money at bookies he spent.
    He went to the beaks,
    In broon brogues,black breeks,
    He’s fined but wi’ bog all portent.


  21. rantinrobin says:
    September 16, 2013 at 6:13 pm

    Use it like this:

    <blockquote>This is the text that I want to appear as a block quote.</blockquote>

    You can also use other tags in this way, such as <i> for italic:

    <i>This test will appear in italic</i>

    …or <b>for bold

    <b>This text will appear in bold</b>

    Hope this helps.

    For those who want to be real fancy Dans:

    http://www.w3schools.com/html/html_formatting.asp


  22. I wonder if Lord Nimmo Smith now has that feeling you get
    when you’ve been duped.

    Expertise in one field is no guarantee of even basic competence in any other.


  23. It would appear that smeone has been ‘sleeping rough’ in my garden shed for the last few weeks on and off. I wonder if it might be the illusive Mr Regan that people are looking for. What should I do? Should I clear out the shed and make room for Ogilvie and Doncaster? should I install some oak furniture to make him feel at home? Should I inform the SMSM and invite them round for a picture and Q&A session. Maybe that would frighten him off.


  24. manandboy says:
    September 17, 2013 at 8:42 am
    1 0 Rate This

    I wonder if Lord Nimmo Smith now has that feeling you get
    when you’ve been duped.

    Expertise in one field is no guarantee of even basic competence in any other.
    ———-

    Is he even aware of the recent developments? He won’t have learned anything from reading The Daily Blah. Perhaps he’s following Miss Fakes? On the face of it, they both appear to have an interest in crime, and, er … punishment.

    Ooh err missus.


  25. Re: the “We Are All Jim Spence” banner.

    Presumably this will lead to a boycott of Pittodrie by the Hordes, should their team ever get the chance to play there again.

    Excellent.


  26. Can McCoist speak any old b****x without being asked “Ally, do you realise what a lot of s**t you’re talking?”. On the possibility of signing Zaliukas (29) today’s BBC article quotes him as saying “I just feel we need to think about the longer term” !!! …and I haven’t taken that quote out of context.

    FFS Ally, what are you talking about??!?


  27. v
    Lord Wobbly says:

    September 17, 2013 at 8:21 am
    =======================
    Noted M’lud.


  28. nawlite says:

    September 17, 2013 at 9:04 am

    3

    0

    Rate This

    Quantcast

    Can McCoist speak any old b****x without being asked “Ally, do you realise what a lot of s**t you’re talking?”. On the possibility of signing Zaliukas (29) today’s BBC article quotes him as saying “I just feel we need to think about the longer term” !!! …and I haven’t taken that quote out of context.

    FFS Ally, what are you talking about??!?
    ——————————————————————————————————————————-
    Maybe there is another signing ban (registration ban ??) on it’s way ??? 😈


  29. Following on from Lord Wobbly’s point about bookies and football it has got to the stage where the football and other sporting authorities, the TV stations are all in bed with the devil. Their sponsorship in terms of advertising drives a lot of the revenue that indeirectly and directly is influencing sport. Alcohol and sport were never great bed partners but I would suggest that in terms of influence on what goes on the field their involvement isn’t such an issue, betting is. Gambling in this country is becoming an addiction and obsession and acceptable pastime, its image is all about fun and exitement when the reality is quite different. I have never been a gambler (occassional flutter) and never will and I have already lectured my eldest on it having noted he had opened an account with one of the major firms. I know of a 23yr old guy who is off work with depression, I also know that he in hoc to wonga and quick quid, why ? He has spent large parts of his salary at the bookies ! Will the government get involved in what is an industry out of control, doubt it. These bookies are like dealers pedling free drugs round the housing scheme to get you hooked with their £20 free bet advertising etc, BTW I have no objection a flutter, it’s just becoming to easy and these companies have created an acceptable pastime image for themselves.
    My relatives in Ireland have made their fortune on poker machines and when one over staying with me early in the year he must have been in and out 70 bookies in the town for observation purposes. His comment was none of these bookies have enough customers to survive of justify being open, it’s the poker machines that are making there shops viable, they are like crack cocaine. He said these machines are the reason for the explosion in shops


  30. Former Rangers star Kenny Miller’s Canadian home attacked by a wild black bear.
    =============
    Was that in retaliation for not re-signing.


  31. Totally agree briggsbhoy. It’s poison. The go-ahead was given in 1960, and they opened in 1961. Certainly a curse on my family and I can see Duke Street has an infestation of these dens.

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/1/newsid_2969000/2969846.stm

    After 1 May 1961 betting shops opened at a rate of 100 a week. After six months there were already 10,000 set up. About 1,000 casinos were opened in the first five years.
    Two more Gaming Acts in 1963 and 1968 introduced licences for other forms of gaming.


  32. Carfins Finest @8:44
    I once had a homeless guy sleeping rough in my shed at my allotment.I used to leave him a few Cafe Creme cigars and the Daily Record.I’ve felt guilty ever since…about the Record ,I mean.


  33. This blog is a nightmare rollercoaster of emotion.

    One minute there is the absolute thrill of another piercing revelation, an uncovering of previously hidden dark deeds and the exposure of villainous behaviours that have been so carefully concealed from view.

