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Agree on all three point, but particularly the second one. There is too much emphasis now on positive test numbers, but these are wholly dependent on who decides to have a test and gives no indication on how serious the case is. The figures we need to know are how many people get it serious enough to have to go into hospital and how many die. Without that it is just another virus.

Bwitcher is right about Covid and he has given compelling arguments, citing government figures. Those who argue with him cite opinions, not facts, and consequently they are poor debaters and ultimately resort to insults rather than admit that they are wrong.

Absolutely not. What he - and others of us (including me) is asking is this; Why is everybody so worried about a virus that, while it IS a major concern (and BWitcher has said that on many occasions), and the number of infections is extremely high, the fatalities are nowhere near the level of other common diseases/illnesses; diseases and illnesses to which the majority of people don't give a second thought? This isn't a competition. People don't need to claim that Covid-19 is worse (is causing more deaths) than the flu, than cancer, than heart disease. Because it isn't...

I suggest you check out some of his posts on other threads about Speedway, when he used to post on them. His behaviour was the same as it has been on this one, obsessive to the point of bullying. He may not have set out to be a bully but he singles people out, like he seems to have done with you and baits them. Now you and I may be big and ugly enough to handle this, water off a ducks back... but not everybody is. Bully: "a person who habitually seeks to harm or intimidate those whom they perceive as vulnerable"

Is it just me or is this behaviour just beyond bizarre... I genuinely think this guy needs help. Does anybody on this forum actually know BWitcher in person? Because I think you need to carry out an intervention. I can't make up my mind whether he's a bully or mentally ill, maybe a bit of both. PLEASE! this guy needs your help. BWitcher I plead with you, please go see a doctor... when the NHS reopens of course

Not quite sure what to make of your bullet point responses. whether a poster may or not be autistic is completely irrelevant to any point and certainly to you. You have no right to demand such answers of someone and its at best offensive. As the examples I gave you you responded with they were both racist and homophobic. So what’s different? You are assuming somebody to have a certain condition and are attacking him with it. Sorry that’s bang plain out of order. To even suggest you want it confirmed so you can ‘adjust the way I interact with him’ is shocking. The numbers, stats and facts surrounding Covid are important. This topic is not just about speedway. If you ‘don’t really care about the numbers’ then let those who are interested in the stats discuss them seeing as you aren’t interested. We’ve had a very chequered history have myself And Bwitcher, we are more speedway acquaintances than good friends and have had many good debates as well as some humdingers (as anyone who used to post in Wolfcry!). He is someone I respect at times and are infuriated the next. If you feel his behaviour is that of ‘a 12 year old schoolgirl’ why are you replying like someone in the same class and age range? There are lots of ‘facts’ about Covid19, that there is no denying whilst also lots of lies that a lot of people, myself included, are starting to pick apart. Its clear you and he aren’t going to agree on things and it’s becoming a very twit for tat standpoint. Bwitcher makes lots of very valid points, which is the main crux of this topic is to discuss all things Covid. If you aren’t ‘interested in the numbers’ I’m not really sure why you are making points on it. Just to be clear my issue is attacking someone for what you presume to have a known medical/mental health issue is just wrong. sorry, it is.

I think you should lay off the "autism" stuff. It's not big. It's not clever. And it might offend an awful lot of people. And having an interest in numbers and figures doesn't automatically make someone Rain Man.

2020 Translation : 'Anyone who disagrees with me is a bully'.

I'm quite possibly one of the least vulnerable people around so he can carry on with his crusade/bullying tactics, I'm now ignoring him but yet he's still posting responses to me. The words 'screw' and 'loose' have come to mind

Point proven yet again so case closed m'lud

My son has recently been diagnosed as Autistic, his diagnosis is on the very lowest grade of the Autism spectrum however he's still considered as being Autistic. It's not something to joke about, however iainb has asked a plausible question...whilst BWitcher just continues his obsessive tirade.

You've been given multiple opportunities to provide the evidence you claim you have that influenza transmits differently to Covid-19 and is therefore immune to lockdown. You can't because you haven't got it. Putting your fingers in your ears and refusing to respond just shows you up further.

We are all on the Autism spectrum.

