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Qatar World Cup - Non Football Related Thread
Comments
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If he’s reading this I’d love to know @QatarNapsy
thoughts on all this as he’s undoubtedly the best placed to provide insight out of all of us2 -
He has, he's liked a couple of my posts.AFKABartram said:If he’s reading this I’d love to know @QatarNapsy
thoughts on all this as he’s undoubtedly the best placed to provide insight out of all of us4 -
Around 1979 I worked there on exploration deep gas drilling rigs, working on petroleum engineering & geology.
The whole country was very poor back then.Never stayed in Doha, went directly to the Shell base camp at Dukhan located western end of the peninsula.
At no time did I ever feel in danger. AlthoughEvery expat knew they had to behave themselves.
I still remember my company’s advice, “ if ever in a car accident where a local is injured, don’t stop just drive to airport & take first plane leaving the country!
Those were the days.2 -
Why, where're they based then?AFKABartram said:If he’s reading this I’d love to know @QatarNapsy
thoughts on all this as he’s undoubtedly the best placed to provide insight out of all of us6 -
Some place called Napsy I'd presume...Gribbo said:
Why, where're they based then?AFKABartram said:If he’s reading this I’d love to know @QatarNapsy
thoughts on all this as he’s undoubtedly the best placed to provide insight out of all of us6 -
I’ll be going to Qatar.
As a solo traveller I’ve had to put quite a bit of planning into parts of the trip. That includes speaking to / reading observations from people who have been or live there.
The general consensus from those people is that a lot of the media reports regarding what you can / cannot do are quite exaggerated.I’m expecting to have a good time, among the fanbases of 32 national teams. It won’t surprise me if at the very minimum there are a few things that don’t go to plan logistically at first, but I’m also not expecting it to be situation where every little detail is a complete disaster. The media will no doubt ensure that it looks that way, regardless.
There’s a hope that the opportunity for such a diverse mix of fans meeting in one place can help to promote inclusivity. Football is one of the few international vehicles that could make it happen on such a scale. Hopefully.Happy to report back my experiences during the tournament.11 -
Me too, if they ever approve my Hayya card application!cafctom said:I’ll be going to Qatar.
As a solo traveller I’ve had to put quite a bit of planning into parts of the trip. That includes speaking to / reading observations from people who have been or live there.
The general consensus from those people is that a lot of the media reports regarding what you can / cannot do are quite exaggerated.I’m expecting to have a good time, among the fanbases of 32 national teams. It won’t surprise me if at the very minimum there are a few things that don’t go to plan logistically at first, but I’m also not expecting it to be situation where every little detail is a complete disaster. The media will no doubt ensure that it looks that way, regardless.
There’s a hope that the opportunity for such a diverse mix of fans meeting in one place can help to promote inclusivity. Football is one of the few international vehicles that could make it happen on such a scale. Hopefully.Happy to report back my experiences during the tournament.1 -
If Ian hislop thinks Qatar is a sunny 40°C weird country that shouldn't host a world Cup, then so does a dave from charltonlife.
I like normal-ish countries. A country that doesn't generate a load of moaning, death, and getting arrested for displaying public affection.
Do they arrest dogs for humping each other in the street?3 -
Only the gay onesDave2l said:If Ian hislop thinks Qatar is a sunny 40°C weird country that shouldn't host a world Cup, then so does a dave from charltonlife.
I like normal-ish countries. A country that doesn't generate a load of moaning, death, and getting arrested for displaying public affection.
Do they arrest dogs for humping each other in the street?
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He's probably a bit busy right now, being an absolute player somewhere!AFKABartram said:If he’s reading this I’d love to know @QatarNapsy
thoughts on all this as he’s undoubtedly the best placed to provide insight out of all of us2 - Sponsored links:
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Sadly i'm not surprised. Poor bloke.Chizz said:0 -
I predict it to now be likely that gay people will probably purposely display public acts of affection during this world Cup.Chizz said:
While Brazil are celebrating lifting the world Cup, the camera will probably point out that steward happens to be sucking someone off in the stadium.