    Then there is the crushing realisation that they are still getting away with it, it has been going on for longer and is more widespread than even the most paranoid of us ever truly realised (possibly not on the last one though – I know some REALLY paranoid folks).

    The Govan omnishambles has engulfed so many levels of Scottish society and exposed new levels of corruption and malfeasance that one is left wondering again – how can this happen in a modern civilised society?

    The only answer I can reach is that we have, as a society, completely lost our way.

    How is it that we can have an institution like Rangers, alleged pillars of society, not pay massive amounts of social taxes due and not end up with people on the street demanding restitution?

    The answer is that we have become inured to this type of behaviour.

    We have witnessed one once-great institution after another be exposed for scandalous behaviours, and have come to expect no better. Think parliamentary expenses, banks, newspaper hacking etc etc etc.

    These people are getting away with it because we have been trained to expect establishment corruption.

    The scandal of football players betting on football matches is being portrayed as an ambiguous problem, an issue of degrees.

    Absolute nonsense.

    Here is a completely transparent and unambiguous moral issue.

    If you take part in a sport, any sport, you do not engage in betting on that sport.

    Simples. No need for inward reflection or clarification of rules. It is utterly obvious.

    If someone doesn’t get this, they should not be engaged in sport at any level.

    Same goes for paying tax.

    Tax is a social duty. There are very limited occasions where not paying tax might be a legitimate form of protest against social injustice (think poll tax). However, failure to pay tax for personal benefit or (even worse in my eyes) fraudulent advancement in sporting achievement – well that is also unambiguously immoral.

    Failure on the part of our elected representatives (of all party political persuasions) and of the MSM to call this out for the absolute scandal it most certainly is, only confirms their lack of moral authority.

    Sorry for the despairing tone of this post. Sometimes it feels pretty bleak.

    However, this is when we have to look for inspiration from the genuine heroes of the past. So I will take a lesson from Humble Pie and go with one of my favourite quotes from Dr King.

    For me, this is why this blog and other like-minded groups must keep on fighting the fight: it is as true on this issue, as it is on many far more serious.

    Dr King said: Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.

    And he was right.


  34. Briggsboy at 9.24.
    I remember reading that there is a limit on the number of Gaming Machines per premises, 3 or 4 I think. But they are so profitable that its worth opening a beting shop for the licence alone. Hence we see, for example, 4 Ladbrokes shops within 50 yards of Central Station, often empty apart from machine punters.


  35. Tic 6709 says:
    September 17, 2013 at 9:29 am
    10 1 Rate This

    Former Rangers star Kenny Miller’s Canadian home attacked by a wild black bear.
    =============
    Was that in retaliation for not re-signing.

    =============================================
    why do they feel the need to mention the ethnicity of the bear? We are a worldwide club with a diverse fan bae spanning many continents and numbering 500M

    Also, stating he is wild is just playing up to “angry bear” stereotypes, it was probably a reasonable protest against Kenny Miller having a “sly kick” at the eternal club when they are down – but the media are playing this up to make the bears look bad.

    it’s time good, honest bears boycotted the timmy media and their anti rangers agenda


  36. Great tweet last night – who will need to apologise for this!!!!! Who are these people?? Great way to support Spencey.

    Ayr United @Ayrunitedfans
    Tickets for Rangers home game go on sale tomorrow to season ticket holders. Secure a ticket for our 1st game against this new club. #sevco


  37. Silent Partner says:
    September 17, 2013 at 1:09 am
    ParmaHamster says:
    September 17, 2013 at 7:39 am
    ——-
    Re Michael Stewart:
    For some moments,having not clearly heard the panelists’ names, I sat open-mouthed with my heart leaping with hope, thinking I was listening to Michael Grant of the ‘Herald’, albeit his voice was a wee bit different.

    I should have known better than to expect a ‘Herald’ man to be as forthright , explicit , honest and brave as was Michael Stewart, in speaking of Black’s horrendous act of sporting treachery, the even more evil and perverse defence of that treachery by McCoist, and the frightening, almost hackenkreuz-worshipping attitude of the SMSM to that defence.
    Am I going over the top?
    I don’t think so.
    When the press let institutional lying go unchallenged -particularly if an institution is perceived to have political and judicial backing- we are all in deep doo-doo.


  38. Barcabhoy says:
    September 16, 2013 at 11:21 pm

    I haven’t seen Ecoboys rationale for his article, so I have to caveat this

    I tweeted that I agreed with what he wrote, but for context I would have liked a legal interpretation. Having looked again at the side letter, my take on it is now as follows

    Everything Ecoboy wrote is correct if you believe the side letter guaranteed that no titles would be stripped.

