Leeds Ram

That's a fair point tbh. For me, Nadal's haul at the French is as close to unsurpassable as you can get though. Even with Bjorg winning 6 by he was 25 he'd have had to win another 8 just to get even.. that in a time when people didn't win slams past the age of 30 i think?

Yeah definitely Uttox ? the ability to see a smile or register a tone of voice is lacking online and these are things that I think are just so key when communicating on controversial and difficult topics. 

I'll be brief in response as it's my birthday today ? Well it's not always a matter of perspective, there are facts that exist and realities outside of ideological construction. Statements such as "the US created Al-Qaeda" aren't really a matter of perspective it's a specific claim and it's a false one. It's generally committed by those who confuse the Mujaheddin of Afghanistan, the Taliban and Al-Qaeda together as one homogeneous entity rather than individualised groups. It's a common error but it's an error nevertheless. 

On Syria I find the idea of supposed 'US destablisation' as an idea unconvincing. It denies the organic nature of the protests and the domestic reasons and uprisings that tied in to broader protests across the region but had specific reasons. It ignores the Assad's regime's actions that created the conditions from a domestic peaceful uprising into a civil war that de-stabalised not just Syria but also Iraq. It also ignores the fact the US didn't have much of a role to play compared to the numerous regional actors that got and remain involved. Reliable authors who cover the region such as Shadi Hamid, Christopher Phillips, Charles Lister and Rania Abouzeid  highlight both the US's lack of knowledge about the key players even after over a year into the civil war (the description of the Istanbul room meetings in 'no turning back' is especially instructive) and their comparatively small role in the conflict. If you're talking about the Arab Springs more generally, someone again like Shadi Hamid has a lot to say about the lack of support for the democratic uprisings by America and willingness to look the other way, especially in relationship to Egypt. 

They're only contradictory if you think that struggling in Ukraine necessarily means Russia isn't also able to threaten or signal to other countries. We've seen them do this with numerous countries seeking to join NATO, so it's no issue to point out they're using a similar playbook with Moldova as they've done in the past. It just points to the chaotic and dubious geopolitical logic that is going on and not something I consider to be unique to Russia necessarily but maybe even highlights their current vulnerability (some monsters lash out most viciously when injured). 

Yeah, I don't mind disagreeing at all. I get that at time the tone I use can come across as confrontational, it's one of the reasons I don't always love using boards to discuss politics as the inability to register emotion is a problem. Because I can write in a very dry, clear cut manner that can come across as scolding or annoyed. But that doesn't reflect how I actually feel (enjoying different discussions with others even when I strongly disagree). My best friends in at my uni offices are people with which I share absolutely 0 political opinions with, when we discuss politics in person we have a smile and a laugh rather than having an intemperate argument. 

Gutted to see Federer retire. For me he's the best of all time in terms of technique, vision, and style of play. His only real weakness was his mentality at certain critical moments such as set and match points. If he'd had a stronger mentality at a few key moments you're probably looking at 23-25 grand slams that he'd win not just the 20 that he did. 

Surely we should be encouraging black and white discussions on a Derby County forum? 

I was in London the Day we lost to Charlton Athletic 3-0, It was also the Remain demonstration, We were in and around Leicester Square and went into a boozer before the game, Quite a few Remainers came and went, A couple from Barkshire stood next to us, We got talking and talking and talking, Both parties spoke for the rights and wrongs of Remain/Leave, Both parties got on well, It must have been 2+ hours of Political speak, We shook hands with the Males and a peck on the cheek for the Females.
We were Brexit
They were Remain

I have seen a couple of houses with decorations up. Does that count as it’s Christmas? 

Well happy birthday. Same as Oliver Stone - c'mon that's got to be worth a wry smile.
I'll consider myself corrected on Al Qaeda, I'll step down on that one. I was referencing (I think) Adam Curtis but I take the point. Apologies.
I don't agree on Syria, you yourself say that America turned the other way when maybe it's long stated position of global peacemaker could have - for once - been better used. But I guess then you would say they can't win - don't get involved they get criticized, send in the napalm and they get it also.

