Nanny has something of a risk averse nature, and is always trying to ensure that we take heed of her fears and phobias. One of her "cause celebs" is that of trying to reduce the level of violence in society, by ensuring that sparks that might cause trouble are extinguished before the trouble flares up.
Pubs and clubs are often the scene of a brawl or two, fuelled by booze and a perceived insult. Football, and showing one's allegiance to a particular team in public, is always a good way to start a fight.
Therefore, it is not unreasonable for pubs and clubs to ban football shirts and scarves. However, this being Nanny's Britain there is always the opportunity for this reasonable approach to be taken one step too far.
Nanny's chums in, what I believe to be Britain's most boring and souless pub chain, Wetherspoons were happy to take Nanny's T shirt policy one step beyond the other day.
Elaine and Anthony Elliott, from Enderby Leicestershire, and their son Charlie were sitting down in the Wetherspoons owned Lloyds No 1 for lunch, when the manager told Charlie to remove his football shirt lest there be trouble.
Fair enough you might say, except that there were a few mitigating circumstances:
1 The shirt was an England shirt, and the pub located in England (not abroad)
2 Charlie is only two, who on earth would take offence at him wearing an England shirt? Well, Nanny did of course!
Anyhoo, Nanny's chums at Wetherspoons told his parents that he would have to take off his shirt or else leave the pub. When they argued, staff said Charlie could stay - if he turned the shirt inside out.
Twats!
Mrs Elliott said:
"He's a two-year-old sat in a high-chair - what harm can he do?"
A Wetherspoons spokesman said:
"Our policy is that we don't allow any kind of football colours.
This policy has contributed to a significant improvement in public order
and safety in the pub.
It is basically to protect customers.
Children wearing football shirts can lead to problems between parents,
or between children,
and we would just rather protect our customers."
You will observe that the above statement does not address the reality of the situation, it merely regurgitates the "party line".
Wetherspoons is definitely the pub chain for Nanny, bland and lacking in any form of character; utterly soul destroying!
Try telling that it isn't dangerous to the poor bloke that lost his life in Italy over the weekend over an argumento about Juventus: http://gazzettino.quinordest.it/VisualizzaArticolo.php3?Codice=2951567&Luogo=Main&Data=2006-6-5&Pagina=1
ReplyDeleteIf you lose them young, you lose them forever...it's never too young to be careful...
But he wasn't two years old and he was abroad...
ReplyDeleteTotally different.
The solution is much simpler. Ban team sports. No teams, no arguments... case closed ;)
ReplyDeleteI agree that in the incident outside Padua, neither of the participants was 2 yrs old, just acting like it. No mention in the article either that it was team colors which sparked the conflict.
ReplyDeleteAnd he wasn't really abroad (he was in his own home town, and the same place the other one also lived).
Unless you mean that in other places Abroad (outside England) like Italy they take their football much more seriously (enough to scandalize the entire country?), but I kinda' doubt that too.
In anycase I really did understand your point, and don't really believe the two year old would have been able to escalate any argument to the point of mutilation and/or death, so he probably wasn't much of a threat to the bar or the other patrons.
Just kind of serendipity timing your notice with the local article in a similar setting...
This reminds me of the insane story about the 82-year-old lady being asked to remove her hat in the interests of "security". The case is reported on the BBC website.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of banning any sort of football strip is, of course, abominable.
ReplyDeleteIt highlights the weak response of Nanny to any possible threat to peace and tranquility for her charges.
Quite why she has not done what is really required and banned football I cannot understand.
What better way could there be to keep the peace? And reduce carbon emissions, so saving the world from climate change?
A lost opportunity if you ask me.
"Wetherspoons is definitely the pub chain for Nanny, bland and lacking in any form of character; utterly soul destroying!"
ReplyDeleteBut at least their cheap booze policy annoys Nanny.
"But at least their cheap booze policy annoys Nanny."
ReplyDeleteHmmm, Nanny will probably put a stop to that one day and really hike up the taxes on booze like Scandanavia.
Thoams Fuller
ReplyDeleteShame on you for missing the fact that the old lady with the hat story it was reported on this site!
http://nannyknowsbest.blogspot.com/2006/03/nanny-bans-granny.html
No need to link to the BBC when you have this site:)
I had a "full and frank discussion" with someone about this yesterday. When I said it was going over-the-top to ban a 2-year-old from wearing a football shirt, and Wetherspoons might have used some discretion, my opponent countered with the idea that if it was their policy not to allow football strips at all, they had to ban *everyone* from wearing them, even if they were only two. If they allow it for a 2-year-old, she said, do they then allow it for a 5-year-old? And if they do, then what about an 8-year old? And if the kids can wear football shirts, and they want to dress like their dads, then why can't their dads wear them? And so on. And before long the policy is in tatters.
ReplyDeleteWHY HAVE A POLICY, was my heartfelt cry. Why not treat each case on its merits? Back came the answer: because you can't do that. You can't discriminate. You have to treat everyone the same. That's what we're supposed to do these days.
Unfortunately it seems that Nanny's doing a damn good job of brainwashing her subjects.
They must've realised that any chain pub is a crap idea....
ReplyDeleteLloyds in Leicester is nearly as bad as the other weatherspoon pubs. The only redeeming quality is they are the only one in the chain (that I know of) that has music.