Day

Nice to see Wildsmith back, although looks like that could have been forced on Warne with Loach on the bench, Vickers must be injured.

3 minutes ago, angieram said:

I think there are legitimate questions to be asked around various things, and there is a right way to do that. The next Supporters Charter Group meeting is in March and we've already asked RamsTrust members for questions to put forward, as we do every meeting,  and you always did too @David when you and @Boycie were there.

I don't think the kickback on every club decision is as strong on here as on X, which does seem to attract knee-jerk reactions. We debate both sides on here and you can usually see the middle ground winning out.

My take in recent months is that Stephen Pearce is open and approachable to questions, except on areas where his hands are tied due to legal restrictions. 

Many forum members were at the last Fans Forum, and he quickly closed down discussion on those areas, whilst answering all other questions.

Radio Derby haven't had the same access to date as we, the supporters, so I'm not surprised they've asked him for an interview.

Not in the know at all, but I'd expect the transfer window and finances to feature. Our detailed accounts are due out at the end of March, so maybe a heads up on how things are looking.

They would have been better off saying look, the next SCG meeting is in March and these are the questions we are submitting and the reason for these is that.

Might have seen the same reaction, what do I know, no PR firm would hire me after my performance following the last meeting I attended!

It's just writing an Open Letter, from a prominent supporters group puts the club in a position where they need to respond at a time where they may not feel ready to communicate. 

Ultimately it looks like it worked as yeah, the transfer window, budgets and why no striker will probably be the basis of the interview. Transfer windows usually conclude with some kind of letter from the CEO/Owner when things may not have gone to plan which clearly they haven't.

Just don't really understand though why not wait, wait for the SCG which is intended to be the arena for the club to answer fans concerns. Had the next one been say summer on wards or not even scheduled, would get it.

Anyhow, as I say earlier, fair play to them for holding their hands up.

Reading the replies would suggest it's not just the timing but the sentiment, getting hammered for not representing individuals, which you will always get regardless.

There will be fans out there that would appreciate answers to their questions and the reason for so many fan groups is to capture the wider opinion. Which they are entitled to have one, as we all are.

6 minutes ago, Stockport Ram said:

I’ve trained the post person to try a revolutionary new procedure when he has a recorded or signed for delivery for me.

He knocks the door. 

He was a bit reticent at first, but I think he’s got the hang of it now.

Until a Nymphomaniac couple move in next door and you're not sure if you have post or they are at it again. 

13 minutes ago, maxjam said:

We've got the ring doorbell and half a dozen of the external cameras as well dotted around our property - we just pay the £8/month which I thought was a pretty decent deal for the amount of coverage we get. 

We went for the solar powered cameras (mainly because I'm allergic to heights and don't want to be up and down ladders every 3 months changing batteries!) and I've been very impressed.  Despite the fact that some of the solar panels aren't in the best locations - facing away from the sun and in the shade most of the day, the lowest I have seen their charge rate go is 96%.  Only 2 of the 6 are currently below 100% (99%) which isn't bad considering we're still only in February and I haven't seen any sun for days!

Picture quality is good and any footage captured is stored for approx 6 months iirc and the dogs don't generally trigger the motion capture.  If you can afford the cost (and I can appreciate the 100% rise in a couple of years is not something you signed up for) I'd recommend them as a good home security option. 

I'm just moaning, I'll pay it even if it doubled, annoying though as Amazon know it.

That wasn't even my renewal email, saw it online and was like no no no, come on. Like you we pay the monthly fee now as it includes all cameras you attach, prior to the kids arriving I think it was something like £2.50 a month.

I'm hoping our plan is not increasing and it's just the singular options, which you can see the thinking, bridge the price gap tempting people to go all out and kit the house out with their cameras which to be fair, are reasonably priced for the quality.

All comes out the joint account which is solely ran by the Mrs, starting to question why I started the topic and if I'm honest, it was probably just the opportunity to create a topic called Ring Sting was too good to pass on.

Not looking to rank fans here, we are all equals, you have some where it's a Saturday only, back to work and the family during the week, maybe buying the Derby Telegraph and glancing at the sports pages.

