Red Rebels

Originally Posted by Chris Quayd

Knowing now that Walsh, Walker and a few other board members were also part of Militant in the 80’s makes it easier to understand why FC ended up how it did (in the shit).

Have to say, that does not surprise me in the slightest. Those I met personally in the 1980s/90s always struck me as somewhat creepy, more so than the SWP (if not the RCP, the weirdest of all)

Originally Posted by Seamus

what were you and zorg in the book for?

From memory a post of Zorg's on the FC forum is quoted. I don't recall Bunks being mentioned but I can't remember his usernames on the FC forum.

Originally Posted by suedeshoes

From memory a post of Zorg's on the FC forum is quoted. I don't recall Bunks being mentioned but I can't remember his usernames on the FC forum.

Which one more like

Originally Posted by red in cumbria

Have to say, that does not surprise me in the slightest. Those I met personally in the 1980s/90s always struck me as somewhat creepy, more so than the SWP (if not the RCP, the weirdest of all)

I know that you have since renounced Blair and well done for that but TBF they probably saw your your Blairite cheeleading at the time as somewhat creepy

Originally Posted by rubbernecker

I know that you have renounced Blair nowadays and well done for that but TBF they probably saw your your Blairite cheeleading at the time as somewhat creepy

We are talking mid 80s to early 90s period here pal, Blair was a relatively minor front bencher in the latter days of that.

Anyway, lets not go too far off topic

Originally Posted by Bunker Buster

The fight from within yep.....that would have worked....

You couldn't get people to go in 10 minutes late
Not buy pies at Birmingham..


97% of supporters are utter sheep.

The not buy pies in Birmingham stunt was a decent laugh.....Boyle got arrested, as he was being led away I advised him I had witnessed the event and would testify on his behalf in court

A copper at least half my age told me to “shut my £#%&!ing mouth” so I advised him I worked for the independent police complaints commission and took his collar number

His sergeant told me “sorry about that, he’s under a lot of stress” then the daft @#%&! I was wit told him I was actually a bin man

Originally Posted by red in cumbria

Have to say, that does not surprise me in the slightest. Those I met personally in the 1980s/90s always struck me as somewhat creepy, more so than the SWP (if not the RCP, the weirdest of all)

Tbf the issue wasn't what they were like as people, it was how they were professionally for want of a better phrase. A well organised and effective opposition, but long-term a disaster in power and did pretty much the opposite of what they campaigned on with regards to transparency and meritocracy.

Originally Posted by Chris Quayd

Tbf the issue wasn't what they were like as people, it was how they were professionally for want of a better phrase. A well organised and effective opposition, but long-term a disaster in power and did pretty much the opposite of what they campaigned on with regards to transparency and meritocracy.

Well, that sounds very much like the former Revolutionary Socialist League too.

Originally Posted by no fun

The not buy pies in Birmingham stunt was a decent laugh.....Boyle got arrested, as he was being led away I advised him I had witnessed the event and would testify on his behalf in court

A copper at least half my age told me to “shut my £#%&!ing mouth” so I advised him I worked for the independent police complaints commission and took his collar number

His sergeant told me “sorry about that, he’s under a lot of stress” then the daft @#%&! I was wit told him I was actually a bin man

Remember it well......the concourse was hilarious with the pie police trying to stop patrons from getting their half time feed..

Talk of full game boycotts and some folk couldn't go 90 minutes without a pastry top up.

Remember boylie seeing his arse big time about it .

Originally Posted by Jack Duckworth

it's a decent read, but it's basically just detailing forum posts for the most part.

i was stood next to andy walsh last night at radcliffe v rammy play off. was tempted to put it in the celebrity spots.

the driving instructor ?

Originally Posted by Seamus

the driving instructor ?

yep.

Sherran wasn't ex Militant, he was a Tory #@&%! who thought he was better than the hoi polloi supporters. he once referred to them in front of me, Vinny and Gally as the 'little people' at a steering meeting. Card marked from that point onward.
The Militant thing is overstated. It wasn't deliberate entryist tactics but just plain old corruption as Walsh edged out supporters and moved his old mates into lucrative positions. Non of them reds and all full of self aggrandising shit. They had to go. I've never seen anything like the venom and tenacity shown to get rid. Glad I was on the right side of history there.
I get three pages in the book....pretty sure I'm in line for a Chufty badge.