I'll be brief in response as it's my birthday today ? Well it's not always a matter of perspective, there are facts that exist and realities outside of ideological construction. Statements such as "the US created Al-Qaeda" aren't really a matter of perspective it's a specific claim and it's a false one. It's generally committed by those who confuse the Mujaheddin of Afghanistan, the Taliban and Al-Qaeda together as one homogeneous entity rather than individualised groups. It's a common error but it's an error nevertheless. 

On Syria I find the idea of supposed 'US destablisation' as an idea unconvincing. It denies the organic nature of the protests and the domestic reasons and uprisings that tied in to broader protests across the region but had specific reasons. It ignores the Assad's regime's actions that created the conditions from a domestic peaceful uprising into a civil war that de-stabalised not just Syria but also Iraq. It also ignores the fact the US didn't have much of a role to play compared to the numerous regional actors that got and remain involved. Reliable authors who cover the region such as Shadi Hamid, Christopher Phillips, Charles Lister and Rania Abouzeid  highlight both the US's lack of knowledge about the key players even after over a year into the civil war (the description of the Istanbul room meetings in 'no turning back' is especially instructive) and their comparatively small role in the conflict. If you're talking about the Arab Springs more generally, someone again like Shadi Hamid has a lot to say about the lack of support for the democratic uprisings by America and willingness to look the other way, especially in relationship to Egypt. 

They're only contradictory if you think that struggling in Ukraine necessarily means Russia isn't also able to threaten or signal to other countries. We've seen them do this with numerous countries seeking to join NATO, so it's no issue to point out they're using a similar playbook with Moldova as they've done in the past. It just points to the chaotic and dubious geopolitical logic that is going on and not something I consider to be unique to Russia necessarily but maybe even highlights their current vulnerability (some monsters lash out most viciously when injured). 

Yeah, I don't mind disagreeing at all. I get that at time the tone I use can come across as confrontational, it's one of the reasons I don't always love using boards to discuss politics as the inability to register emotion is a problem. Because I can write in a very dry, clear cut manner that can come across as scolding or annoyed. But that doesn't reflect how I actually feel (enjoying different discussions with others even when I strongly disagree). My best friends in at my uni offices are people with which I share absolutely 0 political opinions with, when we discuss politics in person we have a smile and a laugh rather than having an intemperate argument. 

Those on about sacking Rosenior need their head checking for me. He needs until at least christmas before we really should have a think about his position. Yes, the away results and performances aren't good enough but we're still not even 10 games in. If at Christmas we're languishing in lower mid table then it's time for Clowes to have a chat with Rosenior and think about his position. 

Those on about sacking Rosenior need their head checking for me. He needs until at least christmas before we really should have a think about his position. Yes, the away results and performances aren't good enough but we're still not even 10 games in. If at Christmas we're languishing in lower mid table then it's time for Clowes to have a chat with Rosenior and think about his position. 

Those on about sacking Rosenior need their head checking for me. He needs until at least christmas before we really should have a think about his position. Yes, the away results and performances aren't good enough but we're still not even 10 games in. If at Christmas we're languishing in lower mid table then it's time for Clowes to have a chat with Rosenior and think about his position. 

Those on about sacking Rosenior need their head checking for me. He needs until at least christmas before we really should have a think about his position. Yes, the away results and performances aren't good enough but we're still not even 10 games in. If at Christmas we're languishing in lower mid table then it's time for Clowes to have a chat with Rosenior and think about his position. 

Gutted to see Federer retire. For me he's the best of all time in terms of technique, vision, and style of play. His only real weakness was his mentality at certain critical moments such as set and match points. If he'd had a stronger mentality at a few key moments you're probably looking at 23-25 grand slams that he'd win not just the 20 that he did. 

Yeah definitely Uttox ? the ability to see a smile or register a tone of voice is lacking online and these are things that I think are just so key when communicating on controversial and difficult topics. 

