God help me - the Test Cricket thread

[ElwoodBlues1]

Needs a bloc of test teams to counter India's game dominance ... and how likely is that?

Not likely when India unofficially underwrite the game and can attract/bribe the best players with offers too good to refuse.
Indian cricket is bordering on a reality series with Kholi a cricketing Kardashian and everyone else acting/playing along, none of the big money reaches the grass roots except in India.
When you see a team like South Africa get smashed by a Paki team of no names half of whom are probably on the take it just tells you what state the game is in.
Chris Gayle knew the future and gave test cricket away early, why knock yourself out when you can dress up in pretty colours, act like a rock star and collect the big dollars by playing the short formats around the world all underpinned by his status in the IPL.. Still playing at age 41...just too easy driving that Hummer around Jamaica and being the resident Snoop Dog, WTF would you want to play test cricket if you were a Windies kid..and we have India to thank for this demolition of Test Cricket and the weak ICC who just rubber stamp every tournament the Indians throw at them and change everyone else's calendar to suit.
The ICC and the WHO could swap seats and you wouldnt know the difference, both just puppet organisations beholding to their benefactors...

[Professer E]

The Saffies were finished as soon as the quota system was introduced.  Disenfranchise the senior players and youre always kaput.  Heck,  Kallis had to leave to get a coaching job because of his colour.  There's one who you'd want in the tent,  not in the opposition's camp.

[ElwoodBlues1]

The Saffies were finished as soon as the quota system was introduced.  Disenfranchise the senior players and youre always kaput.  Heck,  Kallis had to leave to get a coaching job because of his colour.  There's one who you'd want in the tent,  not in the opposition's camp.

Agree on the quota system, you never see their best team now, its ridiculous how they have to top up their team with players who are not good enough, just to make the quota. You pick the best team whether it be all black, all white or a mixture based on form and only form not the colour of your skin.
Kolpak contracts also robbed them of talent having players being able to play as local players in  English county cricket, they could probably field another team with the players who left for the bigger dollars.

[Thryleon]

Agree on the quota system, you never see their best team now, its ridiculous how they have to top up their team with players who are not good enough, just to make the quota. You pick the best team whether it be all black, all white or a mixture based on form and only form not the colour of your skin.
Kolpak contracts also robbed them of talent having players being able to play as local players in  English county cricket, they could probably field another team with the players who left for the bigger dollars.

Welcome to 2021 where how good you are at your job doesnt matter so long as you have equal representation from all colours creeds and sexes.

[LP]

Welcome to 2021 where how good you are at your job doesnt matter so long as you have equal representation from all colours creeds and sexes.

It's driven by fear of litigation.

Lawyers do not have the Hypocritic Oath, doing no harm isn't even a consideration for them, maximising remuneration is the main issue!

What would Amal Clooney think if George and herself were replaced on quotas? But she doesn't have to worry that ever, because the laws she helped draft do not apply to her!

[Professer E]

Yes... Quotas and the "diversity" issue.  I'm wondering who actually wins in that situation.

This has come up a bit lately in our household,  primarily discussions about role models.  Where are they these days?  Who are they?  For example, my son brought up the fact that he can't identify with any of the Australians of the Year group, and that every time he watches a Hollywood

-type movie the key figure is 35 kg model chick who acquires world class martial arts skills overnight,  with offsiders typically including a meathead alpha male, an attitude-saturated man hater, a black person and an Asian.  The other males are either pretty (and useless) window dressing or an unathletic, geeky tech type.  The protagonist is typically an greying,  middle aged man who is always (lacking back story)  evil, especially to women.  How many stereotypes can be served up in one setting!?!  In the rush to embrace "diversity" I fear we are actually disenfranchising great swathes of the community.

[Thryleon]

Yes... Quotas and the "diversity" issue.  I'm wondering who actually wins in that situation.

This has come up a bit lately in our household,  primarily discussions about role models.  Where are they these days?  Who are they?  For example, my son brought up the fact that he can't identify with any of the Australians of the Year group, and that every time he watches a Hollywood

-type movie the key figure is 35 kg model chick who acquires world class martial arts skills overnight,  with offsiders typically including a meathead alpha male, an attitude-saturated man hater, a black person and an Asian.  The other males are either pretty (and useless) window dressing or an unathletic, geeky tech type.  The protagonist is typically an greying,  middle aged man who is always (lacking back story)  evil, especially to women.  How many stereotypes can be served up in one setting!?!  In the rush to embrace "diversity" I fear we are actually disenfranchising great swathes of the community.

The real issue with it, is we start to practice the exact sort of discrimination they fight against.

Imagine campaigning your whole life to smash the glass ceiling, only for them to prioritise the hiring of people who are not the best candidate available, but instead making the decision based on quotas and targets to have equal representation.

You went to university, but you are a heterosexual male who is married with two kids?  Really sorry, but you miss out on the job.  We need to hire someone who is either Aboriginal, or of Asian/African background, ideally a female, and ideally in a same sex relationship.  Birth gender being the opposite of the one you currently identify for bonus points and credentials just need to be somewhere close to your level of qualification and it will do.  Oh, no experience necessary in that case to.  You go straight to go.

Its not the society I was told we should be fostering.

[LP]

The real issue with it, is we start to practice the exact sort of discrimination they fight against.

Imagine campaigning your whole life to smash the glass ceiling, only for them to prioritise the hiring of people who are not the best candidate available, but instead making the decision based on quotas and targets to have equal representation.

You went to university, but you are a heterosexual male who is married with two kids?  Really sorry, but you miss out on the job.  We need to hire someone who is either Aboriginal, or of Asian/African background, ideally a female, and ideally in a same sex relationship.  Birth gender being the opposite of the one you currently identify for bonus points and credentials just need to be somewhere close to your level of qualification and it will do.  Oh, no experience necessary in that case to.  You go straight to go.

Its not the society I was told we should be fostering.

Humans are the problem.

A great example are some recent indigenous activists, some who turn to be not indigenous at all but accepted into a tribe, the rule being if the tribe says you are part of the tribe you qualify as indigenous. However, I noted that after recent public disputes some tribal elders are now questioning that individuals indigenous status, they are now seen as turncoats, they were really perhaps labelled "conveniently indigenous" for a cause that is no longer a priority!

What would Derrida think, woke isn't always what woke says it is, Indigenous today Euro or Imperialist tomorrow!

It's untenable to leave these definitions up to the opinions of people, but that is exactly where the law currently sits! Racism, persecution, oppression and discrimination is in the eye of the beholder!

[Professer E]

Thry, that post is scarily close to home,  I've seen exactly that situation play out first hand within large Australian companies. 

[LP]

Yes... Quotas and the "diversity" issue.  I'm wondering who actually wins in that situation.

Many of the academics that argue along the lines for quotas have academic "tenure", it's a huge contradiction!

Like Amal Clooney, they debate something that doesn't apply to them!