Then you have those that wake up on a Monday and the first thing they do is grab the phone and check forums/social media platforms to see who we've signed or what formation we should play at the weekend. That will continue all day, every day, 365. We have some that spend their Christmas Day afternoons on here instead of having to talk to the family.

Let's put a name to them. Nutters. 

With Nutters you will the have extremes, from the doomsdayers to the hunky dory aww look at that bobble hat.

Some will claim to sit in the middle, but truth be told, you're more like 75% on the way to one side or the other......awww look at that bobble hat.

Having fans split as they are now fairly evenly from what I can tell, that's the worst possible scenario for a fans forum. 

Paul Warne, Gary Rowett and Nigel Clough.

3 tenures that have created this equal divide, Warne will have to leave for the mood to reset itself. We already have fans almost accepting promotion at some point under Warne is inevitable and looking to downplay his ability to manage in the Championship. Completely unaware of the budget and players he will have at his disposal. Warne is this and we won't do that under him.

And it's said with so much confidence, you almost respect it in a way, despite thinking what utter nonsense.

At the other end, it's the same, and I say this not looking to enrage anyone, I was at the opposite end under Nigel Clough and nobody will ever convince me we would have made top 6 in the Championship under him. There was very minor incremental positives here and there, yet we would still then go away and defend a 1-0 loss with Robbie Savage prancing around in midfield.

To this day, others will be adamant he should have stayed, will even suggest him as a replacement when Warne does leave. 

That's forums for you, we all love it really and that's why we come back, even if it does get on your goat at times. Bit like a healthy marriage one would say.

40 minutes ago, Foreveram said:

You might want to switch the bedroom ones off as they towards their teenage years 😉

Well yeah, I don't live in the BBC studios ffs! 

Just gone to look, would appear they have held their hands up and got the timing wrong, which yeah, it is let's be honest. Fair play though. No doubt they will still get stick for it, something they will have to handle, with any supporters group and I'm sure Angie over at RamsTrust will tell you, it's something you will get regardless of what you do or don't do. There will never be a singular supporters group that fans will all feel are suitable to represent them. 

5 minutes ago, Ghost of Clough said:

I wonder if it stemmed from this...

 

 

Just shows how out the loop I am, not seen this. Given their position now on the Supporters Charter Group and popularity on Twitter/X, I can see why Radio Derby would have invited Stephen Pearce on.

Fair questions or not, I can also see now what would fill the other 58 minutes of the interview.

I created a topic on Southgate, pretty derogatory which came back to slap me in the face pretty hard. I apologised whilst knowing he would never have or likely to see a word I write. Saying that, it cleared by conscious at the time.

Anyhow, I would just like to thank Southgate for what he's done for the country, however after the Euros I would kindly ask you step down regardless of how far we make it.

I just feel it's time for something fresh, new ideas to build around our shiny new toy Jude Bellingham.

I also feel it would be beneficial to the team if you go public with your intentions to step down prior to the competition, allowing the players a chance to not only say thank you with their performances, also take the chance to impress potential replacements.

7 years is a good old stint, chances are you will find yourself a cushty office job which pays the mortgage and new waistcoats. Reigniting your career as a manager domestically whilst will no doubt be an option, you've been out of it now for 15 years, that's a long old time, stick your feet up, be an ambassador or whatever the FA offer you and take it easy.

Cheers Gareth.

Not sure which side requested this interview, Pearce or Radio Derby, or even the reasons behind it.

It does not take an hour to say I'm legally bound to not discuss anything that the fans would like to know, and that could be with a number of parties be it Mel Morris, the EFL, David Clowes, Quantuma etc. This will be completely normal within businesses. Frustrating from our side, yet you have to understand that we will never be privy to the "real inside story".

It will, I imagine, be a repeat from the fans forum which will only reignite the debate of whether or not he should be at the club, is that really necessary at this stage of the season?

Forgive me if this discussion is still taking place on other platforms and Pearce/Radio Derby felt it was important to respond, attempt again to draw a line and move on. Which on this forum regardless of which side of the fence you sit on over his current employment status, would appear many have as I haven't seen his name popping up at all. 

