Sorry Lads, I'm off to Glasgow.

Dublin won’t see a cent however, as todays Irish Independent states that Celtic Park is now one of the most likely venues for the friendly.

London (Emirates Stadium), Glasgow (Parkhead) and Manchester (Old Trafford or City of Manchester Stadium) are the more likely venues.

Arsenal’s ground is a front runner due to the fact that Brazil have played there before and also the FAI’s links to Arsenal through Liam Brady.

But there is a complication as the English FA have confirmed that England will play Egypt in a friendly in Wembley on Wednesday March 3rd.

Police would not be keen to allow two internationals go ahead in the same city on the same night so that would rule out the Emirates for Wednesday.

The same problem arises with Parkhead for that date as Scotland host the Czech Republic at Hampden on March 3rd, so if Parkhead is chosen for the Brazil game, it would have to go ahead on the Tuesday night.

The ‘Green Army’ will get to spend a few of the pennies in the South African jar then. With League of Ireland season tickets going for buttons by comparison, lets hope a few season ticket books find their way into the hands of broken hearted Ole Oles.

In a bizarre turn of events, the Order of the Shiny Tracksuit (Cuffe Street), the mostly Thomist rival to the Cartesian Order of the Shiny Tracksuit (Aungier Street) and best known for awarding its Sportsman of the Decade award to Thierry Henry, has awarded Green Party Deputy Paul Gogarty its Sportsman of the Decade award.
.
Spokesperson Terence Scully of the Order said: “It was fucking deadly the way he just told that specky four-eyed bollix Fuck You. I never seen a TD on the telly do the like of that before.”

 
When asked about the rumor that Mr. Gogarty had only been chosen after the Tiger Woods scandal broke, Mr. Scully retorted:  ”Golf isn’t politics! Sure it isn’t even a real fucking sport!”

Liz and Ken Norris outside the Health Practitioners hearing in October

By Cara Sulieman

A FATAL Accident Inquiry into the death of a teenage cancer sufferer blasted with 19 massive overdoses of radiation while being treated for a brain tumour will be held in the New Year.

Lisa Norris, 16, from Girvan, Ayrshire received 58 per cent more radiation than she should have, leaving her with burns to her neck, head and unable to continue the life-saving course.

The Procurator Fiscal has ruled that an inquiry into her death is scheduled to take place on March 8 2010 at Glasgow Sheriff Court.

The news comes just two months after the man who oversaw her treatment, Dr Stuart McNee was allowed to keep working, despite being responsible for mistakes on Lisa’s treatment plan.

But despite all misconduct charges being proven against him, the Health Professions Council ruled he could continue working.

“Disappointed”

Lisa’s parents – Ken, 53, and Liz, 52 – have fought for someone to take responsibility for the bungle since her death in October 2006.

Ken and Liz attended the hearing of the Conduct and Competence hearing for Dr McNee, and said afterwards that they were “disappointed”.

Dad Ken said: “I’m very disappointed that a man can do what he did and walk away from it.

“I was expecting him to at least get reprimanded for it.

“I expected him to be here so we could come face to face with him.

“No-one has taken responsibility for overdosing Lisa and as far as I’m concerned they have just white-washed it.

“It’s a travesty.

“We will still continue our fight against NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.”

“Negligence”

Lisa was first diagnosed with the tumour in October 2005 and had been scheduled for 30 courses of treatment at the Beatson cancer centre in Glasgow which the otherwise healthy girl was expected to make a full recovery from.

Instead they were halted after the 19th when the error was discovered and she finally died from her condition in October 2006.

A report by cancer expert Professor Karol Sikora was commissioned by lawyers acting for the Norris family which concluded that had it not been for the bungled procedures, she would have had a better than average chance of living.

A section headed “Negligence” stated: “The radiotherapy clearly fell below any reasonable standard of care.”

Earlier this year it was revealed the Norris family had been granted legal aid so they could try and sue NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde over their daughter’s death at the Court of Session.

The action cannot go ahead until the FAI has been concluded.

See more of our pictures at our Flickr site and videos at our dedicated channel,  Deadline TV.

GALWAY UNITED are believed to be considering legal action in the event they are refused compensation from Dundalk after the Louth club unveiled Ian Foster as their new manager at a press conference last night.

Foster and Dundalk officials had approached the United board for permission to hold talks as the Englishman had another year to run on his contract with the Terryland Park club but the requests had been turned down.

