Well, for want of a better title I chose this !
Gajabhuja in Sanskrit means the trunk of an elephant !
So, in short, the title means big/huge fundas !! :-)
30 June 2006
No Argentina Lost and Germany Scraped Through
What was pekerman thinking ? Any child will tell you that when a team and that too a host team is down by a goal, all they would do is to attack, attack and attack with renewev energy having the home crowd behind them. That being the case what was Pekerman thinking when he substituted Riquelme ? That he can get away by scoring a goal and then defend ? What kind of a silly tactic is that ? And what happened to Messi ? Who the **** is Cruz ? Some real questions for which Pekerman better have some answers. A dominant but hesistant first half, a pretty good and decent second half till the time they scored goal and then boom ! Out goes Crespo and Riquelme and in comes some total unknown designed to defned the goal. As long as they do not attack, no one can hope to win the game.
Thus, it was not that Germany won the game, the argentines gifted it to them on a platter ! K.Shyam
Strange that while Germany and Argentina battle out, the worthless team (england who else ?) gets to play weak opponents ? That is probably the luck of the draw. If Ronaldhino hits a 40 yard goal it is a fluke, but if that good for nothing beckham hits it then he becomes a rocket-scientist who can place free kicks with pin point precision ? Huh. Real dumbo's i tell you. A bunch of over hyped team who even if they manage to scrape through to semi's would be just on the basis of a four letter word : LUCK. Of course real football lovers ( I am talking about real football not those idiots who still think beckham is the begin-all and end-all of football and that EPL is the best league out there) would be cursing that moment calling it *UCK :-) Oh, ok all this vitriolic words is coming out of a sense of pity for either of germany or argentina, the two teams who were playing some real good football.
And speaking of English football ( Is there anything called that ? ;-) ) check out this article ! You can also read it online here
When England get knocked out of this World Cup, an ancient ritual will unfold, writes Simon Kuper. Perfected over England's previous 13 failures to win the World Cup away from home, it follows an all too familiar pattern:
Phase one: certainty that England will win the World Cup. Alf Ramsey, the only English manager to win the trophy, at home in 1966, forecast the victory. However, his prescience becomes less impressive when you realise that almost every England manager thinks he will win the trophy, including Ramsey in the two campaigns he didn't. When his team were knocked out in 1970 he was stunned, and said: "We must now look ahead to the next World Cup in Munich where our chances of winning I would say are very good indeed." England didn't qualify for that one.
Glenn Hoddle, England's manager in 1998, revealed only after his team had been knocked out "my innermost thought, which was that England would win the World Cup".
The deluded manager is never alone. As England's inside forward Johnny Haynes remarked after elimination in 1958: "Everyone in England thinks we have a God-given right to win the World Cup." This belief in the face of all evidence is a hangover from empire: England is football's mother country and should therefore be the best today. The sociologist Stephen Wagg notes: "In reality, England is a country like many others and the England football team is a football team like many others." This truth has never sunk in.
Two: During the tournament England face a former wartime enemy. In five of their last six World Cups, they were knocked out by either Germany or Argentina. The matches fit seamlessly into the British tabloid view of history, except for the outcome.
Three: The English conclude that the game turned on one freakish piece of bad luck that could happen only to them. Joe Gaetjens, a dishwasher, scored America's winner against England in 1950 when the ball seemed to hit his head accidentally. In 1970 England's goalkeeper, Gordon Banks, had an upset tummy and his deputy, Peter Bonetti, let in three soft German goals. In 1990 and 1998 England lost on penalties. In 2002 everyone knew that the obscure bucktoothed Brazilian kid Ronaldinho must have mis-hit the free kick that sailed into England's net, because he obviously wasn't good enough to have hit it deliberately.
Four: Moreover, everyone else cheated. The Brazilian crowd in 1950 and the Mexican crowd in 1970 deliberately wasted time while England were losing, by keeping the ball in the stands. The CIA (some say) drugged Banks. Diego Maradona's "hand of God" scored for Argentina in 1986. Diego Simeone play-acted for Argentina 12 years later to get David Beckham sent off.