They might just do it on purpose to wind up the locals!0 -
Yeah but has he considered he'd be fine if he just respected their culture and ignored who he was?Chizz said:
Checkmate.0 -
So for me, should the World Cup be there?AFKABartram said:
Interested in your insights @FumbluffFumbluff said:
I’ve been twiceValleyGary said:Lots of Qatari experts on here. How many of you have actually been and experienced the country, its laws and its people yourselves?
No
Should there be any football reason that their bid was ahead of USA/anyone else’s bid?
No (and I’m nonplussed by the USA thinking it’s a footballing nation)Is Qatar any worse than Dubai/Ab Dabs etc?
No, not really
Do I think more or less than 7,000 migrant labourers died during the construction of the stadiums?
I think more, I think the gov’t won’t even know the real numbers. All the middle-eastern countries treat migrant labour (apologies, non-white migrant labour) appallingly whether that’s at the low end where you live in a nameless camp and are bussed to a different (and differently dangerous) building site every day and treated like shit before being bussed “home”, having random deductions from your salary by the people that keep your passport before allowing you to send some money home and keep enough for broth right up to the “executive end” immigrant who just has to be comfortable with being paid half as much in the same role as a white ex-pat (even though they’re likely better qualified)
Have I ever felt unsafe there?
No, I’ve probably only really ever felt unsafe in Moscow, parts of NYC and um, Leicester.Would I feel unsafe there if I was LGBTQ+?Yes, not from a being beaten perspective, more from a worry about arrest/having my passport removed etc. But I’d feel the same anywhere in the UAE. I had the current Mrs Fumbluff with me in Ab Dabs years ago before we were married and she felt very uncomfortable, even bought a costume jewellery ring so we’d appear married or more importantly she’d appear married when out on her own.There’s shitloads of problems across the whole region right and none of them are getting fixed by having the World Cup there but then none of them are getting fixed by me not watching it either.It is what it is, hopefully it being there and all the conversations around it might start conversations and hopefully will embarrass Fifa and the Qatari rulers.So I will watch it of course and I will look forward to every rainbow armband, every message written on a t-shirt shown direct to camera after a goal and anything else that will upset the hosts and the crooked organisers.For me the icing on the cake would be England winning it and as soon as Harry’s passed the trophy he gives a big old tongue sandwich to Raheem (if he makes the cut) with the whole world watching on TV.Peace and Love.22 -
Sometimes I feel we in the West feel like we've got a monopoly on the truth. I feel like the old mother's saying "people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones" is appropriate here. Not condoning Qatar's policies, but maybe we should look at all the bad stuff we do.7
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Arresting and imprisoning LGBT people isn't one of them.satsuma27 said:Sometimes I feel we in the West feel like we've got a monopoly on the truth. I feel like the old mother's saying "people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones" is appropriate here. Not condoning Qatar's policies, but maybe we should look at all the bad stuff we do.7 -
Fine point..And perhaps after all the unrelenting imposing of Western "values" on an Islamic country that shares no such "values" whatsoever,, AND NEVER WILL ~ we can finally let the football do the talking. I suspect, as always, there are some who aren't there for the football at all.satsuma27 said:Sometimes I feel we in the West feel like we've got a monopoly on the truth. I feel like the old mother's saying "people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones" is appropriate here. Not condoning Qatar's policies, but maybe we should look at all the bad stuff we do.0 -
Point well madesatsuma27 said:Sometimes I feel we in the West feel like we've got a monopoly on the truth. I feel like the old mother's saying "people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones" is appropriate here. Not condoning Qatar's policies, but maybe we should look at all the bad stuff we do.0 -
Probably need to visit a country to full understand it though, reality is often quite different from how the media likes to present things.ShootersHillGuru said:
Don’t need to visit to know about it’s laws and human rights abuses.ValleyGary said:Lots of Qatari experts on here. How many of you have actually been and experienced the country, its laws and its people yourselves?3 - Sponsored links:
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As much as I’m not homophobic I think it’s an easy thing to create about, how many gay fans will actually be attending? Very little I would imagine even groups such as gay gooners have tiny numbers.The 7000 odd that have died building the stadiums should be getting called out, majority of the Middle East uses Indian and Pakistani labour and they have v little health and safety or quality control so deaths are part of daily life for these poor people.Although not death 20 odd years ago who has used polish and Eastern European workers at a fraction of the cost of English workers. It’s a less extreme example
we as a country have used cheap labour in the past irish navvys who built the railways for example.2 -
the England fans that would come home in coffins from Poland/Ukraine 2012Stu_of_Kunming said:
Probably need to visit a country to full understand it though, reality is often quite different from how the media likes to present things.ShootersHillGuru said:
Don’t need to visit to know about it’s laws and human rights abuses.ValleyGary said:Lots of Qatari experts on here. How many of you have actually been and experienced the country, its laws and its people yourselves?
