There are 89 comments on this post Michael 30-Sep-13 at This needed saying Alex, l can not believe that this has been passed on by the media as some sort of jamboree. I really felt for the soldiers who got caught up in all the nonsense and hope it does not cost careers. What is wrong with dignified march on and off? Stupid in the extreme. Permalink Reply John Hamill 30-Sep-13 at This event has been totally body swerved by all Scottish media BBC, STV and all newspapers in Scotland. Protecting the Union at all costs. We get unbiased Referendum reporting from Russian TV but not our own. Permalink Reply Kevin 30-Sep-13 at I have to disagree with your assertion that sectarian songs and chants are a part of tradition and a fixture at Celtic Park. I appreciate th difficulty you have in reporting anything about events at Ibrox, and it may well be the safest path to tread by making sure to drag Celtic in to this, but quite frankly that has been a major part of the problems in Govan – very few will ever just tell it as it is without dragging Celtic in to it. Celtic supporters and Celtic FC have nothing to do with the disgraceful scenes shown above. Why mention them? Permalink Reply Bruce 30-Sep-13 at Totally agree Kevin. There was absolutely no need to bring Celtic into this piece. Permalink Reply Ronan 30-Sep-13 at I have to agree with Kevin above in terms of dragging the name of Celtic into this. I would add that you will not hear sectarian songs at Celtic matches either. What you may hear is what we in Ireland term “rebel” songs. These songs are political and in my view have no place at a sporting event, but sectarianism is not an issue with Celtic or the supporters. Permalink Reply John Reilly 30-Sep-13 at Alex I have to take issue with your comment “Now – love ‘em or loathe ‘em, sectarian songs are a fact of life and tradition in Ibrox as they are at Celtic Park” Sectarian songs are rarely, if ever, heard at Celtic Park following a campaign by Fergus McCann in the 1990s to eradicate them. What you hear at Celtic Park is harmless Irish ballads, cheesy 80s pop tunes and inventive songs celebrating Celtic Football Club. I would add that away games are different but again NO sectarian songs by definition, more edgy Irish rebel songs. At every match at Ibrox you will hear 99% of the time anti-catholic, anti-Irish and Loyalist songs, hardly any “Rangers” songs. Please stop lumping Celtic fans in with the triumphalist bigotry from The Rangers fans, we are not the same and we purposely try to be different. Permalink Reply Graham 30-Sep-13 at Actually Alex, it isn’t about the MoD, it is about the Scottish police. If they do not charge the 3 british soldiers who were photographed holding up the “Keep Ulster Protestant” scarf then they will be seen to be holding one law for those demonstrating anti-Catholic sentiment and a far different one for anyone espousing support for the IRA but not demonstrating any anti-Protestant sentiment. This, in the last year before the independence referendum, is a real test if Scottish Catholics can trust an independent Scotland. Permalink Reply Empires End 30-Sep-13 at I disagree. This is an element of the British armed forces showing their sectarian colours whilst wrapped in the union jack. The best, most effective way to counter them would be to vote Yes in September’s referendum, to end the British state and consign the union jack to history. Permalink Reply Jamie 30-Sep-13 at “sectarian songs are a fact of life and tradition in Ibrox as they are at Celtic Park” Sounds like you have never visited Celtic Park, You are just another journalist who feels the need to drag Celtic into what happened on Saturday, do you lot take night classes on how to mention Celtic whenever Dead Rangers or their New Club are embarrassing the nation ? Permalink Reply Rob 30-Sep-13 at Coming from Scotland and being athiest with a Catholic wife and kids, I’m appalled that in this day and age, members of the armed forces can be seen indulging in this ‘hate-fest’. If this had been to denigrate Muslims , Jews or even black people there would be an outcry and Im hoping (but not much) that we see such a reaction to this. I honestly worry about what kind of Scotland my kids will grow up in. It was bad enough in the 80′s and 90′s but I thought that we had left this behind. But Alex, I can assure you of one thing, its not that this got out of control, its the latter, more tragic explanation… sadly too many people did not – and will not – see anything wrong in what happened on Saturday. And some of these people will be very high up in the Armed Forces and the media. Permalink Reply Bert Dagastino 30-Sep-13 at Why the word Celtic even appears in this article is worrying. Sounds to me like Alex is eyeing up the Lamb