Great points there Leeds Ram. Discussing topics on social media nearly always turns everything into black & white while in person its much more civilised.
 

Waited until today to post as I was seething after the match tbh. Thanks so much for @Bossfor the tickets as besides the game me and my gf had a cracking time in Lincoln.  The performance was utterly abject from first to last, mistakes littered the game but tactically Rosenior is either blind or stubborn at this point. I said a couple of weeks ago we were making chances and it was bad luck but I now feel there are systemic issues hindering us. There is absolutely no urgency playing out the back and once a team presses us we look decidedly nervous and are almost bound to make an error. Wildsmith's distribution is also absolutely shocking and needs working on asap. 
In the middle playing both Bird and Hourihane is suicide, both ball players who lack any bite or willingness to track their man or contribute in any way besides spraying slow 10-20 yard passes back and sidewards.  Someone mentioned Bird might be wanting to talk to his agent, well given his start to the season I wouldn't care one bit if he did. It isn't helped by the lack of quality out wide, NML can't cross or finish to save his life (no consistency at all in whether he pings, balloons or gets the ball in the middle at all and misses too many chances) Dobbin too often tries to dribble and looses it and Barkhauzen can't finish. Collins isn't being used properly so I don't want to blame him too much and the service he's getting is horribly inconsistent. 
Our slow tempo, dubious quality, and lack of cohesion are creating a team that are too easy to defend and attack against. Our midfield lacks shape and a willingness and ability to actually contribute defensively leaving the defence over exposed. We've seen this in a lot of games this season and it's partly why Cashin is making so many last ditch challenges. The slow tempo, lack of a central outlet for a ball in the final third and poor quality out wide are all contributing to a lack of clear chances and clinical finishing against teams who decide they're going to sit in and close down hard against us. 

It's embarrassing to lose and put in a performance that deserved nothing against a team struggling at the bottom of division 3. There is no other word for it, utterly embarrassing and I hope the players and staff woke up this morning feeling quite ashamed that this has happened. Yes, every team we play against will give an extra 10% and so will their fans because we're not Sutton United. But the fact that we are Derby County needs to be a reminder to every single player to not only give everything in the shirt but demand a certain level of performance that we ultimately expect of them. Last night was not good enough, Plymouth was not good enough, Shrewsbury was not good enough. We need to get our heads out of our collective ar*** and demand better. 

Waited until today to post as I was seething after the match tbh. Thanks so much for @Bossfor the tickets as besides the game me and my gf had a cracking time in Lincoln.  The performance was utterly abject from first to last, mistakes littered the game but tactically Rosenior is either blind or stubborn at this point. I said a couple of weeks ago we were making chances and it was bad luck but I now feel there are systemic issues hindering us. There is absolutely no urgency playing out the back and once a team presses us we look decidedly nervous and are almost bound to make an error. Wildsmith's distribution is also absolutely shocking and needs working on asap. 
In the middle playing both Bird and Hourihane is suicide, both ball players who lack any bite or willingness to track their man or contribute in any way besides spraying slow 10-20 yard passes back and sidewards.  Someone mentioned Bird might be wanting to talk to his agent, well given his start to the season I wouldn't care one bit if he did. It isn't helped by the lack of quality out wide, NML can't cross or finish to save his life (no consistency at all in whether he pings, balloons or gets the ball in the middle at all and misses too many chances) Dobbin too often tries to dribble and looses it and Barkhauzen can't finish. Collins isn't being used properly so I don't want to blame him too much and the service he's getting is horribly inconsistent. 
Our slow tempo, dubious quality, and lack of cohesion are creating a team that are too easy to defend and attack against. Our midfield lacks shape and a willingness and ability to actually contribute defensively leaving the defence over exposed. We've seen this in a lot of games this season and it's partly why Cashin is making so many last ditch challenges. The slow tempo, lack of a central outlet for a ball in the final third and poor quality out wide are all contributing to a lack of clear chances and clinical finishing against teams who decide they're going to sit in and close down hard against us. 