Originally Posted by red in cumbria

Have to say, that does not surprise me in the slightest. Those I met personally in the 1980s/90s always struck me as somewhat creepy, more so than the SWP (if not the RCP, the weirdest of all)

Originally Posted by Bunker Buster

The fight from within yep.....that would have worked....

You couldn't get people to go in 10 minutes late
Not buy pies at Birmingham..


97% of supporters are utter sheep.

Obviously wouldnt have worked in any real sense but it might have got fans issues elevated more quickly, drop of the acs, ticket pricing, allocations, singing bit. Small stuff but still.

Fc has had literally zero impact on mufc and it’s setting up was perfect for the glazers - get rid of all the effective opposing voices in one go.

And it was divisive for united fans - you had the holier than thou Judas fc crowd v the lazy apathetic glazer supporting scum.

Fortunately, no one gives a flying £#%&! about the whole thing now - certainly not from an mufc supporters point of view. Fc don’t even have a thread on here anymore.

But The whole thing changed me in 2005 - have never liked the club as much since and I think setting up of FC contributed to that because we lost a lot of decent fans and gained some ugly parasites when it all happened.

fc got relegated and it barely got a mention on here. it would have been a 10 page thread years ago (with me stirring it).

the only thing that will make the glazers leave is either violence, which isn't going to happen, or if their bottom line is drastically affected.

Originally Posted by Jack Duckworth

the only thing that will make the glazers leave is either violence, which isn't going to happen, or if their bottom line is drastically affected.

Stopping giving them money is the only way

Originally Posted by rubbernecker

Stopping giving them money is the only way

Only if who owns the club is more important to you than your enjoyment of it. For most fans of most clubs, ownership is a source of irritation, but they generally don’t go and set up new clubs.

I think most fc’ers claim to have lost their love for the modern game running up to 2005 - so they re-set their Amish clock to 1977 or something - long before most of them ever set foot in the place. And obv after we’d won the £#%&!ing lot being the most commercially savvy club in the universe.

Thank god this didn’t turn into a re hash of the last 14 years of argument .

Would genuinely rather walk the dog than watch football these days .

Originally Posted by rubbernecker

Stopping giving them money is the only way

That ship has sailed. Not only will there never be enough fans willing to do that, with the way the club makes money now the fans have even less power financially to make a difference. The Glazers have consolidated their position and the debt isn't as much of a millstone, certainly not enough to put the club in any danger. Though it's just enough to weigh us as we fade from relevance

Originally Posted by My Name is Keith

But The whole thing changed me in 2005 - have never liked the club as much since and I think setting up of FC contributed to that because we lost a lot of decent fans and gained some ugly parasites when it all happened.

Think this would have been inevitable no matter what happened with FC in '05, there was a sense of loss because people were worried about the future of the club in the Glazers hands. Somehow Fergie managed to put together one of our greatest teams which I think blinded plenty (myself included) that we could thrive even with the Glazers in charge but it proved unsustainable. It is now 10 years since the value era began, we lost Ronaldo and Tevez and replaced them with Valencia and Owen and it has been a gradual decline ever since.

Originally Posted by Chris Quayd

That ship has sailed. Not only will there never be enough fans willing to do that, with the way the club makes money now the fans have even less power financially to make a difference. The Glazers have consolidated their position and the debt isn't as much of a millstone, certainly not enough to put the club in any danger. Though it's just enough to weigh us as we fade from relevance



Think this would have been inevitable no matter what happened with FC in '05, there was a sense of loss because people were worried about the future of the club in the Glazers hands. Somehow Fergie managed to put together one of our greatest teams which I think blinded plenty (myself included) that we could thrive even with the Glazers in charge but it proved unsustainable. It is now 10 years since the value era began, we lost Ronaldo and Tevez and replaced them with Valencia and Owen and it has been a gradual decline ever since.

Agreed pal - fc contributed to my sense of loss I think. And agreed that 2008 really made the whole fc issue fade away. Putting lipstick on a pig moment.