on the menu! Permalink Reply kev keane 30-Sep-13 at Once again a journalist feels the need to drag Celtic into a story about Sevco – The Rangers, formally Rangers 1872, shaming themselves in front of thousands of onlookers and recording equipment. Please share with us these sectarian songs that are sung at regularly Celtic Park and please provide proof of thousands/hundreds/dozens of ‘fans’ singing these songs from a stadium that holds 60k+ supporters. Permalink Reply Mrs P!nk 30-Sep-13 at A good piece Alex but why even mention Celtic in it. As you have stated this is a PR disaster for HM Forces in Scotland and an on going problem at Ibrox. Celtic as a club do not need to be mentioned every time something is written about RFC/Sevco. Celtic do not even play in the same league as them so what they do is of no concern to the side from the East of the city. Permalink Reply Tom 30-Sep-13 at Having watched the video i totally echo your comments. the scary thing appears to be th silence within the scottish media. who by their ommitence of this report would endorse this outrageous situation. I am scottish and british and speechless. Permalink Reply Finlay 30-Sep-13 at The author says “It’s not about Rangers” in the opening sentence. Actually, trust me they’ll all be along in a minute berating you for daring to criticize something that involves Rangers. Permalink Reply bawsman 30-Sep-13 at I have 23 years service in the RAF, my daughetr is in the RAF, I have nephews and nieces in the services. These scenes are abhorant, the CO of this debacle should be carpeted and reamed. How could the leadership be so naive? Not once but twice in less than a year ? The services in Scotland are being played like a fiddle by some unsavoury characters running this once famous club. Permalink Reply b mcguire 30-Sep-13 at Well said that man..pride.tradition.discipline.honour..heads must roll Permalink Reply david 30-Sep-13 at You really should do a little bit of investigation (you are an investigative journalist after all sic!) before rhyming off such drivel. Amateur to say the least and vindictive and one sided at worst. Permalink Reply Joc 30-Sep-13 at You see Alex, the very same thing happened last year. It was like the last night of the proms on acid. Military just showing their true colours Permalink Reply pedrok 30-Sep-13 at Whilst I welcome these comments, particularly the silence from the Scottish media on this, why does the name of Celtic need to be dragged into this? What has this got to do with Celtic FC? Another journalist who cannot mention what goes on at Ibrox without some sort of evening up by mentioning Celtic. I doubt you will hear any sectarian songs at Celtic Park, as you claim. Permalink Reply Edgar Blamm 30-Sep-13 at Why are Celtic mentioned in this blog, Alex? Permalink Reply AJM 30-Sep-13 at No reporting of this in the Scottish media, just what the hell are they scared of? There is no excuse, this is a news story 100%, shameful on our so called media for not having the balls to cover it. Permalink Reply b mcguire 30-Sep-13 at Good piece alex but dont know why celtic fans are being mentioned in your article when they wernt involved..is it a tired “ones as bad as the other”shot? Permalink Reply Joe 30-Sep-13 at You are right Alex the Scottish media won’t report on this and if they do you can bet they will somehow drag Celtic into the story,oh wait.. Permalink Reply jimmy white 30-Sep-13 at Why have it in the first place? Audited accounts late, protests against the board were organised for the same day? Its about to be revealed that the club does not own any of the assets, they belong to the company that owns the club that will charge them rent for said assets from now to kingdom come, so maybe it was a slight of hand, a diversion, they used the military to their eternal shame. Permalink Reply Den 30-Sep-13 at Alex I think you need to issue an apology regarding ” it’s the same at Celtic Park” .. Celtic have moved on from that nonsense and troublemakers are dealt with. Celtic FC strives to remain purely about the football … we never did have a no signing policy. Permalink Reply Paul 30-Sep-13 at Another dereliction of duty by MSM in Scotland, and the head of Armed Forces in Scotland. Yet again its Alex Thomson who has to highlight another mess from Ibrox. Although, the board at Ibrox is not to blame this time. Ibrox is to be applauded for wanting to honour the Armed Forces. The lack of coverage of the behavior of some of the soldiers, sailors, and airmen is yet another example that the MSM in Scotland are scared of The Rangers. Permalink Reply Albalha 30-Sep-13 at There was abseiling at this game too bbc.co.uk/sport/0/scotland/24324150 Permalink Reply John wiiliamson 30-Sep-13 at Alex, the reason the