    My problem is that isn’t how I interpret this. Or more correctly , I don’t believe that explanation to be absolute. Why mention Sevco ? The case on EBT’s was against Oldco. A plausible explanation is that Sevco wanted a guarantee they wouldn’t be fined for the actions of Oldco. That isn’t unreasonable given nobody would invest with the prospect of unknown and unlimited fines hanging over Sevco’s head. Given the amount of money other clubs were deprived of because of David Murrays illegal behaviour and tax evasion scheme, there was a prospect fines could have been huge

    What is unclear , is why this was dealt with by a side letter, but as it wasn’t a condition imposed for SFA/SFL membership , then maybe that’s how it should have been dealt with

    Having said that, the people who believe this is a smoking gun have been excellent contributors on here, so I’m certainly not dismissing their view
    ——————————————————————————————
    @ Barcabhoy

    The problem with any legal interpretation is it it solely dependent on the information provided to the person/s giving the interpretation. The next problem is that any number number of lawyers given the same information can come up with a multitude of different interpretations.

    To then attempt to decide the correct or most correct interpretation we then, in our legal system, have to go through many complex stages of the appropriate appeals process. This can take many years and is extremely expensive and at the end of the day a decision is arrived at which can seldom be understood by mere lawyers never mind the man in the street. And that decision can then end up in the European Court and whether confirmed or not our Government might decide to reject it.

    I am a mere internet clatterer and I honestly don’t think Scottish Football has enough time to wait for a definitive legal interpretation even if that animal actually exists.

    I disagree with some of the points you have made but this forum is not about scoring legal points and deciding which poster has arrived at the best legal interpretation IMHO.

    I have said before and I will repeat it that I believe the best I can hope to achieve is to stand as a witness to the corruption and moral cowardice displayed by our Football Authorities and the SMSM and attempt to uncover and publicise what I can to allow informed debate on the topics I believe to be important. Other people quite rightly concentrate on different issues that are important to them and develop expertise and knowledge in them.

    To me the debate and expansion of knowledge is important and you play a major role in that process as well as many others. I happen to believe that the accuracy of the facts used by all posters should be paramount but I am less fussed about interpretations made without full knowledge of all the facts especially when secret deals are being struck behind closed doors. I also recognise that interpretations tend to be heavily influenced by strongly-held personal opinions and therefore can be flawed albeit often unwittingly.

    Therefore it is not my primary objective to figure out why certain things have been done with incomplete info but to discover what has been done and its affect on Scottish Football.

    I do allow myself privately in my own head the luxury of wondering about motives and connections and I read what other posters say on this, including yourself, with interest. But for me it is to provide ideas of where to search for evidence of the corruption I speak of.

    So I am less interested in smoking guns than the target of the shooter and whether it was actually hit. Much more importantly I am interested in how many bullets remain unfired and prospective targets. Gunsmoke can be very effective in obscuring the real target.

    So basically I don’t care how many angels can dance on the tip of a needle or why they do so – what I am looking for is the devil disguised as an angel and observing what he is up to and I don’t need to dissect the reason why because I know he is up to no good.

    That is my rationale for posting and when I make an omelette I crack a helluva lot of eggs to get beyond the outer shell to reach the heart of the matter and often the yolk ends up on me – c’est la vie.

    However and I hope I am not labouring the point but I want to make it absolutely clear that I can provide no ‘absolute’ answers or interpretations as I don’t have the necessary info because the whole affair is mired in corruption and secrecy. One day I hope the definitve and absolute story can be told and I hope that what I and fellow posters have written will assist whoever writes that definitive history and I hope the ending works out happier than it currently appears to me.


  39. See this letter from the SPL to Sevco protecting them from future prosecution over the misdeeds of RFC….I see some people are saying that this means Sevco could not have titles stripped from them

    but….Sevco didn’t have any titles to strip. RFC PLC had titles – and the SPL/SFA could still strip those titles – it has no bearing on Sevco at all.

    So, i’m not sure that letter protects RFC PLC for their misdeeds. As they are now liquidated (or in liquidation) there is no point taking them to court – you won’t win anything financially, but you can correct their history for the cheating. I’d be surprised if Sevco wanted to legally challenge this – especially as they have undertaken NOT to make such a challenge – but also because the same club illusion will be shattered in a court of law.


  40. ecobhoy says:
    September 17, 2013 at 11:22 am
    ‘…. One day I hope the definitve and absolute story can be told and I hope that what I and fellow posters have written will assist whoever writes that definitive history and I hope the ending works out happier than it currently appears to me.’
    ——
    Yes.
    And the story will be not so much about the death of a football club ( for there have been many such deaths in British, European and world football) as about the frantic efforts by what many believe to be a corrupt press , a corrupt Football administration, and a partisan legal, commercial and political estate to deny that death, to succour and promote the belief that an illegitimate new club is the old club, to defend to the nth degree ( where does that come in the list?) the wrong-doing of the new club and its aggressively ‘defiant’ manager and rats-in-a-sack Board.
    This is a story that is no longer about the game of football and how it is played.
    It is about lies and damned lies.
    And it will out, sooner or later.
    For the good of us all.