By Friday afternoon it became apparent a deal had been done anyway and Foster said last night he would be “astonished” if the matter was pursued by his former employers as there had been a “fundamental breach” of his contract, relating to payments he was due, and that he had been free to leave on that basis.

What you missed while taking anti-moon dust pills…

• South Africans have decided to treat the World Cup draw the way unprepared students treat finals: by calling in fake bomb threats. We’re at two and counting already today.
• Ghana manager Milovan Rajevac isn’t afraid of England, while Fabio Capello isn’t afraid of a group of death.
• Update on a story from two lines ago: They already caught the fake bomber.
• Andrei Arshavin has a trifecta of anti-Arsenal quotes: he thinks Arsenal needs to get taller, thinks that Wenger needs to spend in January, and thinks that Arsenal is “not very good”.
• Everyone who’s getting paid this week take a step forward; not so fast, Portsmouth.
• Manchester United has withdrawn their interest in signing Partizan Belgrade midfielder Adem Ljajic, which has caused the United fan union to question whether or not the club can really compete in the transfer market.
• Didier Drogba says that the title race is anything but a two horse race; in completely unrelated news, Ruud van Nistelrooy is eyeing a return to the Premier League.
• Sven-Goran Erikkson would like Notts County to play a friendly against Juventus.
• Roy Keane is totally going to kick Bono’s ass.

Following FIFA’s refusal to grant Ireland an unprecedented 33rd spot at  next year’s World Cup in South Africa, ITV have revealed that the FAI have now sensationally requested that Jedward be reinstated into the occasional singing contest X Factor.

Simon Cowell appeared at a press conference yesterday to  read out a prepared statement in between bouts of laughing into his hand. “The FAI have asked - pfffft! – very humbly -fnarr- “can’t we be act number 5?”. Bwaaa! Yeah, they have asked for that really. It’s almost as if they haven’t thought about the ramifications of this at all, and are just trying anything now”.

Jedward supporter Robbie Keane reacted bitterly.  “Sure, they’ll all be having a laugh about it now – Cowell sitting up there on the phone to Cheryl Cole. They were probably texting each other, delighted with the result.” said Keane, somehow twisting his gnarled face into even more of a sneer, a possiblity which no-one had previously thought was possible. Much like a 33 team World Cup, in fact. “Of course, SMS entries after the closing time will not be entered into the competition but may still be charged” added Keane, through the corner of his ear, which had now acquired teeth and lips.

"Right, let's make the next round 'My Bloody Valentine' week"

Taking a more pragmatic view, Shay Given has refused to blame the judges, but instead questioned the controversial Deadlock procedure. “It’s totally unfair. Jedward were going to find it hard enough to get through at the best of times, but Deadlock was brought in at the last minute to favour the more popular, talented singers. ITV needs the big players in the final”.

ITV Chairman Archie Norman has expressed dismay at the FAI’s persistence. “It would simply open the floodgates, with every act asking to join the final. We had 853 auditions. It is sad that we are just talking about one set of twins. Even if they are really persistently annoying”.

Down 1-0 after the home leg, Ireland attacked.  Boys in Green like Lawrence and Kilbane outplayed France in Paris, evening the score 1-1.  They were unlucky not to win outright.  With minutes remaining the match appeared destined for penalties, until Thierry Henry’s handball went unseen.  William Gallas headed the subsequent ball into the net.  France won 2-1, sending themselves to South Africa.

Nobody showed more nobility in defeat than the Irish, but Irish officials could not have spoiled the good feelings faster.

Ireland were not denied a win.  They may have lost in penalties.  France could have scored another goal before time ended.  The referee missed the incident.  Such mistakes happen in every match, often adding or taking away goals.  This mistake was not particularly egregious compared to others, it was magnified by the moment.

The FAI requested a replay.  That’s understandable.  A replay was fair morally, so raising the issue was understandable.  It was unfair legally, so Ireland’s appeal was rejected.  This should have been the end.  It wasn’t.

Ireland next suggested a structural change to the tournament itself.  Though they did not qualify, they requested inclusion as the 33rd team.  Apparently, FIFA was supposed to figure out how to make that clusterfuck work.  When you make Sepp Blatter sound sane and reasoned, you know you’re off the mark.