Scottish media did not comment on this story is because of the Independence debate, this was a serious embarrassment to Unionists/No campaigners. If an event occurred which embarrassed the Yes campaign, it would have been all over the papers. ( Graham, it is difficult to answer your fears other than this sort of behaviour has been largely ignored by Westminster for 100 years, a No vote next year will just mean more of the same, a YES vote will at least give us a chance to create a better scotland away from the bitterness of Northern Irish politics, whilst at least respecting peoples rights and traditions, it may take a couple of generations but it will be worth it. Can you imagine the party at Ibrox next year if there is a NO vote, if you vote NO would you go along and enjoy Unionist triumphalism—don’t think so and neither will I) Permalink Reply David Hunter 30-Sep-13 at The forces could have marched around the pitch in silence with Rangers fans singing nursery rhymes and the same bigots would be offended. What I saw on Saturday was a lot of people enjoying themselves, this is too much for the bigots. You only need to look at the background of those offended, pro Celtic, pro IRA and frankly loathe anything British. Permalink Reply Daniel 30-Sep-13 at I have never heard a sectarian song sung at Celtic park Alex please elaborate Permalink Reply Christopher 30-Sep-13 at The British army are supposed to be impartial and conceal their sectarian anti Irish views behind closed doors. Talk about rubbing in British imperialism. Family members and survivors of the British war crimes in Ireland will be sickened by this. They are expected to keep to a pro British peace plan in Ireland while members of the armed forces revel in songs celebrating the killing of Irish people. This should unite Catholics and Protestants as they should be unified in their disgust of the sectarian racist behaviour of the overwhelming majority inside Ibrox. Permalink Reply Brianmac 30-Sep-13 at I really cannot understand why secterianism being publicly displayed by uniformed members of the armed forces is allowed. Are there not laws in Scotland prohibiting such behaviour? There appears to be a deafening silence coming from the Scottish Police, Armed Forces Command, politicians and, apart from the few, the British media. What response would there should this type of conduct have been directed towards religions other than Catholic or nations other than Irish? Well done Mr.Thomson once again. No doubt you will find yourself in the line of fire as before. Permalink Reply David Black 30-Sep-13 at A bit of the Scottish MSM mindset of “whataboutery” creeping in there Alex. The soldiers holding that scarf and the commanding officers that allow this debacle to happen should be sacked, it’s a simple as that. We need our army to protect all of our citizens and maybe more importantly be seen to be protecting all of our citizens regardless of race , creed or colour. Permalink Reply Jim 30-Sep-13 at Was this sash bash at the taxpayers expense? I know the tickets were free but if my taxes paid for travel and subsistence expenses it’s nothing short of a disgrace, bearing in mind the old club’s track record in this respect. Permalink Reply John Reilly 30-Sep-13 at And Alex you state at the beginning of your article, “It’s not about Rangers.” It’s very much about The Rangers as they invited the soldiers and despite the condemnation over last years events carried out an event even more over the top than the last. The Rangers are exploiting the armed forces in an attempt to put bums of seats for this newco. They are pandering to the lowest common denominator in their support as they know if they had started again and ditched the army, the loyalist and the sectarian baggage they would have a fan base the size of St Mirrens. Despicable behavior all round which requires the utmost condemnation. Permalink Reply stevo 30-Sep-13 at Its good to see a journalist who can do his job without prejadice or fear of the repercusions of speaking out againt the institution that is the Rangers football club. Its an disgrace that the scottish media is silent on what should be a major story. Permalink Reply mark s 30-Sep-13 at I have attended Celtic Park on well over 100 occasions since 1997 and have rarely heard any singing that could be construed as being sectarian. I am not Catholic or of Irish descent and would not go there if the atmosphere were sectarian. Celtic never operated a sectarian signing policy in contrast to Rangers, which did not end the practice until 1989. Since then there was a generally improvement in behaviour and ethos at Ibrox, but that has been in retreat as the (financial) fortunes of the club have declined. Sadly, the club appears to have become