War is over - (If you want it)

So this is Christmas - This is the title of the classic John Lennon song released over 30 years ago. I was just listening to Christmas songs on You Tube last night as we put up the Christmas tree and this song came up on the playlist. What got my attention is that the first five minutes of the video are of John talking about his peace initiative that he was running at the time of the song and prior to his untimely death in New York circa 1981.

Before I go further there is something you should know about me - I am a firm believer in the power of one. I think one person can start something that can change the world. Before I die I want to try and do something that moves others to try and accomplish this goal. I didn't know much before about John's peace movement and I still don't pretend to know everything. You may have seen pictures of John and Yoko's 'bed-in' but like me may not have known what the details of his message were.

In the short video John says very simply that he knows something is very wrong with the injustices of the world. He says he cannot articulate it and would encourage some one who can to do so. He knows like all of us that something is wrong and he decided to do something. He started a campaign of social awareness to promote peace. He paid for advertising with the words "War is Over - if you want it!" to be put up in major cities. His simple idea was to promote the consciousness that the people are the power and have the power to change the world. By promoting this slogan he wanted people to have the mantra of peace in their mind. Where it would lead to I am sure even he didn't know but as with the power of one a waterfall begins with only one drop of water. The key here for me was its simplicity. In order for it to work it must be simple so it cannot be torn apart and misinterpreted by those who would seek to see it fail.

search the following on you tube to find it "John lennon and Yoko Ono - War is over (if you want it)

Now I can understand why he was killed and I can believe that it was bigger than just Mark Chapman.

People like Bob Geldof and Bono (both from Ireland co-incidently) have done a lot against injustice but the one down side is that there work does not involve the common man; does not empower him.
Here is a simple idea that I want to share with you. It came to me and I had the chance to do it a few years ago just before I left my homeland for volunteer work. For whatever reason I didn't go ahead with it and it turns out I have not been back to my homeland since (for now I don't think it is important to know where i am from). I am married now with kids and far from home but If it fits you go ahead and use it.

At the time I was upset with the blatant apathy the politicians in my country were showing towards being caught doing something illegal. It was as if they were saying "so what!, What can anyone do to punish me?" and the reality is that all the politicians have dirt on each other so no one could accuse any one else! People were becoming desensitised to their corruption.

So, I decided to write a letter with what I was unhappy about. We all sit around and complain about the government so everyone has their own things to say. I was going to take this letter to our President. I chose the President because in our country while being a figurehead they do have certain powers such as vetoing legislation and dissolving parliament. The journey from my town was circa 250km and I was going to walk it with no money in my pocket and no food or drink in my bag. Two of my friends were going to go with me. Our idea was to go to the local radio station to arouse awareness of our departure and to encourage anyone like us who had ever sat helplessly in a bar complaining about the government to come out and write their own letter and join us even for just a part of the journey if that was all they could manage. Those who could not make the journey could help us by supplying food or drink. We felt confident we would not be left to starve and it was  a great chance for a Joe Soap like me to finally feel that they were doing something. However small or insignificant. The beauty of this is that we don't publicaly have a list of gripes or demands. They are all in everyones sealed envelope! Therefore there is nothing for those that twist words to fight us with. We are just dissatisfied civilians exercising our power. In our own small way we are saying "War is Over - if we want it" Another beauty of this is that if no one joins us, if me and my friend limp our way there on our own to deliver our letters then it is still mission accomplished.



I recently came upon a poem by an unknown author called “Just One.”

One song can spark a moment,
One flower can wake the dream
One tree can start a forest,
One bird can herald spring.
One smile begins a friendship,
One handclasp lifts a soul.
One star can guide a ship at sea,
One word can frame the goal
One vote can change a nation,
One sunbeam lights a room
One candle wipes out darkness,
One laugh will conquer gloom.
One step must start each journey.
One word must start each prayer.
One hope will raise our spirits,
One touch can show you care.
One voice can speak with wisdom,
One heart can know what’s true,
One life can make a difference,
And that life can be you!

Premier League Predictions - Wednesday 28th November 2012

Prediction Review from yesterday - Bet 3 Won 2 Lost 1 = + 1
(+1 for every correct prediction; -1 for every incorrect prediction)

Wed 28th November:

Chelsea vrs Fulham:

It should be another tense atmosphere at Stamford Bridge with supporters vowing to continue their protest against the appointment of Benitez. Evidence from last weekend's game against City is that Chelsea are taking a more cautious approach to games. Fulham have not been playing well away from home and I can only see one winner here and they wear blue. I reckon it will be tight to begin with but Chelsea to win by a low score.

Prediction : Chelsea win
Actual: 0-0       (-1)
Everton vrs Arsenal:

Both these teams are not firing on all cylinders at present. Everton have lost their way recently after an excellent start. Fellaini should make a return today and he will be a big bonus against a fragile Arsenal team. Moyes and Everton supporters will be hoping Everton are not doing in reverse what they have done in previous years i.e start badly and finish the season strongly. I am going for Everton to pick up a win here tonight. Goodison park is a tough place to go and I don't think Arsenal will be up to the fight on a cold winter evening on the North West against a physical Everton side.

Prediction: Everton win
Actual - 1-1     (-1) Nearly got it right as Everton were the better team and deserved to win.
Southampton vrs Norwich:

I really am impressed with Southampton at the moment. They are suddenly playing with loads of energy and I really like a lot of their players especially Putcheon, Clyne and the youngster Cork in midfield. Put that with the talent we know of Lalana, Rodriquez and Lambert and you have a good side in good form. Norwich have done very well to grind out some good results recently but I think they have exerted a lot physically to achieve that and I think they won't be able to match the pace of the Saints game.