The Irish were unfortunate and Thierry Henry’s uncalled handball presents an excellent case for the inclusion of video technology, but subverting the entire system to right a perceived injustice is ridiculous.  The only accomplishment of the continued bleating from Irish officials is to make a proud effort seem increasingly sore and petty.

FIFA president Sepp Blatter has rejected Ireland’s bid to be entered into next summer’s World Cup in South Africa but has sanctioned an FAI request to create a special tournament next summer for all those nations that were victim to injustices during the course of the qualifying campaign. The entry field will consist of Ireland and Costa Rica. It is believed that the Irish have agreed to host this footballing extravaganza. The draw will run concurrently with the main draw on Friday, and will be held in the conference suite of a small hotel on the outskirts of Dublin. Proceedings are not expected to last as long as those in Cape Town and will presiding over by a glittering array of luminaries including Jimmy Cricket, Gloria Hunniford and the twins from B*witched.

There will be two pots containing one ball each. The first pot will contain all European qualifiers. The team drawn from this pot will be entered to Group A. The second pot will hold all qualifiers from the CONCACAF region. The side drawn from this pot will also be entered into Group A. Ireland and Costa Rica have both been seeded in the draw. The winners and runners-up of Group A will advance to the knockout stages of the tournament. The entire competition is scheduled to last for four days.

Questions have already been raised as to Ireland’s ability to hold a major sporting event at relatively short notice, particularly considering the anticipated influx of Costa Rican fans into the country.

(As imagined by Mark from Sport without Spin)

Alright wimps,

I’m Roy Keane. Great player, great manager. Not everyone is like me. Some people, like Ipswich players and those of a moderate temper, don’t understand what it is to live life without compromises. Feckwits, the lot of them. Philanthropist that I am, I’m going to take a little time out of my dog walking schedule to clear up the dog messes that are your lives. Before I do that, let me be clear – you should sort them out yourselves, you lazy, coddled, tossers. Since you can’t, though, I’m going to go box-to-box over the postbag…

Dear Roy,

Last week my side went out of the World Cup. A previously popular Frenchman handled the ball intentionally and illegally and in the process set up a goal which proved to be the difference between the two sides. I’m worried about the economic implications of losing millions of Euros next summer, and concerned about the sanctity of the game’s rules and can’t shake the feeling that this could all have been so easily avoided, but most of all I’m just sad at the injustice of not seeing our boys play at the World Cup next year. What should I do?
–Fruitlessly Arguing Irishman,Dublin

Roy says…

Get over it.

Dear Roy,

I’m a midfield powerhouse in your mould, but lately I’m more of a midfield solar-powered bungalow. I’ve fallen out of favour at my club; I don’t want to leave, but I want to play matches. At least if my career does wind down, then I can turn my attention to charity work in Dakar, which is a cause very dear to me. Any recommendations?
–Daddy Long Legs, Milan

Roy says…

Patrick – if you love Senegal so much, why don’t you fucking play for them?

Dear Roy,

Someone at school is being mean to me. Well, not mean, exactly, but they’re annoying me because of something they said three years ago. The teachers say that I should move on, and leave this  feud in the past, and then I’ll be much happier. I don’t really want to though. What would you advise?
Timmy, Cheltenham

Roy says…

Listen, Timmy– there are some people who will try to tell you that it is best to forgive and forget – to just get over it. But what do they know? They’re just saying whatever comes into their overprotected pampered heads in between bites of their prawn sandwiches. Ignore the feckers.

Revenge is a dish best served studs first. Let the rage fire within you, slowly consuming you. I would use firelighters if I’m having trouble getting started, but I never do. Then, when the time is right, strike back violently and disproportionately.

If your teachers kick up (ha) a fuss, then have an excuse ready. When people asked me, for instance, why I said to Alf-Inge Haaland “take that, you cunt”, I just told them that we were discussing our favourite boy bands.

• Recently Finished Books

Sabate: Guerilla Extraordinary - the somewhat legendary anti-Franco anarchist guerrilla fighter’s story is crazy. It reads like fiction, and actually there are parts of the book that I think genuinely are (such as what he was thinking or doing at different times when he was by himself, etc), but overall, quick exciting read.

Some of the more interesting aspects of the book had to do with the increased bureaucratization and moderate stance of the CNT-FAI in exile towards the guerrilla fighters going in and out of Spain. Pretty shameful, in my opinion.