rather indulgent of this behaviour, and indeed appears to be exploiting it. I disagree that the servicemen could not have been expected to behave otherwise at Ibrox. Good heavens surely they are trained to behave properly and with restraint. One would hope that even if their commanders have the intelligence of “slugs” (a change from the traditional donkeys), that servicemen would be able to work out the implications of their actions. Permalink Reply John 30-Sep-13 at Cant believe that celtic fans are on here moaning about having their name brought into it,two football clubs with fans that shame Scotland.Can we not just have Glasgow moved to Ireland. Permalink Reply Peter 30-Sep-13 at An independent Scotland would see an influx of these loyalist weirdos into their spiritual homeland of Ulster. I really hope Scotland votes no. Permalink Reply Joe 30-Sep-13 at Alex, glad u have highlighted this disgust, having said that and as many before me have said, why mention celtic. Permalink Reply John 30-Sep-13 at While I agree with the broad thrust of your blog Alex, I note it didn’t take you long to lapse into the Scottism Media tradition of lumping in Celtic fans when posting anything remotely negative about Rangers FC, or indeed the subsequent tribute act. At fault here is the MoD, the Armed Forces Officers, various Armed Forces personnel, Rangers FC (the new one) and the various bigots in the stands, in that order starting with most culpable – with not a Celtic fan to be seen. It is not the first time a journo has been seen to backtrack when reporting on Scotland’s grubby little problem, probably for reasons of safety as, at the end of a long list, JIm Spence recently found out, but I’m disappointed to see that a battle hardened veteran of Middle Eastern reporting was not made of sterner stuff. Permalink Reply liz 30-Sep-13 at ‘So normal that is has barely been mentioned in the Scottish media, which speaks volumes’. – Alex I can assure you that this is not seen as normal by the vast majority of people in Scotland. The problem goes much deeper – we have a complicit media, including the BBC, because they want us to believe in the ‘benefit of the union’. It is one of the reasons why Scotland needs to become independent. Successive UK governments have swept this type of thing under the carpet for decades as it suits their purpose. After all the best way to control a population is to ‘divide and rule’, something the British establishment is supreme at. We in Scotland are fighting a daily battle with the media due to ‘inaccurate statements – I’m being coy here – being reported as fact concerning independence. We have to rely on blogs to get to the truth. BTW Bela Caledonia and wings over Scotland have also highlighted what happened at Ibrox. So thank you for highlighting this and it would be great to get proper truthful articles on Scottish independence. Permalink Reply joe strummer 30-Sep-13 at British troops in pro-British songs shocker ! Hold the front page ! Permalink Reply anthony 30-Sep-13 at pro-british the may well be, but when they are anti irish and anti catholic, if my ears serve me right, then they are secterian. Permalink Reply joe strummer 30-Sep-13 at anthony -. Can you tell us all which ” sectarian songs “mentioned the term Catholic at Ibrox on Saturday ? Any of these songs will suffice. Also, how can Derry’s Walls be anti-Irish when Derry is in Ireland ? Presumably, you were there at Ibrox and heard all of the above ? Permalink Reply liz 30-Sep-13 at Joe – it wasn’t so much pro British that was the problem – it’s much more serious than that- on the Bella Caledonia web- site they have a photo of some of these soldiers holding up a ‘Keep Ulster Protestant’ scarf. Permalink Reply Offended One 30-Sep-13 at Firstly, I was there secondly, I was going to respond in detail, but you know what Thomson, you’re not worth it Like the sad cretins who’s twisted and sad agenda you help promote you are worthless. You all play the victim card so well, that’s because you are Victims! Victims of your own self made delusion, Victims of your own lack of self belief in your worth, Victims in the belief that you are worthless, Victims, Victims, Victims. Sad, really sad. No one that really matters gives a s*** about what you or Ill Phil or Haggerty or Greenslade actually think. Permalink Reply submariner 30-Sep-13 at As an ex member of the submariner service I am totally disgusted by the behaviour of those service personnel some of them fellow submariners at Ibrox who took part in what can only be described as an orgy of sectarian bigotry. Having served in Scotland I like everyone else am familiar with the sectarian bigotry that is endemic within the inbox support,it beggers belief that the MOD brass are ignorant of this