Even the transfer window the focus was more if anything on David Clowes, not the CEO that will have been doing the deals.

With regards to the apology for that period which some are looking for, you could put a case forward that either he feels the club did nothing wrong, retrospective rule changes show this and does not want to reopen a war with the EFL when we now have a positive relationship. Or an apology would show weakness, and fuel the theory that he was nothing more than a yes man to Mel Morris.

I guess it will be something we all pick which to believe and roll with it as it's unlikely any, anytime soon at least, we will have any definitive answers or apologies.

Saying this, I will still watch as when the CEO of your club talks, I think we has fans should be respectful and listen to what he has to say even if he says nothing at all. 

For the record, it's no secret I had semi regular conversations with Mel Morris, some may think I'm sat on some juicy inside information and knew this was all coming, which I can hand on heart say I'm not and that famous "NDA meeting" was not full of the details people think were shared. 

Some of you will remember the shitshow I started on Twitter, that was a genuine belief that the NDA was there simply to cover any comments like Michael Jackson is a nonce for example which would obviously make the headlines once the press got hold of it.

Concerns over signing one were raised prior to the meeting and was subsequently told, would never happen again. At the time little did I know where the club was heading! 

To this day the meeting minutes which were to be signed off by the club have not been sent, if I'm honest I would have to go through old emails to try and locate them, which even if I could the NDA would still be in place between myself and the club and can't imagine a scenario where they will be signed off now, especially when it would appear Stephen Pearce is looking to draw that line in the sand.

I personally think from my own conversations that there was a genuine honest belief that the club had done no wrong, we just found a different method of accounting which the EFL rules did not at the time forbid. We were being targeted by the EFL due the public criticism over TV deals and other outside interference which was a personal battle rather than the club itself. Which you could look at the way other clubs have been punished recently and possibly say, yeah, we were a little hard done by compared to others right.

That was just the impression I got for what it's worth.

Any conversations I had were nothing more than how are you and thoughts on the EFL, which you can probably guess.

IF and I say IF as I have only spoken to Stephen Pearce once with regards to advertising on the forum and have no idea where he stands on this, IF he also shares that genuine belief with his financial background, I can understand why he would not want to publicly reopen the wounds and create a new war between Pearce and EFL. 

I wasn't going to go down this path when creating a reply, I guess I was maybe predicting potential replies given my position and "relationship" at the time, probably should have just stayed out of it, came this far now to waste this post.

Like Pearce truth be told, I feel that drawing the line is probably the right thing to do and focus on the here and now which when you look at the table is a fantastic position with the opportunity today to strengthen.

Saw all the memes going around and had to watch, like you I lasted maybe 20 minutes and I have to give him credit.

Whilst I don't know if anything is factually true, or just his truth as @Alph said, that history lesson being reeled off from his own memory when you have Biden on the other side that on some days can't remember his own name, is impressive for a 71 year old.

Haven't got the energy to sit through the rest to see if Tucker is actually allowed to ask a question or it's just a 2 hour speech.

I will maintain my belief that Russia bad, US bad, UK bad and question why they can't settle their beef with each other like real men bare knuckle in a ring, not ordering others to drop bombs killing innocent people. 

Nothing Putin can say will ever justify what's taking place in Ukraine now, regardless of history, border lines, governments, the murdering of innocent families can never be the only solution.

Anyhow, boring myself saying this now, my opinion matters not, these "leaders" will continue to be cowards until the day they die. 

13 minutes ago, Foreveram said:

Wasted here or just wasted 😂

Wasted last night, wasted here

I have an idea. Hear me out.

Each league has its own dissent table. Use the blue card, however it has no impact on the game, simple adds +1 next to their name.

At the end of the season, whoever is top of the table, must pay a fine equivalent to points they occur.

10 points, 10 weeks fine.

All money goes to grassroots football pot where refs get abused on the daily, reward refs down there, give them a reason to get out of bed and referee a game and use the money to educate from a young age to respect the ref.