• Reading Now

Anarchism, Revolution and Reaction: Catalan Labour and the Crisis of the Spanish State, 1898-1923 by Angel Smith is an extremely detailed and researched history of the Spanish working class movement (whether socialist, anarchist or republican) and the ruling class (whether bourgeoisie, military or state functionaries) during the period in the title.

So far, this is one of the more decent books on the subject from someone who is seemingly not an anarchist. While sympathetic, the way he frames things such as attendats and the state’s reaction to labor agitation is liberal democrat/social democrat. Somewhat annoying, but not too big of a deal.

He analyzes the question of gender, often an overlooked subject in histories of Spain during this broad time period. The subject of women in the workplace was a tricky thing for not only the more moderate wings of the labor movement, but even the anarcho-syndicalists. The platforms, ideas and speeches on the subject, even from female anarchist militants, would be viewed as quite reactionary in the present.

I’m about at the point where the CNT is being founded (1910).

Wobblies & Zapatistas: Conversations on Anarchism, Marxism and Radical History by Staughton Lynd & Andrej Grubacic is more of an interview than a conversation, with Lynd taking up the bulk of the text. I would have liked to have read more from Andrej, honestly.

Also, there’s quite a bit of talk about a need for a synthesis of Marxism and anarchism. While I’m only about halfway through, it seems like they are basically looking for anarcho-syndicalism or the more sane interpretations of anarcho-communism, without being aware of it. Which is strange, because I’m sure they know about these things.

We, the Anarchists!: A Study of the Iberian Anarchist Federation (FAI) 1927-1937 by Staurt Christie – I’ve been wanting to read this for a long ass time. Unfortunatly, it seems there isn’t a lot of information on the FAI. To my knowledge, there are only 2 English language books on them, and I believe they both stop at the end of the Spanish Civil War. Well, they still exist today, so you can see how this is only a partial history.

The Conquest of Bread by Peter Kropotkin – I’ve actually started this at 3 different times in the past, but at those previous times, it was either too above my head or the edition I was reading had horrible font (kinda anal about shit like that).

From Amazon:

“The Conquest of Bread is Peter Kropotkin’s most detailed description of the ideal society, embodying anarchist communism, and of the social revolution that was to achieve it.”

• Recently Obtained

Anarcho-syndicalism in the 20th Century by V. Damier – Saw this at the Class Struggle Anarchist Conference and wanted it, but was too broke! It’s a recently translated book from a Russian author who has written some pretty massive books on anarcho-syndicalsim. I’m hopinh someone will translate his work on the International Workers Association.

these guys only put out two albums, because their drummer went and died. popped his clogs!

but if you can get the albums, they are amazing. Scenes from a Second Storey and One Last laugh in a Place of Dying

still an all, after seeing one or two top 50s, 100s or 1000s recently, I am firmly of the opinion that the years 2000-2009 have not been the best musically and I pity young people growing up with such a barrage of unfiltered music, yet oddly, a complete lack of diversity. Weird, huh? With ipods and the internet, quality has suffered. Odd huh? Maybe the record companies were the guardian of what we listen too. Too far man, too fuckin far! Anyway, it’ll be a good few years til U2 splatter out a new album, so we’re safe for now! An by the way, will the Killers just fuck off. You are not as good as you think you are. Just shut up!

and here’s a peculiar promo that could only be made back in those crazy Northern Exposure, Twin Peaks, Alternative Nation ol 90s days

MAJOR KUDOS DUDOS

Mais, THE FAI DO NOT GET KUDOS DUDOS

To quote Conor Graham from who lives in FACEBOOK “Well done John Delaney you embarrassing fuckwit. It’s like getting turned down for a kiss and then asking for a blowjob instead.”

What If the FAI sued FIFA?

Celebrity lawyers, senators and TD’s have all called on both the FAI and the players themselves to sue FIFA. The lawsuit would be brought against the International Governing Body of Football for negligence and loss of earnings in the aftermath of Ireland’s controversial World Cup play-off defeat to France.

Firstly let me state that Celebrity lawyers, or media whores as I like to call them, have no place, NONE! within football. As far as senators and TD’s go, the real crisis the country has found itself in should be all that concerns them.

But as the “Hand of Frog” band wagon comes to an anti-climatic halt, one has to wonder what effects legal action from the victimised Irish would have had.