  41. briggsbhoy says:
    September 17, 2013 at 9:24 am
    My relatives in Ireland have made their fortune on poker machines and when one over staying with me early in the year he must have been in and out 70 bookies in the town
    ================================
    Clearly I have lived in Europe for too long because when I first read that statement [ a town with 70 bookies] I thought it was clearly a typo but then I thought back to Scotland and yep, I am sure many towns have 70 bookies easily.
    Totally OT I know but you do forget things when you no longer see them. I remember this (in reverse) when I moved to Germany 20 years ago and there were coin cigarette machines on shop walls etc, and only then did I realise that that used to be the case in Britain back in the day, before they were banned.
    Sorry for an old man reminiscing about nothing in particular. Nurse’ll be along in a minute with the bedpan….och too late 🙂


  42. Delbhoy at 10:16

    These machines are the sole reason for the expansion of shop. 4 machines likely bring in a bad week £2k+ clear profit. My relaitives have been involved in machines/juke boxes etc for over 30yrs. My holidays in ireland as a teenager were spent with them counting cash, installing machines, transporting them all over the country.


  43. Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
    September 17, 2013 at 10:20 am

    Tic 6709 says:
    September 17, 2013 at 9:29 am
    10 1 Rate This

    Former Rangers star Kenny Miller’s Canadian home attacked by a wild black bear.
    =============
    Was that in retaliation for not re-signing.

    =============================================
    why do they feel the need to mention the ethnicity of the bear? We are a worldwide club with a diverse fan bae spanning many continents and numbering 500M

    Also, stating he is wild is just playing up to “angry bear” stereotypes, it was probably a reasonable protest against Kenny Miller having a “sly kick” at the eternal club when they are down – but the media are playing this up to make the bears look bad.

    it’s time good, honest bears boycotted the timmy media and their anti rangers agenda
    =========================================
    What was this bears name?.
    Ally’s demanding to know.
    he also wants to know if it’s a Celtic fan and was anywhere near an Airdrie Bus Depot recently.


  44. ecobhoy says:
    September 17, 2013 at 11:22 am
    11 1 Rate This
    ———–

    What a bag of mixed metaphors ecobhoy, that kind of thing is a banana skin on thin ice 🙂

    Wasn’t the whole omelette cooked by the SFA? Their recipe was for new wine in old bottles, so that Sevco could have the historic cake and eat it.


  45. Tic 6709 says:
    September 17, 2013 at 9:29 am
    10 1 Rate This

    Former Rangers star Kenny Miller’s Canadian home attacked by a wild black bear

    Wild? He was absolutely livid! etc.


  46. Looks like we are all in thumb twiddling mode while we await the audited accounts.

    Did I not recall that Mather say somewhere a few weeks back they would try and get figures out before the 19th which was one of the possible dates that financial information was required by the AIM.

    Can’t find a reference or link though.


  47. Zilch says:
    September 17, 2013 at 10:13 am

    “The only answer I can reach is that we have, as a society, completely lost our way.”
    ———————–
    Zilch, your eloquent commentary crystalises some thoughts that have been running around my head this morning. The remit of the blog has grown far beyond the maladministration of football and insipid media to question the environment in which such a culture has been allowed to flourish.

    The tax situation is a clear example of the dichotomy of realities. Joe Bloggs has his tax deducted at source and never questions the efficacy of this arrangement. However businesses of all sizes have the facility to manipulate their stated earnings to minimise their tax liability: In some cases eluding the liability altogether. The wee guy by and large plays by the rules whilst those in more powerful positions distort the rules to their own favour.

    I think this should result in a re-evaluation of the respect that might previously have been felt for those considered successful or in authority. It is not logical to extend deference when it is not reciprocated by responsibility.

    This inversion of logic may be borne out of a fear of appearing to have failed: The removal of failure as part of the human spectrum of experience as far as possible. However failure on some level will encourage individuals to re-evaluate and modify their approach. Without the possibility of failure there is no need to strive for success. What results is stagnancy and decay.

    It is clear on the field of play that fair competition brings about results that can sometimes be surprising and innovation that can recast previous modes of play. Those who wish to enjoy our respect appear to have forgotten this. A fixed game results in a hollow victory.


  48. Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
    September 17, 2013 at 10:20 am

    it’s time good, honest , hardworking bears boycotted the timmy media and their anti rangers agenda

    Fixed that for you! Leggat would be spinning in his grave if I hadn’t.

    BTW This formatting stuff is just the job!


  49. Fixed that for you! Leggat would be spinning in his grave if I hadn’t.

    is he dead?

    or did you mean Struth?


  50. Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
    September 17, 2013 at 11:38 am

    See this letter from the SPL to Sevco protecting them from future prosecution over the misdeeds of RFC….I see some people are saying that this means Sevco could not have titles stripped from them
    but….Sevco didn’t have any titles to strip. RFC PLC had titles – and the SPL/SFA could still strip those titles – it has no bearing on Sevco at all.

    So, i’m not sure that letter protects RFC PLC for their misdeeds. As they are now liquidated (or in liquidation) there is no point taking them to court – you won’t win anything financially, but you can correct their history for the cheating. I’d be surprised if Sevco wanted to legally challenge this – especially as they have undertaken NOT to make such a challenge – but also because the same club illusion will be shattered in a court of law.
    ================================================================
    Oh Dearie Me – when is an interpretation not statement of fact or does that decision require an interpretation 🙄

    There are obviously different interpretations of what comprises the assets and business of Rangers which was purchased from D&P and some of these believe that the previous history of the club was part of the purchase. There are also different interpretations as to whether the ‘history’ encompasses titles and trophies and indeed I have seen interpretations that they form part of the ‘brand’ rather than the history although some would argue than the brand & history are parts of one whole but I’m afraid that is a matter of interpretation IMO.

