Raised hand indicates change of direction

Dont want to go all Jaques Derrida or Ferdinand de Saussure on yer asses but, as per my recent rant on the Union Jack+Saltire display this Thursday, I’d like to make it clear I’m being sarcastic about EVERYONE here and that just because I mention a certain POV it doesn’t mean I necessarily agree with it. If I agree with it, I will say so. I think it’s a major fucking achievement just to get folk even CONSIDERING an opposing view when talking about Rangers’ political/religious affiliations or otherwise, and that’s pretty much what I try to do with this stuff - open it up. I’d like it to be understood that I’m always up for a discussion but never up for decision. Deconstruction is not destruction, Doubt is definite, Indecision is final - sometimes - etc, etc. This kind of thinking leads to us knowing that even the causes of the Second World War and the rise of Nazism are far more complex than simple party politics, bigotry or nationalism BUT some things ARE certain: like, for example, the EFFECTS of Nazism in the 20th Century were UTTERLY HORRIFIC BEYOND ALL IMAGINATION - THEY TOOK HUMANITY TO ITS ALL-TIME LOW. Furthermore, sometimes I discuss the relative silliness of thet fact such arbitrary items as flags, symbols and songs are deemed by some to cause offence. But there is no ambiguity, ambivelance or “signifier versus signified” discussion to be allowed when it comes to adopting a hand gesture which even PASSINGLY RESEMBLES the infamous salute of the National Socialists - that you’d even take the chance of appearing to “sieg heil” in any kind of seriousness is a FUCKING DISGRACE!

That being said …

Our enemies like to call us knuckle-draggers. Well, it seems some of the Bears in Israel managed to get one of each of their knuckles off the ground and all the way up above their shoulders. In fact they even extended their arm outwards as well as upwards and uncurled that knuckle to let those five fingers of that one raised hand point straight out with pride.

And, of course, an “unconfirmed source” has got the photo of this little Tel-Aviv cameo and spread it all round the Scottish meeja. One wonders, as per our “bigoted” singing in Villarreal, if this incident has incensed the locals at the actual match half as much as it’s incensed those much closer to the incident - ie those football lovers in places like Coatbridge, Barrhead and Greenock.

I was in Villarreal and I took part in singing “Hullo, Hullo”. I wasn’t in Tel Aviv and haven’t raised my arm in that Red Hand thing which looks like a Nazi salute - YES, IT FUCKING DOES! - since John “Polaris” MacDonald was winning us the penalties which guaranteed Anglo-Scottish Cup football for the following season.

It was on STV tonight so I’m gonnae comment on it. I’m commenting on it - some Bears will say “Why are you drawing attention to anti-Rangers publicity”. I don’t mention it and rabid Rangers-haters will say “Aye - you don’t even care that yer fans are being taken for Nazis in Israel”. Well, fuck both of those equally knee-jerk, brain-washed, Death-threat-to-follow-in-the-post-to-prove-how-much-I-”care” stances. I’m gonnae talk about it coz it’d be lax not to when a cheap but national TV station have given it a wee mench to a slightly wider, if far less erudite, audience and, more importantly, COZ I WANT TO.

Won’t be long, though, this rant, coz most of it’s been said before and none of it will make any difference to the people most likely to boot mah dangley testies for covering it up/publicising it. And I really want to talk about the fitbaw this week. After this rant I want to talk about how much Walter Smith’s 2nd reign will change in my depressed opinion if we do eliminate Hapoel Tel-Aviv … from the UEFA Cup, of course. Eliminate them from the UEFA cup.

During the downslope of the Advocaat reign we beat Aberdeen at Pittodrie on Remembrance Sunday - ye know, the Ricksen “kung-fu kick” game - and I did a rant about the totally innapropriate “stiff-armed” salute from the South Stand that evening. I got pelters from hard-line Ulstermen who expressed stiff, staunch disgust at my lack of knowledge, my stupidity in confusing a raised “Red Hand” with a “sieg heil”. I tried to put across the point that if I couldn’t distinguish then maybe Stefan Klos and Jorg Albertz had even less chance of making such a differentiation.