Every referee opposes England. His decisions that support this thesis are analysed darkly and his nationality is mentioned to blacken him further. Thus Billy Wright, England's captain in 1950, described "Mr Dattilo of Italy, who seemed determined to let nothing so negligible as the laws of the game come between America and victory".
Five: England are knocked out without getting anywhere near lifting the cup. The only exception was 1990, when they reached the semi-final. Otherwise they have always gone out when still needing to defeat at least three excellent teams. England won only five of their 18 matches at World Cups outside England through 1970, and didn't qualify for the next two, so at least they have been improving since.
Six: The day after elimination, normal life resumes. The one exception is 1970, when England's elimination probably caused Labour's surprise defeat in the general election four days later.
Seven: A scapegoat is selected. The scapegoat is never an outfield player who has "fought" all match. Even if he caused defeat by missing a penalty, he is a "hero". Beckham was scapegoated for the defeat of 1998 only because he got himself sent off after 46 minutes. He took so much abuse, he recalled later, that "I've got a little book in which I've written down the names of those people who upset me the most. I don't want to name them because I want it to be a surprise when I get them back."
Often the scapegoat is a management figure: Wright as captain in 1950, Joe Mears as chief selector in 1958 and many managers since. Sometimes it is a keeper, who by virtue of his position just stood around in goal rather than fighting. Bonetti spent the rest of his career enduring chants of "You lost the World Cup." Only after a defeat to Brazil is no scapegoat sought, because defeats to Brazil are considered acceptable.
Eight: England enter the next World Cup thinking they will win it. "I think we will win it," their manager Sven-Göran Eriksson said last month. Given that England may well face Germany in the round of 16, and/or Argentina in the quarter-finals, they probably won't.
The World Cup as ritual has a meaning beyond football. Usually the elimination is the most watched British TV programme of the year, educating the English in two contradictory narratives: one, that England has a manifest destiny to triumph, and two, that it never does. The genius of "Three Lions", English football's unofficial anthem, is that it combines both narratives: "Thirty years of hurt/Never stopped me dreaming."
There is an alternative universe in which Beckham didn't get sent off, Banks didn't get ill, the referee spotted Maradona's handball and so on. In that universe England have won about seven World Cups. The English think they would have preferred that. But it would have deprived them of a ritual that marks the passing of time much like Christmas or New Year, and that celebrates a certain idea of England: a land of unlucky heroes who no longer rule the world, although they should.
Sathish tagged me and since i might win a free ticket i am taking this up (freeya vandha pheneola kooda kudipomda nanaga yellam (to be read it in the style of vadivelu in the movie "winner") :-) a.k.a if we get pheneol for free we will even drink that :-) )
I dont even know this will work, but then what the heck :-)
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Speaking of petrol bunks, i would suggest readers to stay away from the Bharath petroleum bunk opposite raheja arcade in koramangala. I have observed twice, that if i petrol from that bunk, the mileage of the bike drops by 3 to 4km per litre. I have e-mailed and written letters to the concerned authorities. If some action is taken, then well and good. And speaking of food, (the petrol for stomach :-)) if you are anywhere in and around malleshwaram, do taste the sambhar vada (warning : sweet tasting sambhar) and masala dosa in Janatha hotel in 8th cross malleshwaram. It is open till 12.30pm only and re-opens i think at around 3.00pm with wednesday being holidays. A small and nice place with some really tasty food. K.Shyam
I agree i do run marathons, but hoping to even try this is a bit too much for me :-) (link via vatsan) On an intresting aside, the organizers are proving to be jackasses with the bangalore marathon scheduled around those dates only ! Or is it that the bangalore marathon is not going to be held ? Time will tell K.Shyam