Immediately the Irish would be branded sore losers. And I mean the Irish, not just the FAI. You see we’d all be guilty by association. You’re Irish? You lived in Ireland once? You drink Guinness? You wore green on St. Patrick’s Day? Well then everybody knows you’re a cry-baby who can’t handle defeat. This is the downside to the universal reach football now has. In the aftermath of Italia 90’ we all revelled in the Disney image the rest of the world perceived us to be. The fighting Irish, those loveable lads never quit, and rely heavily on the long ball forward. At the time it was great but people’s perceptions change like the seasons. Had the FAI brought a case against Joseph ‘Sepp’ Blatter and company it would have been the beginning of a long, cold and dark winter for the once loved people of Ireland.

Although a legal victory for the FAI’s hot shot barristers would ultimately be overlooked by the news that hell’s gates had frozen shut, the process and foundations laid by the case could prove to be of major importance further down the road.

The general consensus seems to be Ireland got screwed because FIFA will make more money from the participation of the French in South Africa next year, than had the Irish reached there 4^th World Cup Finals. But what would happen if two mega powers collided on the pitch and were only separated by blatant breaking of the rules and abysmal officiating. What if, Germany found themselves in a similar situation to the FAI one day? They’d look at case -181109 “Sepp Blatter vs. The Peoples of Ireland” and come to the conclusion that we had the right idea.

We can assume with some degree of certainty the Germans would elect an Erin Brockovich type figurehead to lead the war against FIFA. Stark contrast to the “rabbit in the headlights” image John Delaney projects.

While Germany’s triumph would be a victory for all football fans who wish to eradicate cheating in football once and for all, the Irish would always be able to say “sure we did it first”. Granted we did it ass ways and nobody took us seriously, but I’d rather be tagged as a revolutionary than a sore loser.

Once the Germans exposed the many, many loopholes the Irish legal team missed or were too scared to follow up, FIFA would be flooded with inquests and court dates from hard-done by teams the world over. They would have to take action which would allow them to return to the good old days. Days when they could shrug their shoulders whenever the game they rule over was brought into disrepute. And bearing in mind, it’s public knowledge that FIFA is a juggernaut fuelled by money, financially it could not withstand weekly payouts to the offended.  Ultimately they would be forced to do what people have been telling them to do for years.

The introduction of the video referee in football will be bigger than The Beatles, and ten times bigger than God. It will force Didier Drogba into early retirement and knock 90 million euro of Christiano Ronaldo’s price tag. But just as important, if not more, it will cure modern football, and believe when I say today’s game is very sick.

Thierry Henry’s admission of cheating to win an important game was admirable for its honesty, but how many young players will hear his words and adopt it as their new philosophy. With the inception of replays to aid the officials, Henry wouldn’t even try to cheat, what’s the point? If you eliminate the opportunity to cheat, cheaters cease to exist, it’s not like players can find ways around this obstacle. The game would actually be played differently to how it is currently. Given time it would filter down to the underage leagues, with school kids following the examples of there born again heroes each weekend on TV playing the game in the modern/honest era. 

And when it’s all said and done, when the history of football is written, Ireland can hold up its hand and say “well we didn’t quite do that, but we got the ball rolling”

Sore losers, HA! Not anymore!  …………But, no doubt we will be again in the future sometime.

… by saying something stupid like “can we be the 33rd team at the world cup?”

For fuck’s sake John Delaney. It was never gonna happen but at least the world was on our side. But then you go and make us look like fucking eejits again and it’s on CNN, BBC, SKY etc. Dammit.

And you make Roy Keane’s views seem almost rational, credible even. That’s some feat.

Soccer Limey in America

For those of you not familiar with “Fred Karno” , he was a British theater impresario very popular in the 1900’s who listed amongst his pupils Charlie Chaplin and Arthur Jefferson . (Trivia – Who was Arthur Jefferson ? ) . His ‘circus” was a travelling  opera troupe of clowns of the ” little song , little dance , little selzer down your pants variety ”

In modern day prose , the term is used to describe a chaotic , disorganized group or organization.

Wonder who I’m referring to here . …………………………..

As an update to the last article , apparently FIFA have received a request from the FAI ( Irish Football Association ) to be included as an extra team for the World Cup in 2010 . This is a development stemming from the Ireland France playoff match where Thierry Henry’s disputed  goal eliminated the Irish and took France to South Africa.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/soccer/ireland-ask-for-south-africa-berth-1959061.html

FIFA’s reply has been cool to say the least but they have promised to present the matter to their Executive Committee meeting which was hastily scheduled as a result of the chaos erupting from this controversy.