Sorry R+R, wildly drifting off topic on a well maintained thread, but it's a subject that interests me Виктор would be the Russian equivalent of Victor/Wiktor. Latvian is the only official language in Latvia, something that has caused some problems/criticisms from the Russian speaking population in the South. From his online presence, it seems that the rider in question spells his name Andžejs Lebedevs, but the most visible and prominent thing on the back of his kevlars recently has just been "AnJ" Most transliterators I have used have taken a name starting with H to the cyrilic Х, which fits with the way that you pronounce the names of Cities like Ха́рьков or Хаба́ровск...And yet in English those get turned into Kharkov and Khabarovsk...I've never really understood how/why the "K" got involved there I always enjoy seeing an online transliteration of a name that has gone from latin to cyrilic and back again but using different rules in each direction. You can end up with some strange results... A simple example is the main speedway City of Russia, Тольятти, which depending on the transliterator used will probably give you Tolyatti, Toljatti or some other similar variant. The City was named after Palmiro Togliatti, so it should really come back to Togliatti, but the transliteration rules going in each direction pretty much make it impossible for that to happen. That's always been a translation that amused me... It ultimately makes sense, but the alternative meaning in English makes it amusing... Probably the more relevant question about those letters is why English still has them. They are completely worthless and could be replaced by others in almost all cases where they are used. Anyway, to get back on topic, the current top 4 in the Ekstraliga seem like they should stay the top 4 for the playoffs if my predictions for results in the last 4 rounds are accurate. Given the fact that I regularly lose when betting on speedway, it's probably safe to say my predictions are worthless

Maybe need to introduce concessions for Blue badge holders ,they fill the GB stadiums up these days. ps Its great to see so many young people at the Polish matches ,they must be doing something right.

Pathetic

That is why I pointed out that other things are "worse" than Covid-19, including the flu.

Agree 100%. My wife is a Type 2 diabetic, and was rushed into hospital in a diabetic coma during the lockdown here. She was in a critical condition for several days. They kept her in for a couple of weeks, and even though she was "better" when she came home, they still hadn't been able to stabilise her levels completely. Twice I had to call an ambulance when she lost consciousness from sudden extreme drops, and she came close several other times. The big problem was that she needed to see an endocrinologist, but of course, under lockdown they weren't seeing anyone. So, I know how close I came to losing my wife during lockdown, and we can be sure there were plenty of people who weren't - and won't be - quite so fortunate.

You do realise that have been and will be deaths caused by people not receiving treatment, not getting a diagnosis for cancer and other treatable diseases during the lockdown don't you Cancer care has been set back years because people have not been to hospital, and yes thousand's are expected to die, not just of cancer but other very treatable diseases

And I think he should lay off the Covid stuff and stop being an obsessive bully. Saying "having an interest in numbers and figures doesn't automatically make someone Rain Man" could be interpreted as being pretty offensive in itself and shows a complete lack of understanding of Autism. You've watched Rain Man that's your benchmark? I only ask if he is Autistic as then I could possibly understand his behaviour and adapt my interaction with him. If he isn't then he's just a rude, obsessive, cantankerous man who just won't accept anybody else's opinion or point of view.

You could almost predict who was going to "Like" this post... disagree away, keep it polite, civil and don't be obsessive and bait people I'd say we're a long long way from being "normal"... I don't know if you've noticed but we can't even go to the Speedway! I totally agree with your point about attacking people by calling them mentally ill, I'm not quite sure who has done this though? I have said I suspect he is and I've suggested he see a doctor as I'm concerned for him if he has. I have asked him if he has Autism, which he displays all the signs of, he's not answered that question, which of course he is quite within his rights to do. If you think his behaviour is "normal" and his baiting of forum posters is acceptable that's a sad reflection on you.

I think you are being too singular. Everyone is important at Brough for there to be any speedway. But it has got to be accepted that the roles of some people are more important and essential for the sport to be sustained. If you or I stopped going to Brough, it would still continue. If the likes of Dalbers did, there would be NO SPEEDWAY. If it hadn't been for Me, George and Peter, there would have been no Speedway as from 1997. Dalbers has always been behind Newcastle Speedway for a long time, and still contributed financially even during his short self imposed exile due to differences with a Promoter. As can be seen from THJ's post, he was of great assistance to Rob during the takeover and still remains to continue to help Newcastle Speedway,

The forum has just told me I'm out of reactions for today... This can only mean I've become a bit obsessive

There are currently two Covid threads, one here and one in the General Discussion section. BWitcher has hijacked both with continuous thread posting day after day. He won't listen to anyone except himself (or DC2 who seems to follow him around like a sheep). I don't think BWitcher is bullying to be fair, however he is strongly opinionated and needs to have the last word on everything! He must trawl the web for hours and hours trying to find snippets of information to prove EVERYONE else they're wrong and he's right. Every badly hit country in the world has dealt with Covid in a similar way, albeit on differing lockdown levels, however he flatly refuses to accept that lockdowns reduce the spread of the virus. Edit: And he's still responding to my posts banging the same drum when I have clearly stated I will not be responding to him any longer as it's a waste of time. Not quite sure what he's taking but I certainly don't want any of it lol. Just can't help himself, gotta have the last word...every time...

It was not meant to be a joke, far from it.

In your continued attempts to bully as you are incapable of debating the topic you are now consistently resorting to stereotypical offensive jibes regarding autism, a condition which affects hundreds of thousands across the UK. This attitude you are displaying towards autism is part and parcel of what makes life more difficult for those who do suffer from it. This is a thread discussing Corona virus, if you wish to discuss it, do so.