the black fans that would be persecuted in Russia 2018
the above never really happened, a load of Russians took a pasting ( although our media would have it otherwise ) in Marseilles at france 20161 -
palarsehater said:
Straying off topic but I'm going to haul you up on that last one. If some Russians lost some fights that's entirely Putin's fault, because he sent in a squad of highly trained thugs to deliberately stir it up. They then flew out sharpish leaving the mayhem to play out. It's well documented, and what's more the chair of CAST came face to face with them, and she's got Scottish street-smart antenna in her DNA. My neighbour also saw t and was thoroughly spooked by them. I don't call him Mad Vincent for nothing, he's absolutely massive and a child of Sparta Prague's terraces and student of ultra culture. Putin used France 2016 as well as the Russia tournament itself (and Sochi Winter Olympics) for geo-political purposes, and his invasion of Ukraine happened in part because he thought all three things had been successful for him, that he could manipulate the weak West and do as he pleases to Make Russia Great again.
the England fans that would come home in coffins from Poland/Ukraine 2012Stu_of_Kunming said:
Probably need to visit a country to full understand it though, reality is often quite different from how the media likes to present things.ShootersHillGuru said:
Don’t need to visit to know about it’s laws and human rights abuses.ValleyGary said:Lots of Qatari experts on here. How many of you have actually been and experienced the country, its laws and its people yourselves?
the black fans that would be persecuted in Russia 2018
the above never really happened, a load of Russians took a pasting ( although our media would have it otherwise ) in Marseilles at france 20161 -
haul me however you like but i was there 1st hand and witnessed30-40 cska moscow hoolis run in attack kids and shirters in a sqaure in the back streets of marseille, only to be pelted with bottles, chairs and the ones that were left run away and hid behind the police.PragueAddick said:palarsehater said:
Straying off topic but I'm going to haul you up on that last one. If some Russians lost some fights that's entirely Putin's fault, because he sent in a squad of highly trained thugs to deliberately stir it up. They then flew out sharpish leaving the mayhem to play out. It's well documented, and what's more the chair of CAST came face to face with them, and she's got Scottish street-smart antenna in her DNA. My neighbour also saw t and was thoroughly spooked by them. I don't call him Mad Vincent for nothing, he's absolutely massive and a child of Sparta Prague's terraces and student of ultra culture. Putin used France 2016 as well as the Russia tournament itself (and Sochi Winter Olympics) for geo-political purposes, and his invasion of Ukraine happened in part because he thought all three things had been successful for him, that he could manipulate the weak West and do as he pleases to Make Russia Great again.
the England fans that would come home in coffins from Poland/Ukraine 2012Stu_of_Kunming said:
Probably need to visit a country to full understand it though, reality is often quite different from how the media likes to present things.ShootersHillGuru said:
Don’t need to visit to know about it’s laws and human rights abuses.ValleyGary said:Lots of Qatari experts on here. How many of you have actually been and experienced the country, its laws and its people yourselves?