Ireland’s chances are non-existent in this case and FIFA is trying accommodate their wishes to show willingness . They cannot afford to open up this can of worms without creating all kinds of outlandish requests from all non-qualifiers . Sepp Blatter even referred to the Costa Rica – Uruguay game as being unfairly decided by an offside goal and so if Ireland gets an extra spot then Costa Rica should too.

Another example of the FIFA President’s total disconnection from reality . I have reviewed all of the goals from the Costa Rica Uruguay Playoff games and I cannot see an offside anywhere .

You decide……………………………………..

Μια μικρή ανάπαυλα για να σας πώ οτι γενικώς αυτό το καιρό είμαι στο στρατό. Όπερ σημαίνει οτι προσπαθώ να γράψω πράγματα με κάποιο τρόπο ώστε να μην προσβάλλουν τα στρατά (και το NDA που έχω υπογράψει) αλλά ταυτόχρονα να μεταφέρω λίγο απο το παραλογισμό της α-λογικής.

Ημέρα 143 λοιπόν (μετράω και αυτές που είχα κάνει πρόπερσι στο 401)

Τόπος: Μαγειρία (κάπου στο Σουφλί)
Ώρα: Κατα τις 8 το βράδυ (δείπνο)

Το μενού έγραφε ζαμπόν τηγανητό με πατάτες. Όμως το έμπειρο μάτι του φαντάρου της σειράς (που δεν ήμουν εγώ) ανέφερε τις 3 μαγικές λέξεις: “ΠΑΛΙ ΓΚΟΤΖΙΛΑ ΕΧΟΥΜΕ?” και ώς δια μαγείας ένα φανταστικό, λαμπρό υπέρλαμπρο αστέρι έλαμψε πάνω απο το πιάτο.

Διότι, απο το πιάτο προέβαλλε το καμάρι της πυρηνικής έκρηξης του Ναγκασάκι και της Χιροσίμα. Με την δύναμη του φουτζιγιάμα, με το τσερβέλο του σκοπέτο και με το χρώμα μαύρο της σαπίλας, Ο ΓΚΟΤΖΙΛΑ ΖΕΙ!!!!

Είπα για εμπειρία να δοκιμάσω. Ετσι και αλλιώς ήμουν θαλαμοφύλακας οπότε θα είχα άμεση πρόσβαση στην τουαλέτα για ότι και να συμβεί. Με την πρώτη μπουκιά γνώρισα την γεύση του zwan. Με την δεύτερη η γλώσσα μου είχε μεταλλαχθεί σε απίθανο χάλκ, χωρίς το τάλκ και με μια τραχειά αίσθηση σαν να θέλει να αποχωριστεί απο το υπόλοιπο σώμα σου και να μην ξαναγυρίσει (σαν το τοίχος του βερολίνου ένα πράγμα).

Περιττό να σας πώ οτι αυτή ήταν η πρώτη και η τελευταία φορά που το άγγιξα αυτό. Τέρμα πιά. Ενα ακόμα βρωμοφάγο φαγητό που δεν θα αγγίξω κάν στην ζωή μου. Τουλάχιστον οι πατάτες ήταν ντόπιο πράγμα γιατι προερχόντουσαν απο το όρος πατάτα.

As the plaintive cries ringing out from FAI headquarters become ever more pitiful, I think it’s time to have a stern word. You’re not invited to the World Cup Party. It isn’t like the craic. It’s not more the merrier.

We should first consider the hideous implications of an extra team on the format of the Panini sticker album. The publishers will already have to squeeze North Korea onto the one page at the back without having to slot the Irish in somewhere.

And then we should ponder on the dangerous precedent set by ushering a team into a latter round on the grounds of injustice. Cast your mind back to the World Cup in Mexico in 1986. On this basis we’d have had five teams lining-up in the semi-finals after Diego Maradona’s handball against England. We’d have witnessed a scenario where one team would have received a bye into to final. Which is not ideal.

The mathemetical chaos would not have been resolved by time of the final as three teams pitched up at the Azteca Stadium to battle out it for the trophy. Not only would one team be forced to get ready in the car park because of a shortage of changing rooms, but the only reasonable means of finding a winner would be a game of rock-paper-scissors. And as we all know, England always lose at rock-paper-scissors.