I'm not even sure he's a Speedway fan. I can't recall seeing him post anywhere about speedway other than bullying somebody about Tai Woffinden once. I soon became uncomfortable about contributing on that topic as he was acting like he thought he was some kind of Perry Mason lawyer character constantly posting "facts" and "evidence" etc. against somebody's "opinion" With his socially retarded obsessive posts I suspect he's somewhere on the Autism spectrum, so I should probably cut him some slack. With his obsession it wouldn't surprise me if he didn't have another account in a different name so he can agree with himself. It truly is bizarre and a little bit sad

He HAS to have the last word....can't help himself. Must spend the whole day trawling the web for articles to post links to as he's obsessed with Covid and how lockdown doesn't work even though every affected country in the world has locked down to some extent. I'm not responding to any more of his posts as it's a waste of time and effort.

It's a funny feeling at my age...I'm under 60, so in Britain I leave a speedway stadium feeling like the new kid on the block. Yet when I leave a Polish stadium I feel like I'm the oldest swinger in town.

So did i, we sat in the Hackney car park thinking it would be off. I also went to Australia v New Zealand at Wimbledon, New Zealand v Russia at Reading and the Wembley final.

Think we will stick with Lindback and get the thread back on track.!

A Norway/Denmark combined team so that Ole Olsen could take part when Norway was by far the more dominate team...how times have changed!

Actually looking at Slavic languages most of them use Cyrillic. We don't coz of Christianisation of Poland. In 966 Poland officially overthrew paganism and became Catholic and to stress it out even more our King decided that we should use Roman alphabet instead. Besides although we are missing v, x and q we have ą, ć, ę, ł, ó, ś, ź and ż. Additionally we have clusters of few letters that are pronounced like a single sound for example: dż, drz, dzi, sz, cz etc. so if you don't know the rules you might get overwhelmed by all those consonants This is from classic Polish comedy and it shows how speakers of germanic languages can struggle

There is no doubt in my mind that Ivan would have dominated a GP series from 68- mid 70/s .

Poland could do with attracting more followers of 50+ years of age.. Dont seem to have many.. Missing a trick there...

Meet face to face to do what? Another schoolboy statement, if you have a point to make, you are not making it very well with childish statements

The phrase used by childish schoolboys learning to swear, people who know they've lost the argument or someone who has no point to make in the first place.

It's already been admitted the real death figure is lower. The excess deaths in the UK are now lower than they were for flu in 2017/18.

Its easier on the mind iainb, i wasted minutes of my life arguing with the guy mute is the sensible way

That is weird though......not sure it really relates to your conditions. Although Athletics and Swimming etc might be popular, I don't think they really attract great crowds apart from the odd event. Especially swimming, but even athletics. I went to a couple of meetings at Crystal Palace, but unless it is an international event like European, World championships etc attandances are fairly poor. I'd say speedway does attract more than a lot in the list you provided

The worrying thing is though that there are vulnerable people around, no doubt some on here and when a character like him latches on to them things could take a turn for the worse, especially as a lot of people are currently mentally fragile during the current pandemic... See what I've done there? I've managed to bring it back on topic ... But of course, we all know... There is no pandemic

Indeed it is proven. You don't have the evidence. So, we know now.. unchallenged, that the lockdown has not effected the deaths of a virus that transmits in the same way as Covid-19. We got there in the end. Thanks for agreeing finally chris4gillian.

Genuine question Gustix.. if speedway ranks 15th in your list of sports you enjoy.... do you post on forums pertaining to the 14 sports above it?

This, from 2019, has speedway fifth, which seems a bit optimistic but it's good to see it recognised. https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/most-popular-sports-in-the-united-kingdom.html I found another that had Speedway 7th. Others don't include it at all. It is the certainly something of a cult sport.

Probably none of them bearing in mind that British speedway has been non-existent this year. If they are struggling then it highlights how far they have to go...and then that depends on the rider. Does the rider want to be big fish in a small pond or a developing fish in a wide open ocean.?

Fun fact: it was at about this time when I became aware of speedway, though thanks to the open-piped JAPs & JAWAs of the time it could be clearly heard all over town, for quite some time after being allowed to see some of this particular competition on TV at 11PMish though to be honest I was too young to properly follow it properly (but still thought it was brilliant) I assumed that all speedway competitions were 'tournaments' ....

It is the worst line up ever.

As a speedway fan you should know how to spell the current World Champion's name properly one would think.

I’d personally like to see an actual World Cup. Run once every four years, with perhaps the Speedway of Nations style pairs event run every four years also and staggered so that there is a big international tournament every two years. By a proper World Cup I mean the entire tournament staged in one country with groups and team meetings. It would take an innovative format but I’m sure something could be done if some thought was put into it. Although I appreciate the Poles would potentially clean up in any such event.

Yes.