    It becomes slightly more complex because there are different interpretations as to whether the ‘owner’ of the history or brand is Sevco or the ‘club’ and that leads us onto pondering whether if it is Sevco does that mean that the ultimate owner is RIFC Plc because Sevco is one of its wholly-owned subsidiaries?

    And of course we haven’t dealt with the many interpretations as to whether the ‘club’ can survive the death of its operating company and continue eternally in a parasitic fashion by continually seeking a fresh holding company to ‘survive’. That however in the current context would only be of significance if the ‘club’ was the ‘owner’ of the history and if this included titles and trophies.

    It is obvious that there are many diverse interpretations and strongly-held positions regarding these issues and I have for a little time considered it is imperative that the Football Authorities give a ruling on the issue which necessarily will be based on their interpretation of the facts. Sadly no matter what is decided I have the feeling that it will not be accepted by many who have a different interpretation based on much the same facts although it must remembered that the rule books it would seem are merely a guide and not tablets of stone but made from chocolate fudge.

    However let’s return to the important matter you have raised. If you actually read the agreement you will see that the immunity applies only to ‘Sevco’ which is defined as: Sevco Scotland Ltd which later changed its name to TRFCL.

    So if TRFCL owns the history and for sake of argument let’s assume that includes title and trophies then nothing can be done to remove titles or trophies if the immunity is legally watertight. But remember my caveat that as TRFCL is a wholly owned subsidiary of RIFC Plc then it could well be argued that RIFC Plc has no immunity and therefore the titles and trophies could be stripped from it at least under Football Rules & Regulations if not in the civil courts. However there is a lot of interpretation to work through on that issue.

    So whatabout the ‘club’ and whether it is an always continuing entity or not and whether it is actually the owner of holder of the history replete with titles and trophies. Again these issues are a matter of interpretation but what isn’t and is a matter of fact is that a ‘club’ has no immunity under the agreement.

    But you are correct – in MY interpretation – that if the history including titles and trophies didn’t pass from THE RANGERS FOOTBALL CLUB PLC (IN ADMINISTRATION) to anyone then it would be up to BDO to decide what, if anything, should happen to them and there is always the question of what would happen if the Rangers asset and business sale by D&P to whichever Sevco was judged to be flawed by BDO.

    Is any of this important or gemaine to the post I made on a dirty little squalid secret hatched by the SPL with the agreement of the SFA and SFL? IMO it isn’t – my post asks the important question as to whether LNS was aware of this agreement prior to the commencement of his Independent Enquiry. That is the question that needs answered and angels dancing on pins or hot coals won’t provide it 😆

    Just for the record it might be worth recording the people who didn’t get immunity: ‘Individuals, firms, partnerships, companies, corporations, associations, organisations, governments, states, foundations, clubs and trusts, in each case whether or not having separate legal personality’.

    In view of the the fact that everyone or organisation in the world or perhaps even the Galaxy, depending on interpretation, aren’t covered by the immunity I think the really important thing we should be concentrating on is why it was decided by the SPL, SFA and SFL that TRFCL should be secretly granted absolute immunity with regard to its EBT Payments and Arrangements.


  51. wottpi says:
    September 17, 2013 at 12:41 pm

    Looks like we are all in thumb twiddling mode while we await the audited accounts.

    Did I not recall that Mather say somewhere a few weeks back they would try and get figures out before the 19th which was one of the possible dates that financial information was required by the AIM.

    Can’t find a reference or link though.
    ==============================================
    When do the accounts need to be published if the AGM is on the 31st October?.
    Someone posted the regulations a few days ago but I can’t remember is it was 28 days or 28 working days before the meeting.
    If 28 days then 3rd October is final date but 28 working days would be 24th September,next Tuesday.
    What happens if they don’t appear on time?.
    I assume the 31st October date is just an agreement between the rogues and the brogues.The very fact,though,that the board have agreed to this puts them in a position from where it’ll be very hard to back out.
    Seems to me that the spivs need to get their plans in place by then,be it sale/leaseback or whatever.


  52. Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
    September 17, 2013 at 11:38 am

    “….Sevco didn’t have any titles to strip. RFC PLC had titles –”
    ——————————-
    NTHM, I think your point gets to the nub of the furore and ties in nicely with Humble Pie’s ‘Immortality Project’ tag line. Rangers and Sevco are the same club, emotionally if not legally. If the clear legal separation was paramount then punishing the old club would be a less painful exercise. However the five stars that remain emblazoned on the new clubs kit is a poignant reminder of the continuity. The memory of the dead will be protected at all costs. For they did not die; they merely metamorphised, Dr. Who like, into a new alegal entity. It is disrespectful to speak ill of the dead but to castigate the living is human. At least one of those five stars is tainted beyond recognition and whilst the immortality project remains on track this will continue to be an inherent flaw; almost like an original sin.

    It is a rod for their own back and they will continue to be beaten with it for evermore; or until they metamorphise into yet another reincarnation.