It's embarrassing to lose and put in a performance that deserved nothing against a team struggling at the bottom of division 3. There is no other word for it, utterly embarrassing and I hope the players and staff woke up this morning feeling quite ashamed that this has happened. Yes, every team we play against will give an extra 10% and so will their fans because we're not Sutton United. But the fact that we are Derby County needs to be a reminder to every single player to not only give everything in the shirt but demand a certain level of performance that we ultimately expect of them. Last night was not good enough, Plymouth was not good enough, Shrewsbury was not good enough. We need to get our heads out of our collective ar*** and demand better. 

Your retelling of middle Eastern politics is quite odd. The United States had nothing to do with the creation of al-qaeda that is a common misconception (worth reading Jason Burke, Lawrence Wright and Peter Berger on the subject as a start), had nothing to do with Syrian destabilisation (Arab Spring and Assad letting out known jihadists) and even the rebuilding of Iraq was as much a problem of regional politics as US incompetence and I could go on and on. 
The problem with this is that it waters down any credibility on whatever else you say for me. You say my claims about Moldova don't stand up to my own scrutiny but never say why? I was merely pointing to comments made by lavrov. He has made similar comments in reference to Georgia, Estonia and Ukraine... Two of those countries Russia has annexed part of. It's a well established pattern over a decade of crying about borders, ethnic Russians being persecuted followed by a military intervention. 
Whwther Russia was strong internally (an economy with the size of Italy, large scale social and health problems, and limited democracy) all point to something else it's geopolitical calculations have been treading on a dodgy line since the downturn of the war on terror. Whether Russia actually feels afraid or not the answer isn't merely to back down. It's paranoid at best and the end result would be either the annexation or sterilisation of sovereignty for countries in Eastern Europe which is not okay.
 

This war for the Ukrainians is about the survival of their nation state, nothing more or less than that. Of course they're going to fight until the very last man. A political leader going to fight every day on the front lines would be height of idiocy but Zelensky has done a great job. Geo-politically Putin has totally miscalculated this invasion. He assumed that the Ukrainian leadership would pack up and get out, that the US and NATO would sit back and watch chaos unfold as they did in Afghanistan and the countries near them would get the willies and stop 'NATO expansion' (there's really no such thing as it is portrayed by some) in its tracks.
The reality is precisely the opposite. Putin is misguided in thinking Russia remains a great power in anything (an economically and politically deformed mess of a country) in anything but in nuclear weapon levels. They're now faced with a choice of embracing total war or humiliation, personally I can only see this going one way and that's a tactical retreat and a peace treaty. Those who fear the previous soviet union's guile and resources in combat misunderstand that a lot of the soviet union's forces and power came from those not in what we consider Russia today. 
The idea that this is really about democratic referendums in the donbass is nonsense. Putin's been more than happy annexing territory for over a decade, terror bombing blockaded starving people in Syria and has no regard for democracy at home as he happily kills off anyone who dares challenge him. Lavrov has recently even been threatening the menacing might of Moldova because they obviously pose such a threat... using exactly the same tactics Russia's been applying in Ukraine. International Relations are tricky, unpredictable and largely based on guesses and intuition, the idea that anyone is 'pulling the strings' behind an imaginary curtain has a deformed and unrealistic view of how politics is managed (chaotically by humans not necessarily adequately equipped for the job). 

Quite a few seats where I was were not taken up as some lads preferred to stand right next to the pitch. I don't think there's anything intrinsically wrong with this but they seemed to be mainly there for trying to start a fight. I'm all for a dose of tribalism in football but it hardly suited my GF when bottles are flying around and people are trying to get at one another... Sick of some fans not practicing sheer common sense and decency at games i.e., chant all you want, have a lot of fun, have a few beers but don't start aggro like petulant school children. 
 