Prediction: Southampton win
Actual: 1-1  (-1)
Stoke vrs Newcastle: 

I watched the Potter's victory at the weekend and they didn't show anything we didn't know before. Tough to beat incessant in their aerial attacks. Newcastle are in trouble at present. They seem to be very stale. It must be due to their Europa League campaign. They had to start the season early and games have been coming thick and fast for them. They will need some creativity to break through the Stoke defense and with Cabaye and Arfa injured I don't think they have enough to do that. Guttierez also is no central midfielder. This will be a low scoring game.

Prediction- Under 2.5 goals
Actual: Over 2.5 goals (-1) I was  torn between the under 2.5 and a Stoke win. All was going well for me until Stoke scored 2 late goals.

Swansea vrs West Brom:

West Brom have been the surprise package this year. I still don't know how they have done it. They have a team of very solid and consistent performers. Brunt, Long and Morrison had proven themselves last year and the club have bought well to bring in players have equal quality that have fit right into the team. Everyone is raving about defensive midfielder Yacob.
Swansea have also quietly impressed me and the next five games I feel will be vital in determining if they are going to kick on and challenge for a European position or if they will just have mid table mediocrity to play for. On paper they have some very exciting players but I feel the new signings are still adjusting to the Premier League. When they click they are as good as any team in the league offensively. It is their defense that I am not too convinced by. Injuries and new signings have meant that they have not been as solid as last year. I think it will be a good open game but ultimately a draw.

Prediction - Draw
Actual - 3-1  (-1) The selection of Dyer, Routledge and Pablo together in support of Michu took everyone by surprise including it seems West Brom.

Tottenham Vrs Liverpool:

If I was a Spurs player I would be frightened every day going to work. Frightened because of what Villa Boas might ask us to do for the next game. He seems to have discovered in his youth the "Magic book of Tactics" but has not yet mastered how to interpret it. I am going for a home win purely on the return to form of Bale who single-handedly won the last game for Spurs at the weekend. Otherwise their is very little between the teams.

Prediction - Spurs win
Actual - 2-1 (+1)  Spot on here as it was the Bale show, especially in the first half. Tottenham looked very nervous though when Liverpool got at them in the second half.
Man Utd - West Ham:

All of  United's games have gone the same way recenly (bar the Norwich game) - fall behind then come back to win. However United see fit to do it this time their can only be one outcome.

Prediction - Man Utd. win
Actual - 1-0 (+1) As expected really
Wigan vrs Man City:

Wigan are like a box of chocolates at the moment when you go to see them you just don't know what you are going to get. They started the weekend poorly but managed to come back to win 3-2 which was another example of their Jeckyll and Hyde performances. When they play well though they look really good. Di Santos and Kone particularly stand out. I think this is the kind of game that they will raise their game to - or at least that they should raise their game to. Man City have just been going through the motions picking up points but I think they could be in for a surprise tonight in a game that they will be expected to win. The logical thing therefore is to say a draw but I am going to stick my head out and say a Wigan win!

Prediction - Wigan win
Actual: 0-2  (-1) For 69 minutes I was looking good but Wigan did not take any of their numerous chances and then City were always going to make them pay which of course they did.

Score from last week  +1
Total this week  -4
New Total  -3

Kick off

This week sees another full list of fixtures in the Premier League and it could well be fitness is the key factor in deciding a lot of results.
The top teams are under performing at present and that is ominous for the New Year when we get down to the business side of things.
The big game last weekend was the clash of Chelsea and Man City which ended in a 0-0 draw with Chelsea closing off the wings preventing City from getting service to 'Super Sub' Dzeko. With Chelsea's offensive players working so hard on defense they were limited in what they could do in attack against a strong Man City defense even though they were the most likely to score over 90 minutes.

Chelsea are slowly strangling themselves. Whether it is on or off the field controversies. The appointment of Benitez is the latest episode. It is clear that it is a short term appointment meaning more turmoil in 6 months with another manager. Abramovich has been untouchable up to now by the Chelsea fans but the tide may well be changing. To him I fear Chelsea is a toy and he is a big kid who hates it that his most expensive one is not doing what it said it would do on the box. Benitez (the toy maker) has been brought in against every Chelsea's fan wishes to make Torres work. Such is the owner's sulk.

Here are my predictions for the upcoming fixtures: 27th November
I am giving myself 1 point for every correct prediction.
Aston Villa vrs Reading -

This pits 2nd from botton against 3rd from bottom. Two teams rediscovering some form in the last few weeks.
 Villa have earned some plaudits with their gutsy performances and Reading have picked up some points including a win over Everton. Lambert is slowly molding his side. Villa are at home but could be without influential skipper Ron Vlaar who is injured. I like Benteke and a few other of Villa's young Lions but how much can we really expect from them. This season is purely about survival. Reading have been having problems holding on to leads and have the worst 2nd half performance in the league. Villa are also poor in the second half, conceding 77% (17/22) of their goals. It is for this reason that I believe it will be a tight opening 45 minutes.

Prediction - Half time  - Draw (0-0) Full time (1-1)
Actual: Half time - Draw (0-0) +1 Full time (1-0) -1
Hindsight: - Not far off a perfect score here. Got the half time result right.

Sunderland Vrs QPR - 

This is difficult to predict as it is Harry's first game in charge and we don't know what effect he will have on the players. Sunderland have been very poor and are looking more and more like relegation material if they don't get themselves in order. Adam Johnson has been particularly disappointing. A lot of players like Johnson and Sessegnon are just going through the motions. To expect Harry to conjure a win away from home might be a bit too much to ask. I am going to say a low scoring draw as that might suit both teams in getting a point from the game. It won't suit the home fans though.

Prediction - Under 2.5 goals
Actual - Under 2.5 goals +1 (0-0)