  53. 37. Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
    September 17, 2013 at 12:54 pm

    is he dead?

    or did you mean Struth?

    I meant his career, rather than the man himself. I mean, he doesn’t even get to author his own blog anymore! (I’m guessing at that last bit, since it seems to no longer be an incoherent rant every time!)


  54. Danish Pastry says:
    September 17, 2013 at 12:16 pm
    ecobhoy says:
    September 17, 2013 at 11:22 am
    ———–
    What a bag of mixed metaphors ecobhoy, that kind of thing is a banana skin on thin ice 🙂
    Wasn’t the whole omelette cooked by the SFA? Their recipe was for new wine in old bottles, so that Sevco could have the historic cake and eat it.
    —————————————————————-
    I believe it was a currant bun rather than cake however I am currently busy picking the egshell out of my lunchtime omelette 😡


  55. Shooperb says:
    September 17, 2013 at 1:05 pm

    37. Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
    September 17, 2013 at 12:54 pm

    is he dead?

    or did you mean Struth?

    I meant his career, rather than the man himself. I mean, he doesn’t even get to author his own blog anymore! (I’m guessing at that last bit, since it seems to no longer be an incoherent rant every time!)
    ================================================================

    The total change in tone and phraseology makes it so obvious that someone else is ghosting it from the McColl Camp IMO.


  56. £5 bet against the mighty Gers please.

    Edit: Sorry folks, I’m still getting used to this formatting and used blackquotes by mistake


  57. Heartened to hear of Michael Stewart’s recent Sportsound criticism of both Black and McCoist. More so insomuch as he appears to have browbeaten both Tom English and Kenny MacIntyre into submission in the process.
    Why is my immediate reaction then that this could mean the end of his fledgling media career?


  58. Not The Huddle Malcontent says:
    September 17, 2013 at 12:54 pm

    Fixed that for you! Leggat would be spinning in his grave if I hadn’t.

    is he dead?

    or did you mean Struth?

    or did you mean Rangers Football Club would be spinning in their grave?


  59. cowanpete says:
    September 17, 2013 at 11:58 am

    …and there were coin cigarette machines on shop walls etc, and only then did I realise that that used to be the case in Britain back in the day, before they were banned.
    ——
    I’ve seen them recently, but can’t remember where! Italy, I think.

    Meanwhile … Zilch. Can I suggest that you edit out the first part of your post and start it at the “How is it that …” paragraph, then run it through to “… lack of moral authority.” Lose the rest, except the Dr King bit at the end.

    Then put it in an email and copy it round the Letters pages of every newspaper you can think of.

    I bet it gets printed.

    (suggested edits simply to remove tinterent and TSFM specific stuff …)


  60. john clarke says:
    September 17, 2013 at 11:52 am This is a story that is no longer about the game of football and how it is played. It is about lies and damned lies. And it will out, sooner or later. For the good of us all.
    ——————————————————————————————————————————-
    So true that this issue is not about football any more. The truth hopefully will prevail but what has it got to take for that to happen? It is really beyond belief how a major part of this country seems to have some sort of allegiance to a club whose worst crime they ever committed IMO was the non signing policy of a certain religion for nearly 100 years (necessary fabric of society maybe?). This was carried out in broad daylight as the whole country knew and the SFA certainly knew. If the SFA and politicians can turn a blind eye to that kind of signing policy (people will say it has all changed now, really??) maybe on the football pitch but not in the terraces or from the club’s directors and other influential supporters. why do we expect action to be taken against them for what they are doing now. Every time there is an investigation, inquiry, trial we say after the result and lack of punishment how did they get away with that?, it cannot be,surely not all the evidence is there etc……………… Call me paranoid but even the latest 5WA letter and the LNS revelations is being ignored in our SMSM. Why?? Is it the believe that this country could not cope without this one club, if so again why?

    It is not about football but I love football and my team and want the game to flourish and one club is trying to destroy this with a little help from it’s friends. Fact.


  61. Not sure if this helps re when then accounts need to be sent to shareholders.

    http://static.bdo.uk.com/assets/documents/2010/04/Companies20Act20March202010.pdf

    In terms of information sent out to shareholders then for the accounts it is 21 days from the ‘accounts meeting’ which in practice gets wrppped up in the AGM but it need not be the case.

    5.1 Filing deadlines
    The deadlines for filing accounts and reports to the registrar are reduced for private
    companies from ten to nine months and for public companies from seven to six
    months for financial years beginning on or after 6 April 2008.
    Whether a company is private or public for the purpose of its filing obligations is
    determined by its status immediately before the end of the relevant accounting
    reference period.
    As under CA1985, special rules apply if the relevant accounting reference period
    had been shortened or if it is the first accounting reference period and is longer than
    12 months. If it is the first accounting period and the accounting reference period
    is more than 12 months the filing period for a public/private company is the later
    of six/nine months from the anniversary of incorporation and three months from
    the end of the accounting reference period. This is illustrated, using the nine month
    period for a private company, at 2.5.
    If an accounting reference period is shortened then the filing period for a public/
    private company is the later of six/nine months from the end of the accounting
    reference period and three months from the date of the notice under s392 altering
    the accounting reference date.

