Comments on: SPSC and Beitar Jerusalem: same coin, different sides

By: Avram

Avram — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 13:55:12 +0000

“For the benefit of Avram who doubts that Beitar fans cheered for their Croatian player to be made IDF Chief of Staff”

Thanks for the cheeky comment Judy – I didn’t ‘doubt’, I just said, “Don’t remember this … Source please”

“They also chanted ecstatic praise to Saddam for bombing Tel Aviv.”

I assume you’ve never been to games in Israel? The “Jerusalem is burning’ chant by Tel Aviv fans is common, as is the “May your village burn down” to Sachnin fans. It’s part of the rivarly, which I personally find goes way too far.

“But then as far as I know the Chelsea fans who do hissing noises with accompanying chants about the Yids Being On The Way to the Gas about Spurs fans are also free of physical violence. ”

I thought most fans do that to Spurs fans? Didn’t Bosnich do his famous ‘Nazi salute’ while with Chelsea? I’m sure it relates to the core of their fan base in the 1940s – or at least I read something about that once!

By: Paul Frenkel

Paul Frenkel — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 07:46:56 +0000

yes, Shamir’s nom de guerre was Michael, as in Michael Collins. And I learned from Irish friends the view that there was neither relation nor resemblance between the freedom fighters of the 1916-21 period and the Provos of the 70s-90s. Hence I do try to be careful in making this clear in my occasional unwarranted interference in the affairs of distant peoples ;)

By: Judy

Judy — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 00:57:06 +0000

For the benefit of Avram who doubts that Beitar fans cheered for their Croatian player to be made IDF Chief of Staff:

Fans celebrate and scream above all others: “Kale,
Ramat Kal. Kale, Ramat Kal. I ask my neighbor what it means.
Smiles. He explains that Tvrtko Kale (photo) is the name of the port
team, Croatian, and Ramat Kal is the abbreviation of
which means the head of the Israeli armed forces.
Kale days ago appeared on television: “Many friends ask me
how can we tolerate that Hamas continues to hit Sderot and
Ashkelon, “he said. “We Croats have had the same problem
and we solved shooting and killing. Fifty sixty
to try to make peace, without any result. Israel also
should do like us, “said striking with the fist
hand. He added: “Enough.” “Kale had the
courage to say what the politicians do not say, “commented
our neighbor’s place. Guy is not only Israel and the members of the
Family singing. The cry rose from the stadium.

I originally read about Kale on an Israeli site in English, but can’t find that site.

This is a Google translation of this article in Italian. An English article here mentions that the management of Beitar did make some efforts to stop the racist chanting but clearly not nearly enough.

They also chanted ecstatic praise to Saddam for bombing Tel Aviv. Which, taken with the other chants, suggests that they love playing up to their bad-boys image. “Everybody hates us and we don’t care”. Only given that Hebrew reads from right to left, maybe their version is “We hate everybody, and we don’t care.”

I agree that unlike the most renowned English football hooligans, Beitar fan’s violence is purely verbal. But then as far as I know the Chelsea fans who do hissing noises with accompanying chants about the Yids Being On The Way to the Gas about Spurs fans are also free of physical violence. No Spurs fan, gentile or Jewish, has ever been gassed or even merely beaten senseless by these Chelsea fans.

By: Alec M

Alec M — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 22:42:39 +0000

David, Michael… as in Liam Neeson.

By: zkharya

zkharya — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 22:27:30 +0000

“Joe90Kane recently suggested that a genocide of Zionists would be a “good idea”. Andy Newman excised it on the reasoning that he’d “inadverently” called for violence.”

Hilarious.

By: David All

David All — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 21:44:19 +0000

Which was what, Alec M.

By: Alec M

Alec M — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 21:14:38 +0000

>> Both the Palestinian Arab organizations and Irish Republicanism from the Provos onwards were characterized largely by two joint characteristics: very great self-love and the deliberate targeting of civilians in terror operations.

Good that you specified the Provos, Paul, considering Yitzhak Shamir’s code-name.

By: Alec M

Alec M — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 21:02:01 +0000

PS My favourite colour is and always will be red, ‘cos of the whole Rangers/Celtic thing.

By: Alec M

Alec M — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:59:11 +0000

During Cast Lead, some bearded twat from my town was ejected from the Tulloch stadium in Inverness for wearing a keffiyeh. At the same time, the Algerian defender/midfielder Madjid Bougherra playing for Rangers received censure for doing similar.

Joe90Kane recently suggested that a genocide of Zionists would be a “good idea”. Andy Newman excised it on the reasoning that he’d “inadverently” called for violence.

By: David All

David All — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 18:11:06 +0000

The racism of some of Beitar’s fans and the pandering to it by Beitar’s management is much like that of some of America’s Major League Baseball teams during the 1950s that were slow to intergrate their teams with Blacks & Hispanics. It was notable particularly in the American League that some teams’ management put off intergration as long as they could in an appeal to the more racist fans. And even when they did intergrate they did so with Black & Hispanic players that were non-stars. In the American League nearly all of the star players were White until the 1970s.