fact and after last year’s equally revolting goings on at Ibrox on remembrance weekend the decision to allow this is unforgivable. Heads have to roll. Permalink Reply Dave 30-Sep-13 at Fail to see why anyone in the UK would be offended by Rule Britannia. I also wonder what type of reception our troops will receive when they are invited to Parkhead. I will not hold my breath. Permalink Reply Luke Campbell 30-Sep-13 at Alex Thomson must have better hearing than me, since I couldn’t hear the sectarian singing that he mentions here. I see that many “edjukated peepel” are commenting on how he can “do his job without prejadice or fear of the repercusions” (sic). Is this sort of illiteracy and mock-faux-uber-offence what the world is coming to today? I’m pleased to say that most of my friends are Celtic fans – and, shock horror, Catholics to boot. They, like me, would very likely be astonished that Alex seems to have been brainwashed by the despicable Green Brigade (who all decent football fans abhor, let me say) I’d be happy to speak to Alex about this – I’m all for unbiased reporting of the press, but this seems to me be (a) unfounded and (b) more about giving Rangers FC a bad name. Wow. Just wow. You get money for this. Give it back, you’re not a journalist if you publish nonsense like this. Permalink Reply Davie Jones 30-Sep-13 at I just can’t get enough of the manufactured outrage over this total non event and made up lies. There were no sectarian songs sung at Ibrox on Saturday. If there were any chants concerning the UVF ,this was in honour of the World War 1 Division of the Ulster Volunteer Force who fought at the Somme and who bravely laid down their lives for our country. Anyone who has a problem with any of the above and our troops behaviour on Saturday is obviously a bigot and an anti-British Racist. Permalink Reply auchinstarry 30-Sep-13 at And The Dublin Fusiliers fought there too. Would you EVER show respect for them? Doubt it. Permalink Reply alex mitchell 30-Sep-13 at Do you get paid for writing this rubbish as a rangers fan I’m proud that my club honours our armed forces unlike another club in glasgow who seem to hate anything to do with britain and our armed forces Permalink Reply Anthony 30-Sep-13 at Alex, as a regular attendee at Celtic park with my son I can categorically state that secterian songs are not sang there. unless you can provide evidence to the contrary i expect you to correct the blog above. You unfortunately have fallen into the ‘whataboutery’ trap peddled by scottish mediots (hacks). to state it is not about ‘The Rangers’ is also a kop out. they invited the army, it was their ground, their supporters and their disgusting songbook. Permalink Reply Jim 30-Sep-13 at Usual anti-Rangers blog from yourself, but koudos that you managed to drag the east end knuckle draggers into it as well.. How about next time blogging about the State funding from the GCC to celtic, through very dubious land deals..I won’t hold my breath on that though.. I will though eagerly await the EC investigation (and their is one) findings and then see if any “mhedia” run with it!! Permalink Reply auchinstarry 30-Sep-13 at What utter desperate nonsense from another Sevconian in Denial. Permalink Reply Robert Watt 30-Sep-13 at Why isn’t Alex asking why a similar event could not take place at Parkhead? As he rightly says, our service personnel are asked to fight in places like Afghanistan with little support or thanks from voters or politicians. Those on the field at Ibrox clearly appreciated the support they got from the crowd. Wouldn’t our soldiers, sailors and airmen – of whom many are Celtic fans – appreciate a similar reception at Parkhead? More to the point, would the more extreme elements among the Celtic support, from whom the club are running scared, allow it? Permalink Reply Daniel 30-Sep-13 at I will not celebrate men who travel half way across the world to kill other men purely because of corrupt politicians. They are all murderers. IRA, British army all of them. No place in my sacred ground for any of them. Permalink Reply Steven Daley 30-Sep-13 at Scottish media will not report on this adeqautly if at all, however watch them spring into action in november when the focus will inevitably shift to celtic fans as it does every year Permalink Reply Ian 30-Sep-13 at My father, a Catholic and Celtic supporter, was immensely proud to his dying days of his ten years of service in the Royal Navy. His pride extends to me and I share that pride as part of my memory of him. Where do people like him fit in with this warped mindset that we saw on Saturday? Into the bargain all of us fund the armed forces through our taxes and they are there to protect us all. The Government need to assure us last Saturday