I'm surprised his club let him get away with it. Then again, look who his manager is...

^
What's that all about, then? Needless to say, I don't know who he is or what he's been up to.

James McLean. Northern Irish-born footy player who switched to the Republic Of Ireland.

Refused to wear a poppy, probably as a protest.

Why would he wear one? He obviously considers himself Irish, the poppy is very much identified as a British affair so it's understandable that he wouldn't wear one. I wouldn't, in his position.

Mate posted a suicide note on fb this afternoon, cue frantic phonecalls and a police hunt which found hime alive and well but having a breakdown (his dad died a couple of weeks ago and his relationship broke down shortly afterwards), and who updated his fb page to let most know? His 15 year old daughter.

Whilst relieved I'm so fucking angry with him, if you know what I mean,

To me this is a massive misunderstanding of the what the Poppy is supposed to be about, but perhaps I lack the perspective to see what it really is. Certainly when I wear one I don't consider it to have anything to do with being British or with honouring dead British people specifically.

Maybe it's different over there, but that's how it's regarded here. Given the history between Britain and Ireland, I'm sure you can understand why. I'm not rying to open up the "800 years etc." can of worms (frankly, I haven't the energy) but I'm sure you get what the issue may be.

I understand he considers himself Irish and doesn't want to wear a poppy as it's a British thing, but i don't see him saying he doesn't want the British Pound though.

You're right, OLP. It's exactly the same thing.

This is what I mean when I say that I might not have the perspective. There are certainly plenty of people both British and non-British who see it that way, and I guess you could argue that if enough people see it that way then it becomes the case, but I'm going to stubbornly stick to the idea that several thousand people being wrong are still wrong.

Incidentally, I don't give two fucks if he wears one or not, but I think his reason for refusing it is based on a misunderstanding of what it means, albeit a popular one.

Shall we leave at that then?

Probably for the best.

Fuck Facebook!

I'm glad he's OK and sorry you had to go through that, not wanting to nitpick, if he's having a breakdown he is alive and not very well at all. Your anger is understandable of course.

I just think he didnt need to put it on fb for the world and his kids to read.

Absolutely, he's not is his right mind though and clearly desperate.

His choice its a free country fuck of poppy Nazis

Yeah you are right here, i just hope the OD hasnt destroyed any of his organs.

Is facebook becoming less popular? Are less people using it and more people deleting their accounts?

On the subject of which.....

http://www.warhistoryonline.com/feature ... ebook.html