    5.3.1 Public companies
    (A) Accounts meetings
    For financial years beginning on or after 6 April 2008 the directors of a public
    company are required to lay a copy of the company’s annual reports and accounts
    in a general meeting (known as the accounts meeting) within six months of the end
    of the relevant accounting reference period (ie the same deadline as for filing – see
    5.1). The accounts meeting need not be the general meeting held as the AGM, but in
    practice may well be so.

    For financial years beginning on or after 6 April 2008 the time allowed for sending
    the annual accounts and reports of a plc to members, debenture holders and others
    entitled to receive notice of general meetings is at least 21 days before the date
    of the relevant accounts meeting. Thus the time for preparing and auditing the
    accounts is actually 21 days less than six months, the filing deadline (see 5.1).


  62. Zilch

    I have no doubt that the SFA have aided and abetted Rangers in evading and avoiding tax due to the Exchequer. All that is in doubt is the final amount and how much aiding was done knowingly. Much public interest will depend on the UTT outcome but based on behaviour on the wee tax case I have no doubt that Rangers knew full well what they were doing and why.

    Ecobhoy/Barcabhoy

    I place less emphasis on the SPL sideletter as I think it is explainable but the manner in which the LNS enquiry was set up and conducted stinks.

    The guarantee for me only produces what I thought would be the case anyway i.e Oldco would be penalised.However there are questions on the commissioning and how it allowed LNS to reach his eye brow raising decision that more than support a conclusion of SFA/SPL collusion over the whole issue.The fact is Rangers used an illegal tax scheme to pay 2 players from 2000 to 2003, hid the side letters referring to the arrangements, lied to HMRC when asked about the existence of those letters and in those 2 cases cheated the game.The fact they then had SFA help to continue to avoid paying the tax payer on the tax due on those payments just adds to the weight of evidence that the enquiry was fixed.If HMRC win then the amount the tax payer has lost will soar but the SFA have played their part in aiding and abetting Rangers in tax evasion in the wee tax case and possibly in the big tax case if the UTT give decision to HMRC.
    I say this because of the Rangers officials on SFA committees since 2000 and the fact that Campbell Ogilvie set up the first tax evasion payment for the Rangers Employees Benefit Trust using the DOS arrangement.
    They knew what was going on ok and LNS was set up to protect them in general and CO in particular as much if not more than fear of reprisals of title stripping

    Bent as a nine bob note and the true story will be told if it takes another year.


  63. smartie1947 says:
    September 17, 2013 at 1:32 pm
    ‘…..Why is my immediate reaction then that this could mean the end of his fledgling media career?’
    —–
    Perhaps because BBC Radio Scotland ‘management’ has so prostituted itself over many years as no longer to be able to tolerate anyone going off message.
    (And is incidentally doing its subtle damndest to sabotage the ‘yes’ vote at the behest of its London masters)


  64. smartie1947 says:
    September 17, 2013 at 1:32 pm
    ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
    To be fair, English was pretty scathing from the outset over how the SFA arrived at the punishment for Black, as well as the Black ”interview”. The only sympathy he had for Black was over the doorstepping, but Michael Stewart made the valid point that the man had made himself the story. Stewart’s slapdown of Kenny McIntyre was outstanding though – “Know him? I played with him!”, which probably was the reason for his ire with Black.


  65. Just an observation or ten on the Black/gambling issue. In snooker I note Stephen Lee is in for a long stretch for becoming involved in betting with accomplices.
    In racing there have been numerous betting scandals involving both Trainers and Jockeys. In each case the punishment was severe and swift. The judgements taken by both these sports governing bodies shows the different logic being applied. If a member of the Horse racing fraternity made a statement along the lines of “I have a compiled list of hundreds of names of people involved in this sport who have a Wee Flutter”, then the Jockey Club would come crashing down on his head and possibly lose all of their diminishing credibility.
    But this is Scottish Football we are talking about. In particular its Sevco. If as their manager suggests “Hundreds of players have a bet” and he has a list, then a couple of questions must be asked.
    Is there a section of Professional Sportsmen in this country involved in betting? Rigging games, results, HT/FT , first Goalscorer etc etc. If the answer is no, then how could he compile a list so quickly on the day Black was charged? Where did the information come from? Was it from his players? If yes, how do they know who places bets ? How could someone compile this “List” so spontaneously?
    Why on earth would a Sports governing body ignore such a Statement? I personally worked with many many people over a long period. I could not tell you of more than a handful whom I knew gambled on Football. Why? Because it was never a relevant or important part of work or indeed life for that matter.
    And yet this Sevco manager can compile a list in a matter of hours.
    Dangerous stuff. A scenario which should scare Footballs rulers. But not in Scotland . Not with Sevco.