You could also use the blue card for tactical fouls, separate table, 1 point per foul. End of the season pay 50% of your wages as above. Equivalent to the game weeks.

All money goes to help young players that had to retire early through injury having dedicated their younger lives to the game.

This would require FA/PFA approval and in their player registration contract. 

Solid idea right? I know what you’re all thinking, I’m wasted here right. Look it is what it is. 

1 hour ago, BaaLocks said:

Anyone who ever considered subscribing to a doorbell in the first place deserves everything that they get. Sorry but!

Think of it more as a security subscription than just a doorbell. 

Anyone trying door handles, causing damage, attempted robbery, anything it’s all there on camera with the subscription allowing you to look back.

Few months ago we had a resident from down the road that ask us for footage from a specific time as a car hit his without leaving any details. Heard the bang but by time he got to the window the car had gone.

We got the colour, make and model for him, reg plate obscured but gave him the footage and maybe he got more from down the road piecing it all together. 

It was a relatively low price to pay at £25 a year.

Not only that but Ring do indoor cameras, we have one in their bedroom which has solved many a mystery of who ripped up the book, who hit who first complete with audio.

The subscription covers that as well.

6 minutes ago, Boycie said:

A world with unicorns and mermaids?

Exactly that. Who doesn’t love a mermaid riding a unicorn?

Nothing like a bit of ring sting to lure a new crowd into the Jim Smith Room.

I’ll be here all day, try the lamb.

1 hour ago, Alph said:

I just finished the Putin interview. 

It's as expected. His contempt for an independent Ukraine is obvious. The first hour is hushed Imperial claims and I'm not sure what else you could pass it off as. Why else give the history lesson. Still think it's worth listening to so you can make up your mind whether you're listening to a man freeing the world of Nazi collaborators or a man trying to piece together an empire. 

I mean it's just the other side of the coin. It's not a lie. It's his truth. As America peddles their truth. Convenient historical facts. Convenient omissions. 

There has been a squeeze on Russia. There's bots that peddle the idea that America blesses us all with freedom and democracy but come on. Give it up. 

It's hard to pick which Imperialistic BS takes the moral high ground so I'm going to say neither. We all want peace. That's why we have the tanks, the missiles and jets and 100,000 troops in your garden 

I think International Law is like VAR. Nice idea but you only really want to acknowledge it when it's working for you. 

 

Out there in the internet cesspits, if you’re not Pro Putin, you’re Pro America.

Neither and somewhere in the middle for me is the right place to kick back and set out my deckchair.

Imagine if all the money spent fighting wars globally was put to better use, what a world we would live in.

2 minutes ago, Comrade 86 said:

I think your cunning linguistics used in your thread title deserved so much more love 😂

On thread, it definitely is a sting though. You know their overhead isn't getting anywhere near that much dearer so it's basically a 'we want more money or we brick your device' type piece of marketing. I hadn't even realised it is a subscription service, as I thought it's just an IP camera attached to a doorbell. What service do they provide?

You can use the doorbell without a subscription but it’s a live view only, where as the subscription will record snapshots and any activity through the day where you can go back and look at.

So basically a CCTV camera that can only be looked at in real time.

8 minutes ago, Carl Sagan said:

@cstandis right about all the Tesla shorters. They lost a lot of money. And here's a piece saying the Model Y would fail when it's now the world's bestselling car:

Without Musk, we would not have electric cars and a future of sustainable transport. The whole idea was continually dismissed by traditional manufacturers. Tesla was only started to try to push them towards electric vehicles, but they refused, even when Tesla made its patents available for free, so Musk had to do it himself. The world should be grateful.

In the context of space, there was huge vitriol from the traditional space community that SpaceX had been awarded a human spaceflight contract by NASA, with Boeing demanding they be given all the money for this. Today, SpaceX brought four more astronauts back to Earth from the space station. Boeing hasn't managed to take anyone on its unsafe competitor yet. The then world's richest man Jeff Bezos founded his space company before SpaceX, but has never managed to launch a single thing to orbit. Almost everyone laughed at Musk for attempting what he has, but SpaceX is now clearly 10 years ahead and innovating faster.