 

Waited until today to post as I was seething after the match tbh. Thanks so much for @Bossfor the tickets as besides the game me and my gf had a cracking time in Lincoln.  The performance was utterly abject from first to last, mistakes littered the game but tactically Rosenior is either blind or stubborn at this point. I said a couple of weeks ago we were making chances and it was bad luck but I now feel there are systemic issues hindering us. There is absolutely no urgency playing out the back and once a team presses us we look decidedly nervous and are almost bound to make an error. Wildsmith's distribution is also absolutely shocking and needs working on asap. 
In the middle playing both Bird and Hourihane is suicide, both ball players who lack any bite or willingness to track their man or contribute in any way besides spraying slow 10-20 yard passes back and sidewards.  Someone mentioned Bird might be wanting to talk to his agent, well given his start to the season I wouldn't care one bit if he did. It isn't helped by the lack of quality out wide, NML can't cross or finish to save his life (no consistency at all in whether he pings, balloons or gets the ball in the middle at all and misses too many chances) Dobbin too often tries to dribble and looses it and Barkhauzen can't finish. Collins isn't being used properly so I don't want to blame him too much and the service he's getting is horribly inconsistent. 
Our slow tempo, dubious quality, and lack of cohesion are creating a team that are too easy to defend and attack against. Our midfield lacks shape and a willingness and ability to actually contribute defensively leaving the defence over exposed. We've seen this in a lot of games this season and it's partly why Cashin is making so many last ditch challenges. The slow tempo, lack of a central outlet for a ball in the final third and poor quality out wide are all contributing to a lack of clear chances and clinical finishing against teams who decide they're going to sit in and close down hard against us. 

It's embarrassing to lose and put in a performance that deserved nothing against a team struggling at the bottom of division 3. There is no other word for it, utterly embarrassing and I hope the players and staff woke up this morning feeling quite ashamed that this has happened. Yes, every team we play against will give an extra 10% and so will their fans because we're not Sutton United. But the fact that we are Derby County needs to be a reminder to every single player to not only give everything in the shirt but demand a certain level of performance that we ultimately expect of them. Last night was not good enough, Plymouth was not good enough, Shrewsbury was not good enough. We need to get our heads out of our collective ar*** and demand better. 

This war for the Ukrainians is about the survival of their nation state, nothing more or less than that. Of course they're going to fight until the very last man. A political leader going to fight every day on the front lines would be height of idiocy but Zelensky has done a great job. Geo-politically Putin has totally miscalculated this invasion. He assumed that the Ukrainian leadership would pack up and get out, that the US and NATO would sit back and watch chaos unfold as they did in Afghanistan and the countries near them would get the willies and stop 'NATO expansion' (there's really no such thing as it is portrayed by some) in its tracks.
The reality is precisely the opposite. Putin is misguided in thinking Russia remains a great power in anything (an economically and politically deformed mess of a country) in anything but in nuclear weapon levels. They're now faced with a choice of embracing total war or humiliation, personally I can only see this going one way and that's a tactical retreat and a peace treaty. Those who fear the previous soviet union's guile and resources in combat misunderstand that a lot of the soviet union's forces and power came from those not in what we consider Russia today. 
The idea that this is really about democratic referendums in the donbass is nonsense. Putin's been more than happy annexing territory for over a decade, terror bombing blockaded starving people in Syria and has no regard for democracy at home as he happily kills off anyone who dares challenge him. Lavrov has recently even been threatening the menacing might of Moldova because they obviously pose such a threat... using exactly the same tactics Russia's been applying in Ukraine. International Relations are tricky, unpredictable and largely based on guesses and intuition, the idea that anyone is 'pulling the strings' behind an imaginary curtain has a deformed and unrealistic view of how politics is managed (chaotically by humans not necessarily adequately equipped for the job). 