  66. Whilst I take Phil’s point that no Scottish paper ran on the BBC statement regarding Jim Spence,I am still of the view that the Scottish branch of the corporation had every opportunity to make their statement clear to all by way of their own outlets in both televison and radio.
    I am informed that internally the BBC adopted a strong position in the defence of Spence no doubt influenced by the NUJ involvement.
    Nevertheless ,they had ample opportunity to put the message across to licence payers and to the community at large.Lord Reith had the view that the role of the BBC was to educate.It seems to me that the BBC spends too much time trying to accomodate.They accomodate ill-informed reporting and dumb down their audience with the ramblings of cheeky chappy type reporters. The balance and objectivity is lacking.For example,I had the misfortune to listen again to the Traynor/Young spat re.Alastair Johnstone.My feeling was that it was irksome beyond belief that the ill-tempered,often hysterical argument was allowed to run so long on air.Tedious and offensive to the ear.Whiny voices not good for radio in my view.
    The BBC in Scotland,if they wish to gain ground as a working entity with its own identity, needs to adopt a position which is far more strident.

    All they had to do was issue a statement to the effect that as an employer we are most concerned that one of our staff has been threatened as a result of a comment on air about a football club that has gone into liquidation.We find it appalling that one of our employees has been threatened in this way etc etc.

    Not difficult.


  67. Thanks again to auldheid ,ecobhoy,barca and many others for their excellent posts,some incredible stuff and the team on here are sifting through it and the scandal is falling into place.on a separate note radio clyde ssb gets a deserving hammering on here but recently some of the sevconian callers have made my day ,jimmy from knightswood , john from parkhead and some others pure absoloute comedy gold, add the clueless big Dj and we have a recipe made in delusional hell.to cap it all im just waiting for mark hately to join the cast what a bellyaching tear inducing show that would be.go on jim delahunt do it just do it.


  68. Auchinstarry at 2.53,
    Well said sir, accurate comparisons.
    Barry Hearn said, ” We can never stop people breaking the rules but we can and we will catch them if they do. I hope that this [ ban of at least five years ] sends out a message to any young players who may be tempted by what they think is easy money “.
    Barry Hearn did not say, ” We can never stop players breaking the rules… I know loads of players do it and get away with it so why bother? In fact, its damned inconvenient so we should change the rules “.


  69. Auldheid says:
    September 17, 2013 at 2:11 pm

    Bent as a nine bob note and the true story will be told if it takes another year.
    ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
    Given the Hillsborough precedent, make that another 30 years. You cannot overestimate the lengths these people will go to to, to cover their own backs. By now, that is all that matters to them. Why do you think Ogilvie is still in post? Because he knows where all the bodies are buried, that’s why, and if he goes down, he’s taking the rest down with him. A stinking, corrupt mess. As for LNS, I’ve been saying since the day his judgement was published that he is just as involved as the rest of them.

    To misquote Shakespeare, there is something rotten in the state of Scotland- that is a certainty, and it even more certainly extends well beyond football.


  70. ecobhoy says:
    September 17, 2013 at 12:54 pm

    … is why it was decided by the SPL, SFA and SFL that TRFCL should be secretly granted absolute immunity with regard to its EBT Payments and Arrangements.
    ——

    Shurely with regard to RFC(plc)‘s EBT payments and arrangements?

    Unless, of course, TRFCL own that part of the business and history which includes those payments (but,as we know, they apparently only purchased select parts of the history, business and business history i.e. the good bits.)

    (P.S. Genuinely wondering why the TDs for suggesting Zilch’s post gets sent to the papers’ Letters pages?)


  71. neepheid says:
    September 17, 2013 at 3:44 pm

    2

    0

    Rate This

    Auldheid says:
    September 17, 2013 at 2:11 pm

    Bent as a nine bob note and the true story will be told if it takes another year.
    ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
    Given the Hillsborough precedent, make that another 30 years. You cannot overestimate the lengths these people will go to to, to cover their own backs. By now, that is all that matters to them. Why do you think Ogilvie is still in post? Because he knows where all the bodies are buried, that’s why, and if he goes down, he’s taking the rest down with him. A stinking, corrupt mess. As for LNS, I’ve been saying since the day his judgement was published that he is just as involved as the rest of them.

    To misquote Shakespeare, there is something rotten in the state of Scotland- that is a certainty, and it even more certainly extends well beyond football.

    Exactly right, – did LNS not make some rambling nonsense before the Commision sat, about him being impartial ? Many of the more learnered contributors on here thought it was a very unusual step for a Judge to take.

    If you come at this from the perspective that they’ were/are all in cahoots then it is very easy to join the dots and see the corruption at play.

    This corruption is nothing new. It was going on for years long before EBT’s and SDM came on the scene.


  72. Angus1983 says:
    September 17, 2013 at 3:44 pm

    (P.S. Genuinely wondering why the TDs for suggesting Zilch’s post gets sent to the papers’ Letters pages?)
    ———————————————————————————————————————————————-

    Thank you for the kind words about my post – genuinely appreciate it (TU fom me!! 🙂 ).

    Perhaps the TDs are because we have all become sufficiently cynical about the papers that folks are skeptical about the chances of this kind of opinion making it into print.

    And even if it did make it into print…. like many others I also have to consider the safety of my family – hence the reason we have to blog anonymously in these dark days when the mob is allowed to restrict freedom of expression, even amongst the media.

    I salute Phil and others who are brave enough to stand up and speak publicly in their own name. I see the abuse they receive and cannot justify exposing my family to the vitriol that inevitably follows. Not for Scottish Football – I hope I would be braver on a more important issue.

Leave a Reply