Moeen Ali and the 'Free Gaza' wrist band

[Marius]

Well done.

Posted a picture to prove what?

That sport has been used as a platform for political agendas before?

Obviously, that's not what this debate is about.

 

[nightprowler10]

If you want to show your support to a cause that is near and dear to you, and you'd like to do it at the cost of some income/temporary disruption in employment, then more power to you. I do disagree with the wisdom or need behind it since he was not playing against Israel nor are they a power involved in ICC decision making.

 

[YorksLanka]

I cautiously agree with your view, but it also seems somewhat hypocritical of the ICC to ban players from making political statements when it makes them itself. If the ICC view is that politics should be kept out of sport, then why did it ban teams from playing South Africa during the Apartheid era (a decision I agree with)?

And the fact that Srinivasan is banned by the Supreme Court of a India of being head of the bcci BUT then appointed head of the ICC?

 

[Furball]

**** some of you guys would hate me if I was a sportsman. I'd be ridiculously outspoken about some of my causes.

 

[Burgey]

Not content with proving the point with his cricketing posts, Blocky takes the "I won't be called an ignorant fool if I post seven paragraphs when four lines would do" approach to geopolitical issues.

At least there's consistency. But buffoonery is still buffoonery.

 

[Burgey]

**** some of you guys would hate me if I was a sportsman. I'd be ridiculously outspoken about some of my causes.

Did you become involved with them on your gap yah?

 

[Howe_zat]

I much prefer the former myself, but then that's me. I do agree overall.

At the end of the day I don't really have a problem with the ECB telling him it's not on, but I don't think the ICC really should've been involved. Either way I'm not all that fussed as long as it's consistent.

I'm not convinced it is, because of the charities loophole. Help For Heroes for example strikes me as having heavy political connotations.

 

[GIMH]

I'm not convinced it is, because of the charities loophole. Help For Heroes for example strikes me as having heavy political connotations.

You can support soldiers without supporting the cause though right?

Though you could, of course, say the same for the victims of the current mess

 

[zaremba]

This is an awful, wretched thread.

Ali wore a couple of wristbands which he has now taken off because the ICC asked him to. Very little indeed to see here, and basically nothing cricket-related. Can the discussion not be resolved in OT, or if necessary in the car park?

 

[bagapath]

There are innocent civilians in Gaza to whose suffering and death Ali was drawing attention, and whose plight deserves to be discussed, you selfish ****.

yeah sure. but moen is paid to play cricket. and he is on tv because he is playing cricket for England. he should keep his political views to himself because no one is switching on tv to hear his thoughts on global issues. if I need to hear about Palestine I will seek better informed, more intelligent people who write and speak on that topic. moen should shut up and play the game. of course he can quit cricket and take up any cause. but he cant ambush cricket fans who turn on tv to watch the sport and not to hear the political opinion of a sportsman. I don't want to see someone wearing a pro israel band and fight for their cause in retaliation. there are many causes to fight for, we know. but cricketers should not misuse the platform given to them to air their political views.

 

[NZTailender]

Well done.

Posted a picture to prove what?

That sport has been used as a platform for political agendas before?

Obviously, that's not what this debate is about.

That sport doesn't sit in some kind of vacuum where human rights don't exist, where we should ignore the rest of the world and just get on with business. I agree that it's not the best platform and perhaps sports people shouldn't play advocate but there are times when stands need to be taken to show that something bad is happening that is worth thinking about (and maybe even doing something about) while you get an ad for a reality show about nothing between overs.

Everything has an affect, and sport isn't immune. If it were, Pakistan would still be playing their Tests at home.

 

[Burgey]

This is an awful, wretched thread.

Ali wore a couple of wristbands which he has now taken off because the ICC asked him to. Very little indeed to see here, and basically nothing cricket-related. Can the discussion not be resolved in OT, or if necessary in the car park?

/thread.

 

[andmark]

I'm getting sick of the random escalations and insults in the threads with Gaza as part of discussion

 

[Dan]

I'm getting sick of the random escalations and insults in the threads with Gaza as part of discussion

As am I.

So I've gone through and done a mass delete, because seemingly my last post on the matter wasn't clear enough. The political discussion on Israel/Gaza sticks to Off Topic.

This thread is not the place to argue whether Israel is justified in its actions. Intersections between politics and sport, fine. Moeen Ali's freedom of speech rights while on a cricket field, yes. Specificities of the Israel/Gaza conflict to beat up other posters who disagree? Not in CC.

As a general rule, if you are taking a stance on the Israel/Gaza conflict itself in your post, I will not hesitate to delete it and infract you.

​Last warning.

 

[Hurricane]

Just lock the thread Dan. I can't think of anything else to say on the matter that is on topic and hasn't been said.

 

[subshakerz]

So he felt strongly about the issue, but to be fair, he should not be wearing the wristbands. But some posters are going overboard by suggesting that he be fined or something. He was requested to take them off, which he did, which has the unintended effect of creating more awareness on the issue. So there's no problem as far as I see.

 

[bagapath]

So he felt strongly about the issue, but to be fair, he should not be wearing the wristbands. But some posters are going overboard by suggesting that he be fined or something. He was requested to take them off, which he did, which has the unintended effect of creating more awareness on the issue. So there's no problem as far as I see.

no mate, this should be strongly discouraged through fines, warnings etc. would the world be singing the same tune if a cricketer wore a "destroy gaza" wristband? it is silly to allow these guys to misuse the public platform they are provided. though, in my opinion, moen's views are in synch with me on this instance, there can be times when one of these guys may go totally against my opinion. and that is when one will be pissed off that they are exploiting your love for sport to shove down their ideologies. so it is better to discourage this kind of fake activism seeping into sports.

 

[subshakerz]

no mate, this should be strongly discouraged through fines, warnings etc. would the world be singing the same tune if a cricketer wore a "destroy gaza" wristband? it is silly to allow these guys to misuse the public platform they are provided. though, in my opinion, moen's views are in synch with me on this instance, there can be times when one of these guys may go totally against my opinion. and that is when one will be pissed off that they are exploiting your love for sport to shove down their ideologies. so it is better to discourage this kind of fake activism seeping into sports.

I think you look case by case. In this case, he's a young cricketer starting his career, and may not know better, so a verbal reprimand is enough. It may be different for a more seasoned cricketer though.

 

[bagapath]

I think you look case by case. In this case, he's a young cricketer starting his career, and may not know better, so a verbal reprimand is enough. It may be different for a more seasoned cricketer though.

nope. rules should be the same for everyone. that is why this is called a sport. if he thinks he is smart enough to shove his opinion on a political issue down your throat instead of concentrating on his job, then he is old enough to pay a fine.

 

[RossTaylorsBox]

Yeah, it's impossible to play cricket properly while wearing a wristband.