Waited until today to post as I was seething after the match tbh. Thanks so much for @Bossfor the tickets as besides the game me and my gf had a cracking time in Lincoln.  The performance was utterly abject from first to last, mistakes littered the game but tactically Rosenior is either blind or stubborn at this point. I said a couple of weeks ago we were making chances and it was bad luck but I now feel there are systemic issues hindering us. There is absolutely no urgency playing out the back and once a team presses us we look decidedly nervous and are almost bound to make an error. Wildsmith's distribution is also absolutely shocking and needs working on asap. 
In the middle playing both Bird and Hourihane is suicide, both ball players who lack any bite or willingness to track their man or contribute in any way besides spraying slow 10-20 yard passes back and sidewards.  Someone mentioned Bird might be wanting to talk to his agent, well given his start to the season I wouldn't care one bit if he did. It isn't helped by the lack of quality out wide, NML can't cross or finish to save his life (no consistency at all in whether he pings, balloons or gets the ball in the middle at all and misses too many chances) Dobbin too often tries to dribble and looses it and Barkhauzen can't finish. Collins isn't being used properly so I don't want to blame him too much and the service he's getting is horribly inconsistent. 
Our slow tempo, dubious quality, and lack of cohesion are creating a team that are too easy to defend and attack against. Our midfield lacks shape and a willingness and ability to actually contribute defensively leaving the defence over exposed. We've seen this in a lot of games this season and it's partly why Cashin is making so many last ditch challenges. The slow tempo, lack of a central outlet for a ball in the final third and poor quality out wide are all contributing to a lack of clear chances and clinical finishing against teams who decide they're going to sit in and close down hard against us. 

It's embarrassing to lose and put in a performance that deserved nothing against a team struggling at the bottom of division 3. There is no other word for it, utterly embarrassing and I hope the players and staff woke up this morning feeling quite ashamed that this has happened. Yes, every team we play against will give an extra 10% and so will their fans because we're not Sutton United. But the fact that we are Derby County needs to be a reminder to every single player to not only give everything in the shirt but demand a certain level of performance that we ultimately expect of them. Last night was not good enough, Plymouth was not good enough, Shrewsbury was not good enough. We need to get our heads out of our collective ar*** and demand better. 

Waited until today to post as I was seething after the match tbh. Thanks so much for @Bossfor the tickets as besides the game me and my gf had a cracking time in Lincoln.  The performance was utterly abject from first to last, mistakes littered the game but tactically Rosenior is either blind or stubborn at this point. I said a couple of weeks ago we were making chances and it was bad luck but I now feel there are systemic issues hindering us. There is absolutely no urgency playing out the back and once a team presses us we look decidedly nervous and are almost bound to make an error. Wildsmith's distribution is also absolutely shocking and needs working on asap. 
In the middle playing both Bird and Hourihane is suicide, both ball players who lack any bite or willingness to track their man or contribute in any way besides spraying slow 10-20 yard passes back and sidewards.  Someone mentioned Bird might be wanting to talk to his agent, well given his start to the season I wouldn't care one bit if he did. It isn't helped by the lack of quality out wide, NML can't cross or finish to save his life (no consistency at all in whether he pings, balloons or gets the ball in the middle at all and misses too many chances) Dobbin too often tries to dribble and looses it and Barkhauzen can't finish. Collins isn't being used properly so I don't want to blame him too much and the service he's getting is horribly inconsistent. 
Our slow tempo, dubious quality, and lack of cohesion are creating a team that are too easy to defend and attack against. Our midfield lacks shape and a willingness and ability to actually contribute defensively leaving the defence over exposed. We've seen this in a lot of games this season and it's partly why Cashin is making so many last ditch challenges. The slow tempo, lack of a central outlet for a ball in the final third and poor quality out wide are all contributing to a lack of clear chances and clinical finishing against teams who decide they're going to sit in and close down hard against us. 

It's embarrassing to lose and put in a performance that deserved nothing against a team struggling at the bottom of division 3. There is no other word for it, utterly embarrassing and I hope the players and staff woke up this morning feeling quite ashamed that this has happened. Yes, every team we play against will give an extra 10% and so will their fans because we're not Sutton United. But the fact that we are Derby County needs to be a reminder to every single player to not only give everything in the shirt but demand a certain level of performance that we ultimately expect of them. Last night was not good enough, Plymouth was not good enough, Shrewsbury was not good enough. We need to get our heads out of our collective ar*** and demand better.