Don't Bull the World

I cannot remember the last time I tuned in to the radio. There are so many things not right with the stations that I don't even know where to start. OK there was actually one station I did occasionally tuned into but it wasn't local, it was the BBC. The local, all crap. I don't remember ever buying a record or a cassette, (I'm from the late 70's remember?), because I heard a song or a band on the radio first. Even now, the latest downloads or CDs I buy are mostly of bands I grew up listening to or I'm familiar with. I used to head down to the many record and CD shops at Orchard and randomly listen through whatever they had. Or I'd mostly get info from my many friends who like me were also musicians. Some of us shared similar taste so it was easier back then to swap stuff. Then there were these few CD shops that actually allowed us to rent CDs. One that I recall was called Recoil, I think. It was over at Midpoint Orchard. But coming back to the local radio stations, I never found them up to par with what was really going on in the rest of the world. Seriously, the first thing I couldn't stand about the local DJs (if that's what they call themselves) is the English used. Speak good English yes, some and I mean very few of them could, but what is with that accent? Is that really how they speak at home or with their friends? They sound like they were born in some foreign land and suddenly parachuted into the radio station. These people eat Nasi Lemak, Roti Prata and Char Kway Teow and here they come sounding like some Angmoh who were born in America. Do they ever look in the mirror? Listening to them speak sometimes is like listening to a very bad comedy. Very torturous. Like nails on a blackboard. And that's another thing. They keep blabbering on and on about some stupid contest or some comic sketch that they have come up with or some other load of crap. I didn't tune in to the radio to listen to them telling their personal sad stories to each other. Where's the music? And when they do start playing, there is that hopeless repetition of the same songs over and over and over and over and over and over and over and. .. . . . . . . . . . .(now you know how that feels). I understand that there is a certain protocol that they are required to follow, but don't they have a mind of their own? Do we have to wait for the song to be a hit in another country before we start playing it here? I can go on but never mind. I'm better off without them. We all are. Thanks to my 'experimentation' with music I now know of bands and music genres that would probably not have seen the light of day on these stations. It's strange but nice to know how a song or a band has become a hit a long time after I'm already bored with it. It's nicer to lead then to follow.

The Problem with F1

Spot the dummy contest. £40 million if you get it right. Not! Photo, chooseesc.eu

You know the saying 'too many cooks spoil the soup' ? Well what we have with F1 now is just one lousy cook. And he's cooking up nothing but crap. Max Mosley, the boss of FIA, has stubbornly refused to bulge from his crazy idea of putting a financial cap on the teams. And the teams have responded. They have threatened to start off a new racing series. We are looking at the beginning of the end of F1 as we know it. The dictatorial nature of Mosley has basically hijacked the future of F1 racing. His insistence on maintaining his monopoly of power is but one of the reasons for this. But I'll go one better and hit the nail on the head as it should be. The real reason for this mess everyone is in is because we have a businessman who does not understand the technical aspect of F1 racing! Simply put, he doesn't know what he is cooking either. Remember KERS? Well it alone costs each team $5o million to develop for the cars. That alone has exceeded the $4o million cap that he is trying to instill on the teams! And how many teams do we know who are still using it? Only one now, Ferrari. So much for cost savings. During Friday's practice, McLaren had 1 car with Kers and the other without. They realised that the car without Kers was much faster. So for Saturdays qualifying they removed the Kers system on both cars. OK Hamilton didn't do that well but he has practically given up this year's fight already, so he is not even trying. And yes, I know the Kers system is still in its infancy. Anyhoo that was just one of his useless recipes we've had to endure. The Kers idea is good, don't get me wrong, but I think it still needs a lot of tweaking. And that means more money. So it's a case of which came first, the chicken or the egg? (though I know neither will make it in his kitchen.) We need someone who can understand the insides of F1 to get things in order. That is the person who ought to be leading the FIA. Not some Nazi prostitutes loving cookoo. Someone, please throw him out of the kitchen.

There Can Be Only One

Like any hot blooded man, I love my football. The only thing is I don't particularly support any one club. No Manchester United, no Liverpool, no Real Madrid, non of that for me thanks. I find it ridiculous to support such teams when one day a player is playing for you and the very next season he is signed by one of your bitter rivals and playing against you. Even the money that's exchanged between teams to 'buy' players is getting stupid! But there is one team that I truly support. And that is Argentina. OK it's a country but I love their football. Ever since 1978 when I was just beginning to play football with the neighbourhood kids, I started hearing about them from the older boys. (Remember back then it was almost impossible to watch a game 'live' on TV). That was also the year they won their first World Cup. It was only in the next World Cup in 82 that I got to really keep track of the team. Then in 1986 all hell broke loose! Everyone I knew then were glued to their TVs watching every game 'live'. Argentina won their second World Cup with such class that they brought football to an all new level. Diego Armando Maradona was the name on every ones lips. Many adored him, a few despised him. All I know is he is the God that plays football! Yes, Yes. All the England fans out there will talk about the 'Hand of God' incident and call him a cheat. But they also know that in that very game, he made the England team look like a bunch of weekend footballers. And I love rubbing it into them every time I get the chance. So here I go again! He dribbled past half, YES HALF, the England team including the goalkeeper, YES GOALKEEPER EVEN, to score what will probably remain as the best goal in the history of football! Ever! This one goal alone erased the entire 'cheating' thing. Besides the English must really be that stupid to let a short guy like Maradona do that to them. That's their fault, not his. Some other players come to mind. Claudio Cannigia was the player I used to emulate when I was in school. He was one of the fastest footballers in the world. Being a sprinter in my school days, that was the one thing that I shared with him, speed. Sadly that was the only thing I could say I had in common with him. (I wasn't very good in all the other parts of being a footballer. My coach would tell me to get the ball from my goalkeeper and run like mad towards the opponents goal. Then pass the ball to my striker, who'll be waiting up there to score. Then he got all the credit. Crap.) Then there is Gabriel Batistuta, Osvaldo Ardiles, Valdano, Riquelme, Burruchaga, Goycochea, the list goes on and on. Lets not forget the latest sensation. They call him the new Maradona. His name, Lionel Messi. This young man went through bone lengthening operations in his shins when he was barely a teenager. He was told he was too short to be taken as a player seriously. He went through that very painful operation just for football. An operation so painful that it would have made most grown men cry! Today Leo is the greatest talent on the field anywhere. Never mind Pele, yes he was good too. So was Zico, Rummenigge from Germany, Platini and I'm sure a few more come to your mind. But at the end of the day, when the dust has settled and the grass has started to grow on the fields again, we look back and remember only one name. That name is Diego Armando Maradona. Because we know, there can be only one.