will never be allowed again. Permalink Reply Bruce 30-Sep-13 at Oh and whether the songs were sectarian is to some degree beside the point. The event was supposed to be a celebration of and tribute to the forces. What does it say of the Sevco support that all they could do was revert to type and drag out songs about NI, Bobby Sands, Derry, etc that have absolutely zero to do with the occasion. Permalink Reply BP300 30-Sep-13 at Nothing is reported that is contrary to the Unionist stance, or it is downplayed to make it seem insignificant. There was furore in the Scottish press and BBC Scotland, covered over two weeks, when tweets, which could not be found or substantiated, were supposed to have been directed at a comedienne. But when the Leader of Labour in Scotland,a few days ago in a Labour Conference speech, labelled those voting for Independence as virus that needed to be dealt with, it was covered with by a few questions in a single interview, then let drop after a few anodyne replies by the politician. Permalink Reply 61patrick 30-Sep-13 at keeps telling me i,m posting too quickly :) ) Alex It Frank mullholland(lord advocate) Stepen House (strathclyde police) Salmond,MacKaskill & Christine Grahame (No comment) who should be asked questions about their sectarian policy in Scotland that applies to every street and ground in the country accept Ibrox seemingly. Last week a 16year old bhoy was banned from every football ground in scotland and fined over £1000 for less than went on at ibrox on sat . Maybe if the soldiers had been teenagers and wearing green tops the above would have sent in their FOCUS storm troopers to “kettle” them. Independent Scotland “AYE RIGHT”(IMHO) every catholic or should I say non protestant in Scotland should be very afraid of handing Salmond & his fabric of society ilk power if they only apply their laws to certain groups and creeds and let oters go unabated. “Scotlands shame “does not begin to cover what went on at Ibrox on Saturday. Have you any comment Mr Salmond??????????????????????? Permalink Reply Davie Jones 30-Sep-13 at Why do Celtic play Irish rebel songs over the tannoys before their games at Celtic Park? What do these songs have to do with football? Permalink Reply auchinstarry 30-Sep-13 at The songs played at Celtic Park are Irish songs. Not Irish rebel songs. There is a difference. Anyway popcorn Jelly and ice cream at the ready for the NEXT Administration…! Look forward to Third Rangers starting out in the Junior League….HH Permalink Reply Auldheid 30-Sep-13 at The only problem I have with the short mention of Celtic which is a generalisation, is that it introduces a squirrel to take the debate away from the central issues. Celtic’s record on sectarianism speaks for itself – let it. In the meantime lets be grateful that somebody somewhere has the balls to call this whole episode as it was. Disgraceful. However the First Minister has been noticeable in his absence on any comment regarding anything about Scottish football, which for something that is part of the social fabric of the nation, is puzzling. His flagship Offensive Behaviour Bill has been flaunted by HM’s armed forces, whilst officers of law and order stood and watched. Not confidence filling in terms of fairness and the kindle for future fires. Independence is not an end in itself, it is a means to a more civil and equitable society. I see little evidence that those left to govern in an independent Scotland have the ability to deliver the end game. Quite the reverse actually. Permalink Reply joe strummer 30-Sep-13 at You’re correct, Auldheid. Celtic’s record on sectarianism does speak for itself. How long was it before a Protestant was allowed onto the Celtic Board…….more than 100 years ? This current Celtic Board rarely if ever condemns the songs weekly belted out in support of sectarian anti-Protestant and anti-British IRA death squads. I think that sums up quite nicely Celtic and their supporters record on sectarianism and racism. Permalink Reply KenB 30-Sep-13 at I served with the Irish Defence Forces for 12 years, including in the early 1990s before the formal beginning of the peace process in N. Ireland. We are not the British Army, but I can say this: if you displayed any sympathies towards the IRA our commanding officers would see to your removal. Get seen at a parade, a gathering or even entering or leaving the wrong pub…and you were out. I’ve heard our lads worked well (at least for their part) with most of the BA in Bosnia/Kosovo, but there was always a different relationship with the Scottish Units…Black Watch, etc. It was definitely keep your distance. Sorry. But this fiasco has deeper roots. Permalink Reply deliasmith 30-Sep-13 at I would like to thank Davie Jones for a genuine