What is the point in having a blog named GajaBhuja Funda if i dont give out fundas atleast on a spordiac basis ? So here is one "The watchability of a song however bad the music and the lyrics are is directly propotional to the degree of expertise of the female lead in the song to retain the viewers intrest". Proof : I was watching the movie called "Tamizh" on the bus from Madras to Tirunelveli. There was some screwed up song (jarring instrument combo and pathetic lyrics) which was eminently watchable just for Simran. She rocked big time ! IMHO she was a complete and excellent package. Stunning dance, decent acting poweress :-) K.Shyam
Was in Tirunelveli and Nagercoil over the past few days. Here are some traveller level observations Tirunelveli : 1. Good place. Nice and friendly people. One fellow bus traveller chatted up with me as to whom i voted for, after seeing the ink on my index finger. And said that he voted for DMK just to see whether MK can fulfil his promises. 2. Sweet tasting ground water. No need to buy mineral water. This time of the year has lots of breeze. 3. The best part is that almost all fruit juice shops have a mixed fruit juice (i think this is what is called "Nellai Pazha Rasam"). I think this is a concoction of date fruits, bananas and some essence and a few other fruits. This was quite close to what you get as panchamritham in temples. This juice rocks. You need to taste it to get what i am saying about ! And the other amazing part is that the taste of this juice is consistent across all shops. I tasted this in four different shops and it was always the same ! 4. In case you want to come to bangalore from there take the Govt Bus. I saw that the bus was pretty good and as usual economical. 5. New Anandha lodge where i stayed sucked. The toilet was cramped. But for budget travellers like me, 150rs for a day is a steal.
Nagercoil: 1. This place gets its name from the Nagaraja temple a shiva temple. Could not see it as i went when it was closed :-( 2. Lots and lots of bullets (Royal Enfield :-) ) are there. In the few hours that i was there, i saw atleast 20 of them. 3. There was a beach that i went to. Forgot the name, but it was quite nice place. Small beach and no one was there (Ya i went at around 2pm :-)). 4. Lots of kerala influence. I think this was a part of the travancore presidency. Lots of nameboards in Malayalam too.
The route from Thirunelveli to Nagercoil has lots of windmills and its like amazingly windy. K.Shyam
Try as much i can, i am unable to keep myself off from commenting about these commies and their double standards. They now oppose the petrol price hike, but do not want to withdraw their support to congress. Why not withdraw their support if they are so against the petrol price hike ? Why not show their opposition through this way ? They wont ! K.Shyam
What is the minimum time in which someone has climed up and down the tirupathi mountains through the steps ? I would wager about three hours. If not that is the time i propose to do it (round trip). Possible ? Well if not, the "yerruguntala vada, venkatramana, govinda govinda" will take care of it :-) This observation comes after the weekend climb up the tirupathi mountains. Some other weekend the mountains will be attacked up and down in about three hours or so ! K.Shyam PS: Ok i am not bragging here, but there is clear evidence that what is being half fit for me is being fully fit for quite a lot of people :-)
As i read today's article in Hindu, all that i did was to snigger at the immaturity with which the TN government was acting. Here is why: 1. Da vinci code has not been dubbed into tamil, which is generally the case with most hollywood movies. 2. This leaves with something like only english knowing audience for this movie. 3. That means we can safely exclude a majority of the retired english speaking folks who will not be watching this movie. (Namammkum ooru christian movie kum yennada ambi sambandham is what the easy chair sitting, filter coffee drinking, hindu paper reading, maamas will ask you. Then again they dont watch any movies for that matter !) 4. Hence only the college going crowd will be watching this movie in large numbers. 5. Chances are that by now they would have already downloaded and watched the movie (TN is second in broadband penetration if you did not know!), or got it from burma bazzar and seen it. 6. TN government ends up with nothing but egg on their faces and fostering piracy big time !
This is nothing but a silly political move which does not serve any purpose. Sorry old hag MK, you loose and loose big time :-) Since i will not post links from where you can download the movie here in this blog, mail me if you really want to know :-) K.Shyam
