Children taking part in a run on a mist-covered Welsh mountain lost their way after a man removed safety signs and course markings…What?! Why would anyone do such a th…
Oh:
… because they were written in English./facepalm
Mike Blake, 63, the race’s organiser, said: “We believe the signs were taken down by a person who is a Welsh activist and who is against anything English.They should throw the book at him.
“It is ridiculous. We had put the run on to raise money for the local primary school and we faced a situation where kids’ safety was put at risk.”
A man who allegedly took the signs was identified and reported to the police.That court case will be interesting...
17 comments:
You're expecting there to be a court case?
FTFA:
"We went to the police because what happened was dangerous. If one of the kids had got lost and got injured there would have been a court case. "
I am English, and I have a Welsh friend who was, at school, obliged to learn Welsh, of course she was. In her blood, etc.
However she calls it Grock, because it sounds like it. Oh and before her fellow Taffys get upset, she is utterly Welsh through and through.
She just doesn't see the point of being obsessed with a language that only the obsessed want to use.
“We believe the signs were taken down by a person who is a Welsh activist and who is against anything English" ...
Yep .. an obvious member of the "Taffia" ..
"They should throw the book at him" ...
Nah .. They should publicly burn copies of "Under Milk Wood" .. and flog him with over-sized Leeks .. ;)
Check the reporters name.
Ironic.
PJH:
Erm, the meaning of the quote is that the organisers believed there would have been a court case against THEM if anyone had been injured.
Will any charge be fortified with "Racially Motivated"?
I prefer to see and hear Welsh than any imported jabbers that are state subsidised.
@Captain Haddock: Under Milk Wood was partly a dig by Swansea boy Dylan Thomas against Welsh speakers. LLareggub - buggerall.
Thanks for that interesting snippet of info Brian .. I'll honestly admit to not knowing that (I've never read it)..
To be truthful, it was the only well known Welsh book I could think of (which in itself says a lot) .. ;)
I once spent the first week of a holiday in Welsh Wales trying to find the fabled village of Llwybr Cyhoeddus. There were signs all over the place pointing towards it, but like that famous township of Not In Service where all the empty buses in England go, it was not to be found.
Turns out, of course, that llwybr cyhoeddus is Welsh for public footpath.
Bloody Welsh. A small, dark, resentful people partly descended from sheep. They should learn to speak English as God intended.
Innit.
"...Llwybr Cyhoeddus..."
Which brings to mind the Out of Office reply that ended up on a road sign, or the one that tells the English to look Left and the Welsh to look right...
Edward I wasn't as bad a bloke as some historians would have you believe .. ;)
Hello, natural born Welshman here...
But how Welsh am I, or indeed the majority of the Welsh population?
Only 19% of the population speak Welsh, no matter how many years of compulsory schooling (mine was up to aged 15). It is a bloody difficult, but also very beautiful language which is well worth preserving, but not by the methods of this fuckwitted gentleman.
Cardiff was a village of 1800 people in 1860, the Valleys were all fields and small farms. Then coal was discovered and the place became like the Klondike, only the gold was black. Thousands of workers poured in from all over Britain and beyond, Italy especially. All the greasy spoon cafes in south wales (though they were far from greasy) were owned and run by Italians. The food was wonderful and the coffee and Ice cream to die for! They are now the best intergrated immigrants that Britain ever had.
My great grandfather arrived from Yorkshire in 1850 to set up a private school, so genetically I am not very Welsh, except on my maternal grandfather's side, who was Welsh speaking, coming from West Wales.
But the thing about Wales is its smallness and community solidarity and spirit. Welsh speaking or not, the atmosphere and the way of thinking and doing things is quite distinct from England. Genetics cease to matter very quickly there.
Also the emphasis on language preservation saved it from going down the road of Ireland with bombings and murder to gain their independence. Oh there were a few swivel eyed extremists like this sign removing asshole, who joined the Free Wales Army in the 60's, and took their cue and training from the IRA, but they were so half arsed, the rest of us laughed them out of existence. Wales got S4C and Ireland got Omagh.
Brian has put you straight about Dylan Thomas before I could. He was a non Welsh speaking Welshman, who was taking the piss big time about Welsh and Welshness, and is hated by the Welsh speaking Intelligensia to this day, but Under Milk wood is a work of genius, and very funny.Small town Wales was exactly like that when I grew up (early 50's) I recommend the Richard Burton narrated CD. You will not be sorry for your investment, it is unique and exquisite in its satire.
Well said Captain Haddock! Indeed I have a copy of a painting of Old Longshanks in my dining room to celebrate his victories over the Welsh and those troublesome Scots!
"They should throw the book at him."
If they do, they'd better make sure it's a bi-lingual edition.
"She just doesn't see the point of being obsessed with a language that only the obsessed want to use."
It is bizarre that so much is made of this, and so much government legislation is assigned to it.
The Cornish seem to have just as strong a case, and Scots Gaelic speakers, but no-one's making any laws for them...
"Check the reporters name."
Heh! Missed that! :)
"Will any charge be fortified with "Racially Motivated"? "
Much as I'm reluctant to see the special pleading extended further, it would be nice to see them hoist on a petard of their own manufacture, wouldn't it?
"Turns out, of course, that llwybr cyhoeddus is Welsh for public footpath."
:D
"Which brings to mind the Out of Office reply that ended up on a road sign, or the one that tells the English to look Left and the Welsh to look right..."
There was also a story doing the rounds about Ordnance Surveyors and Welsh 'Beware of the dog' signs, wasn't there?
"It is a bloody difficult, but also very beautiful language which is well worth preserving, but not by the methods of this fuckwitted gentleman."
Agreed. Preserving something by government fiat is never a good idea, if you want acceptance.
"If they do, they'd better make sure it's a bi-lingual edition."
SNORK!
Mr Blake, 63, put out warning signs particularly for the children, who were running between 800 yards and a mile depending on their age, to help steer them along the bleak moorland before they reached a track.
There were canes with tape attached to them every 15 yards, and signs around saying “caution: runners” and “race HQ”, all of which disappeared.
How many signs do you need between the start and the finish of an 800 yard race...?
I would have thought 'Start' and 'Finish' would suffice...
@RAB: I agree entirely with your comment about Under Milk Wood. It is indeed a work of genius: the words and the characters are wonderful. Sloe black, crow black" and "anthracite horses". I listen to the Richard Burton CD at least once a year. The film is pretty good too.
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