What you missed while vacationing at Jellyfish Lake…

• Sepp Blatter has confirmed that the FAI has asked that FIFA make Ireland the 33rd team at the World Cup. Roy Keane presumably has something ironic to say about letting go.
• Zlatan Ibrahimović scored about two minutes after coming on in Barcelona’s 1-0 win over Real Madrid; Madrid was unable to equalize, in spite of the fact that Barcelona was down to ten men for most of the second half, because Carles Puyol is the best defender to ever play ever.
• Javier Mascherano’s irritated that his opening strike against Everton in Liverpool’s 2-0 Merseyside Derby win is being chalked up as a Joseph Yobo own goal.
• Sergio Campana, the head of the Italian player’s union, has requested that the upcoming Juventus-Inter game be called off if racist chants are heard from the crowd; Juventus played a closed-door match last season after their fans racially abused Mario Balotelli.
• Arsene Wenger feels that referee Andre Marriner was wrong to rule out Andr(ei)(iy)(ey) Arshavin’s goal in Arsenal’s 0-3 loss to Chelsea. If they weren’t so busy being smug, Chelsea would probably point out that Marriner denied Anelka one of the most stone-cold penalties I’ve ever seen in the first half, which makes the “robbed by Marriner” tally a 1-4 win for Chelsea.
• Mark Hughes isn’t afraid of getting sacked by Manchester City even though he’s failed to win any of his last seven matches. Another way of putting that: Hull City have picked up more points in their last six matches (9) than Manchester City have (6). The comparison’s worth mentioning because those two teams drew 1-1 on Saturday.
• Bayern Munich aren’t interested in Ryan Babel. Damn.

Scarica il PDF da Fotografie nel tempo

Ilaria Buitoni Borletti nuova Presidente della Fondazione

A seguito della decisione di Giulia Maria Mozzoni Crespi, fondatrice e da sempre Presidente del FAI, di rassegnare le proprie dimissioni, il Consiglio di Amministrazione della Fondazione ha nominato Ilaria Buitoni Borletti nuova Presidente del FAI. La Signora Crespi è stata invece nominata Presidente Onoraria con delega operativa alle questioni ambientali. Le nuove cariche saranno operative dall’1 gennaio 2010.

Il Consiglio di Amministrazione del FAI, nella seduta di mercoledì 25 novembre 2009 in Villa Necchi Campiglio a Milano, ha preso atto della decisione di Giulia Maria Mozzoni Crespi, fondatrice e da sempre Presidente del FAI, di rassegnare le proprie dimissioni. Il Consiglio di Amministrazione ringraziando la Signora Crespi per lo straordinario e instancabile impegno civile profuso in questi anni a favore della Fondazione e in generale a favore del nostro Paese, ha preso atto della sua decisione e ha proceduto a nominare la Signora Crespi Presidente Onoraria con delega operativa alle questioni ambientali.

Su proposta della stessa Signora Crespi, il Consiglio di Amministrazione ha quindi provveduto a nominare nuova Presidente del FAI, Ilaria Buitoni Borletti, già nel Consiglio di Amministrazione della Fondazione dal 2008 e Presidente Regionale FAI dell’Umbria dal 2007.

Le nuove cariche saranno operative dal 1 gennaio 2010.

Ilaria Buitoni Borletti, nata a Milano, laureata in Scienze Politiche, esponente di una di quelle famiglie dell’imprenditoria storica lombarda di tradizione laica e dal concreto impegno civile, ha alternato la sua attività tra i mondi dell’impresa e del volontariato, con un’attenzione alla cooperazione internazionale particolarmente rivolta all’Africa e al sostegno e alla promozione di attività culturali.

Guarda il profilo di Ilaria Buitoni Borletti

testo:
Scritta da: Gen Rosso
Pane del cielo, sei Tu Gesù,
via d’amore: Tu ci fai come Te.
No, non è rimasta fredda la terra;
Tu sei rimasto con noi
per nutrirci di Te.
Pane di vita,
ed infiammare col tuo amore
tutta l’umanità.

Sì, il cielo è qui su questa terra;
Tu sei rimasto con noi
ma ci porti con Te
nella tua casa
dove vivremo insieme a Te
tutta l’eternità.

No, la morte non può farci paura;
Tu sei rimasto con noi.
E chi vive di Te
vive per sempre.
Sei Dio con noi, sei Dio per noi,
Dio in mezzo a noi.