laugh out loud moment. Here’s a snap for your scrapbook: bellacaledonia.org.uk/2013/09/29/on-parade/ Permalink Reply john 30-Sep-13 at Maybe we should sing songs telling British soldiers to go home like a certain mob. Would that appease you Alex? Should we throw up some banners denouncing the poppy and desecrate cenotaphs and such? Should we stop raising thousands of pounds for Help for Heros, Erskine, The Poppy Appeal, amongst others? Whats the problem with hosting the forces and letting them let their hair down for a bit? This is the 21st century and they were having a great day. Dancing along, clapping away and doing ‘the bouncy’. Nothing wrong with that! So what if some supporters were singing a naughty bit about a dead terrorist. The forces took no part in that. Should also be remembered that the Ulster Volunteer Force fought bravely abroad to ensure our very rights and freedoms that we have today were secured. Such a shame poor journalists cannot differentiate between both. All you had to do was check over to Belfast for the Ulster Day Parade for a preview God bless our troops and lest we forget our fallen heros Permalink Reply Murvis 30-Sep-13 at Alex, you freely admit you do not know if the forces were singing sectarian songs but you still insist on tarring them with the same brush as the bigots perhaps you ought to try being a soldier, and then you might appreciate how important it is to have the public support, instead of blaming them for your views on intolerance but then we really should not be surprised at this article,, you really have it in for Rangers don’t you? what journalistic integrity you ever had has now been washed away with your self righteous smugness Permalink Reply Colin 30-Sep-13 at Why do you always report on rangers ?? You clearly have an agenda ! Celtic were on the verge of banning theyr own fans for all thier singing yet they come on here saying you never hear those songs at our ground ! Aye right ! Also they would never celebrate our armed forces at parkhead for obvious reasons even tho plenty of servicemen are celtic fans ! Stop being so green Permalink Reply stuart thomson 30-Sep-13 at You werent even at the game so you dont know what went on wasnt sectarian singing why dont you go learn the full meaning of songs fathers advice has nothing to do with uvf of this day same goes for songs such as derrys walls etc rule brittannia is a british song the sash wasnt sung and is a folk song which has been ruled in court so do your homework before actually commenting about something you clearly no nothing about Permalink Reply Pete 30-Sep-13 at We all know in Scotland that The Rangers are a sectarian club with a deep hatred for Irish Catholics especially, or anyone who dares challenge their myopic world view, so surely it is no surprise that they disgrace themselves when presented with a red rag like a British military parade on their turf. What this has to do with a Scottish third tier football match is anyone’s guess. The Rangers are not a national side, they are a club, a new club at that, but we have this shameful, tawdry spectacle served up by this ailing newco to placate the base elements of their support. Shame on all concerned. Scotland Shame strike again. And no, I am not a Celtic fan. Permalink Reply Davie Jones 30-Sep-13 at Delia What have you got against Protestants and British Protestants at that? Permalink Reply Ashamed and sickened 30-Sep-13 at I have one question for the SFA and the Scottish Media. Did anything of note happen at ibrox Stadium during Saturday’s Rangers v Stenhousemuir match ? COWARDS ! Permalink Reply whataboutery 30-Sep-13 at Alex You’ve made a bit of a faux pas by mentioning Celtic : Celtic fans will be quick to sieze on any link with Celtic and any mention of “sectarian” singing on their part at Parkhead because now we are into semantics . Celtic fans know full well what their travelling fans are like and they totally understand the point you are making but this will always be dismissed as not sectarian – even though their non “sectarian” songs are intended to cause as much offence as possible and are every bit as bad as the sectarian bile coming from Rangers fans. It;s disingenuous of them to erfer to parkhead as some kind of garden party post Fergus McCann. I have to link to either OF club or Glasgwow : I support neither club. I am sick of the pomposity of Celtic fans on this matter. But then this couldn’t possibly happen at Parkhead as British troops aren’t welcome there – re banner protestsin recent seasons by the Green Brigade which Celtic FC allowed to happen. None of this detracts from what happened at Ibrox and the MOD will hopefully as adddress this. Permalink Reply Peiroro 30-Sep-13 at All British servicemen should be unashamedly