the black fans that would be persecuted in Russia 2018
the above never really happened, a load of Russians took a pasting ( although our media would have it otherwise ) in Marseilles at france 2016
as you say straying off topic apologies0 -
And I don't doubt that happened as you described. Russia has regular club fans who kick off, I've seen them over here for European league games and they are pretty much par for the course. Yugoslav club fans are a bit worse. The mob I'm referring to had no colours, moved quietly, dressed all in black, doubtless for maximum visual effect, then got out. Nowehere to be seen in actual Russia 2018, AFAIK. Very sinister and all about global political ambitions. That's the trouble with giant global sports events, they can be misused in this way. Qatar is being misused for political reasons too (although I'm not, of course expecting attacks on innocent fans by the Doha F-Block.palarsehater said:
haul me however you like but i was there 1st hand and witnessed30-40 cska moscow hoolis run in attack kids and shirters in a sqaure in the back streets of marseille, only to be pelted with bottles, chairs and the ones that were left run away and hid behind the police.PragueAddick said:palarsehater said:
Straying off topic but I'm going to haul you up on that last one. If some Russians lost some fights that's entirely Putin's fault, because he sent in a squad of highly trained thugs to deliberately stir it up. They then flew out sharpish leaving the mayhem to play out. It's well documented, and what's more the chair of CAST came face to face with them, and she's got Scottish street-smart antenna in her DNA. My neighbour also saw t and was thoroughly spooked by them. I don't call him Mad Vincent for nothing, he's absolutely massive and a child of Sparta Prague's terraces and student of ultra culture. Putin used France 2016 as well as the Russia tournament itself (and Sochi Winter Olympics) for geo-political purposes, and his invasion of Ukraine happened in part because he thought all three things had been successful for him, that he could manipulate the weak West and do as he pleases to Make Russia Great again.
the England fans that would come home in coffins from Poland/Ukraine 2012Stu_of_Kunming said:
Probably need to visit a country to full understand it though, reality is often quite different from how the media likes to present things.ShootersHillGuru said:
Don’t need to visit to know about it’s laws and human rights abuses.ValleyGary said:Lots of Qatari experts on here. How many of you have actually been and experienced the country, its laws and its people yourselves?
the black fans that would be persecuted in Russia 2018
the above never really happened, a load of Russians took a pasting ( although our media would have it otherwise ) in Marseilles at france 2016
as you say straying off topic apologies
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Dressed all in black surely not the famed Holmesdale Ultras?7
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What would Putin gain from sending a few roid heads to scuffle with some England fans and get them out?
fully accept russia had a massive presence there, I think putin sending them in is some proper tin foil hat stuff.5 -
Putin's overall strategy is to create uncertainty and confusion in the West. Sow distrust in the US electoral system per se, rather than anything as crass as Vlad saying "I support Trump". Similarly Brexit works for him because of the confusion and chaos it created both in the UK and across Europe. Remember the timing of France 2016 and the proximity to the referendum vote.Stu_of_Kunming said:What would Putin gain from sending a few roid heads to scuffle with some England fans and get them out?
fully accept russia had a massive presence there, I think putin sending them in is some proper tin foil hat stuff.
The Wikipedia page on the overall violence is a useful general reminder of what was done, and said, at the time. You may spot there, Putin's denial and criticism of the organised and gang. To which I'd add that the old joke "Never believe anything until the Kremlin denies it" is steeped in truth.1 -
It was Millwall in disguiseiaitch said:Dressed all in black surely not the famed Holmesdale Ultras?2 -
All of those things you mention are serious political events with a serious upside for Putin, a tear up at football really isn’t going to create any uncertainty or distrust.PragueAddick said:
Putin's overall strategy is to create uncertainty and confusion in the West. Sow distrust in the US electoral system per se, rather than anything as crass as Vlad saying "I support Trump". Similarly Brexit works for him because of the confusion and chaos it created both in the UK and across Europe. Remember the timing of France 2016 and the proximity to the referendum vote.Stu_of_Kunming said:What would Putin gain from sending a few roid heads to scuffle with some England fans and get them out?
fully accept russia had a massive presence there, I think putin sending them in is some proper tin foil hat stuff.
The Wikipedia page on the overall violence is a useful general reminder of what was done, and said, at the time. You may spot there, Putin's denial and criticism of the organised and gang. To which I'd add that the old joke "Never believe anything until the Kremlin denies it" is steeped in truth.1