You say, David, you wish Musk stuck to cars and rockets. But Musk thinks very deeply about the future of our species. And his contention for us to survive and thrive is that we need sustainability on Earth, a vibrant space culture, and also the ability for the free exchange of ideas as a society. Hence buying Twitter. It is the increased connectivity of humanity that has led to Human progress, and he is trying to protect that. I see very little difference between old twitter and new twitter, expect people who the establishment wanted silenced are no longer silenced. There are still the amazing scientific and intellectual threads on Twitter, and without it as a platform much would be censored. As I said, it's not perfect, but Musk is held to different standards to other people, and is doing OK with it, while also having to run Tesla and SpaceX. Not bad overall.

Forget the cars and rockets, I have no interest in them at all, not sure how you can’t see the difference between old twitter and new twitter, how?

- The awful X branding, which he took from one night out of the replies to a tweet he made. The same X he tried with PayPal and failed.

- The twitter domain is hardcoded into the site where he can’t even change it, might have been a better chance had he not sacked off all the lead engineers.

- Verification system gone. It was flawed, yet the idea was sound and most cases worked. Now it’s a paid system.

- Paid subscribers replies are now boosted to the top, many of them spammy or Elon’s followers. Pay to be seen is the biggest change that’s destroyed the platform.

- Limited number of posts for non subscribers, DM limits.

- The For You feed is full of Elon and his followers like DogeDesigner that appear to do nothing more than spend their day fluffing his ego.

- Ads are all drop shipping sites now, repetitive.

- Have I mentioned that god damn awful X branding? 

I have no real problem with bringing his version of free speech to the platform, releasing the likes of Trump, KT Hopkins, Tommy Robinson and allowing Joey Barton to make a fool of himself. Go for it.

When I say he’s destroyed it, I’m referring to the points above, which I’m not sure you could argue against, yet you will because it’s Elon.

As I said previously, I had no prior interest in Elon, non whatsoever, so this isn’t some historical hatred that has expanded into X.

I’m a simple man, used Twitter for football and news away from politics. It was by far the greatest platform on the internet. Now it’s just destroyed in my personal opinion and I’m pissed because there is no real alternative out there so I find myself having to check several websites more often and don’t get the same interactions.

15 minutes ago, AndyinLiverpool said:

What's 'ring'?

Doorbell, you been living under a rock?

£24.99 to £34.99 in 2022

£34.99 to £49.99 in 2024

Who owns Ring? Of course, Amazon.

9 minutes ago, Jubbs said:

Where can I find one of these hats?

Oh dear, you’re not? 🤦‍♂️

Anyhow, it wasn’t a serious question was it? 

I mean, you do see the difference of one person occupied by their phone, crossing a road without looking and challenging kids to take themselves on the edge of blacking out, how to self harm and commit suicide?

Kinda is a huge difference.

Forgetting all that, explain to me the positives of TikTok, what’s the content out there that is worth watching?

Just now, Jubbs said:

In the US alone, Pokemon Go supposedly caused 256 deaths and over 150,000 traffic accidents, should that have been banned? 

Yes. Daft game that is. Kids you can understand. Adults though chasing these virtual gremlin things was and still is super weird.

Banning it would be the best thing to do. Think we should name and shame as well, make them wear hats that say former Pokémon Go player so we know who not to socialise with.

4 hours ago, DarkFruitsRam7 said:

But that’s such a tiny, tiny element of the platform. Horrific, yes, but hardly a justification to shut the whole thing down.

Labradors have killed people but we don’t ban them. 

You do realise that’s just one challenge.

We have had kids eating washing tablets.

We have had kids taking their own lives, suicide.

Away from all that what’s left? A bunch of attention seekers that call themselves “content creators”, doing videos with dubbed over voices, or dances to the latest song.

Absolutely nothing positive to be had from that platform, even as a toilet time scroller, can’t believe anyone over the age of 10 is defending it.

Anyhow, that interview is now up if anyone is actually interested in it. I'll pass and wait to read all your opinions on it instead.