proud in the fantastic job in smashing the scum of the IRA. The real disgrace is Alex Thomson and the anti-British agenda of Channel 4. Permalink Reply Iain 30-Sep-13 at Whilst asking why Rangers invited the Armed Services to Ibrox perhaps a pertinent question is why Celtic Football Club cannot invite members of the Armed Forces who support Celtic to the Stadium as a gesture of gratitude for the work that they undertake…….. Permalink Reply david 30-Sep-13 at To all the apologists tellung us that you dont hear sectarian singing at Parkhead every week have a wee look. celtic-lyrics/lyrics/536.html Unless of course IRA songs are not sectarian ( rolls eyes) Permalink Reply D-Day 30-Sep-13 at “Why isn’t Alex asking why a similar event could not take place at Parkhead?” +++ Probably because…Alex can’t think of too many other FOOTBALL clubs in Britain, who go to such lengths to show their Brittshness/Support for troops/Fill their ground. Was it not Sir David of Moonbeams who introduced the filling of stadia show of support against Unirea? Followed by Sir Craig of White Elephant Castle… And now calibrated by the Evil Emperors of: Mather, Stockbridge and GREEN:) A tad hypocritical of the ‘Deady Bears’ to start supporting the troops now, having denied them of millions of tax investment…don’t you think? Permalink Reply sid 30-Sep-13 at Our media are a huge part of the problem. You always hear people saying how important it is for the media to hold people to account. Not only is the Herald not reporting the scenes at ibrox they are only allowing positive comments, North Korea style. Permalink Reply David Dickson 30-Sep-13 at You have posted a video to your blog, maybe you will post the you tube video of the greatest fans in the word at the Emirates stadium London a couple of years ago, now thats what you call sectarian singing and for all the celtic crying we dont sing sectarian song anymore, check you tube and the nice little boys of the groin brigade have been posting videos of themselves singing sectarian songs at celtic park. Permalink Reply Craig 30-Sep-13 at Only from the “always offended” lot of celtic supporters would you hear them say there is no sectarian songs etc at parkhead and that media is only ignored when coming from Ibrox. The amount of “sweep-sweep” from celtic in recent years is ridiculous. Ultimately, if you don’t like these scenes you know what you can do, don’t watch them, reel your neck back in and remove yourself from this British country if you’re so offended, do us all a favour! Permalink Reply Gary 30-Sep-13 at At least they get a warm welcome at Ibrox, I wonder what the response would be at Parkhead, a Scottish team, based in Scotland that is a country within the United Kingdom. To say anything about the British Army is a joke, its not karaoke, do you think the soldiers were putting in requests to 40 odd thousand fans? i somehow don’t think so. What team supported the sad tragedy in the loss of soldier Lee Rigby? what team goaded that? what team insulted our great British Army for actions in war zones with banners that were not the smallest in the world and professionally made? who still chant “go on home british soldiers, go on home, have you got no homes of your own”, “look out maggie thatcher, the bhoys are gonna get ya”. absolute farce, but i suppose the countrys media is all anti-rangers these days. Permalink Reply davie jones 30-Sep-13 at Auchinstarry; Celtic play songs over the tannoy which are linked with violent Anti British hatred. Permalink Reply Matt m 30-Sep-13 at This article is a joke. Being proud of the soldiers who lay their lives on the line for queen and country is no crime another celtic minded journalist looks to me. You only have to look at celtic park where they sing pro ira songs. And hate everything brittish including our queen our flag and country poor show no shame in hounoring our troops and shall we continue . Lest we forget ! Permalink Reply John 30-Sep-13 at Excellent Alex !!! I think this is disgusting for our armed forces to parade in front of bigoted vermin like many of these in this crowd who thrive on hatred, I have many friends who are Rangers Supporters and many are Celtic and Rangers fans in the Military, having worked in the Falklands, Bosnia and six years in Iraq with the troops whom I had the upmost respect for with my late father being a soldier in Burma, but this I feel is disgusting this should be front page on all media sites as well as TV News headed British Troops Condone sectarianism. Permalink Reply - See more at: blogs.channel4/alex-thomsons-view/armed-forces-involvement-sectarian-rangers-protest-pr-disaster/6182?replytocom=21686#respond
Posted on: Mon, 30 Sep 2013 15:15:42 +0000
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