But it made nae difference to the disgusted.

I wasn’t in Tel-Aviv so I don’t know what reaction those Bears got on the night and I don’t know what they were singing at the time but I’m 99% sure it wiznae the Horst Vessel song. And why no publicity for the big Israel Flag of David displayed prominently by the Bears that night and why no publicity for the fact we display that same flag at other Gers games? When that fellah ran on the pitch and pissed himself as he tried to handcuff himself to the Broomloan Road post in our match againt Macabbi Haifa, he was a concerned Scot, picture of the Pope on his chest, Palestinian flag on his back, trying to make an anti-Israeli comment. But seems ye have to calibrate yer insults more carefully for STV or anyone else to see the inherent fucking stupidity in any posturing by anyone, against anyone, for anyone.

Not that those Bears in Tel-Aviv last Wednesday were deliberately insulting the Jewish race with a reference to the Third Reich. It’s just that, like the Combat 18ish logo on Stone Island gear, some folk find pseudo-fascistic apparel and miming to be extra, ye know, “hard”. When yer trying to express loyalty in one glamorous, psycho-sexual moment, rather than doing something quietly over a few years as the dull monotony of true loyalty requires, it’s best to do something which really grabs the attention. And it’s difficult not to do something which doesn’t involve certain body parts going a bit rigid. Know what I’m saying?!

Anyway, we get accussed of being Nazis merely for wearing a Rangers scarf - at least those Bears were fucking seriously going for it in their belief that their salute is universally recognised as being the very opposite of the auld Shutzstaffel shuffle, the auld Himmler hand-jive (Hitler’s own Nazi saulte was, of course, the campest, limpest little flap ye ever did see). When you do it in Israel you really must believe your cause is THAT popular or you must like taking a suicidal stance in educating those famously unpoliticised Israelis on the history of Ulster.

Was there any trouble in Tel-Aviv because of this? I don’t know. It certainly wasn’t publicised if there was. Someone write in and tell me if they know either way.

Was it a fucking stupid act on the part of those Bluenoses? Fuck yeah. Have I any right to condemn anyone for doing something stupid? Fuck no!

Was it an offensive act in the circumstances? Hell, yeah. Have I ever been offensive during a Rangers match? FUCK YEAH! Were any Israelis actually offended by it? Well, it appeared to be a tasty wee atmosphere in the Bloomfield but no home fans seemed to make a massive swoop for the visitors’ section at any point in the game, so, as per Villarreal, we can only assume the home fans weren’t aware they were being offended - didn’t realise what was “REALLY” going on - we’ll, yet again have to leave it up to those saintly public servants, internationalists and publicists, all from Scotland, to ensure people in Israel know just how vile Rangers fans REALLY are.

With respect to self-image, is it just me or are we now the most villified support in Scotland? Is it just me or was that very vilification not the badge of honour Celtic fans wore for the greater part of the 20th century? Who is being persecuted here and who is doing the persecuting? Which Scottish club’s flags are causing most offence - as per the one over the jungle in the fifties - and who is being seen as the vilest effect on society by the national media?

Something to consider: If Celtic, as we are told, are now making masses of money and their strip is a world-wide brand and, as Rangers fans are told and think David Murray fails to defend us from, we’re accussed of being hated by most of decent Scottish society, I do not want to hear one more use of the word “rebel” in connection with Ra Sellik or “Establishment” in reference to our good selves. Yer either a romantic oppressed cause or a dour overlord - neither Celtic nor Rangers can be both any longer. (even tho neither were ever either)

Any Hapoel Tel-Aviv fans reading this - any Jewish people reading this - we apologise for this rashly silly act. It really is not what it looked like but we should have all known what it looked like. You’re most welcome at Ibrox this week and always will be.

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Published:
02.19.07 / 11pm
Category:
News