D'Artagnan

Ok it's confession time. When it comes to the world of social media I am particularly technophobic. Perhaps there is some truth to the adage about old dogs and new tricks. At the request of others who asked for my blog to be â??social media friendlyâ? I ventured warily into the perilous world of Twitter and Facebook. I manged to navigate the former with just a modicum of pain, the latter, however proved to be a step too far. My Facebook page exists solely because Mrs D'Artagnan was kind enough to set it up for me. Nonetheless Facebook continues to perplex me. For instance I responded to what I thought was a message from a friend only to find myself in the middle of a cyber farm. Things went downhill pretty fast after that. I noticed that on the maps section of my page Ibrox was listed as a place I had visited. This bamboozled me and I came to the conclusion, alarmingly I might add, that my wife was tracing my movements via my mobile phone. It was only later I learned from her that she had put this in manually to be something old and familiar for me in the strange and daunting environment of Facebook. Several months on and I haven't changed it. G51 2XD still shows when I log into Facebook. Itâ??s more than just a postcode or a security blanket for a technophobic blogger. It represents over 40 years of memories and an unbroken passion for a football club. In fact it's safe to say when I first started making the pilgrimage to G51 2XD I still believed in Santa Claus. The entry on the recent Montrose match day programme had only served to underlined this. The assertion that our club is now defunct appears to have been lost on my inbuilt human navigation system. My eyes and ears appear to have been tricked as well. Because a trip to G51 2XD allows my to see the Rangers I have followed for over 40 years amidst the choruses I am familiar with. It's the same G51 2XD where I was mesmorised by Davie Cooper, the same G51 2XD where the King of Ibrox Park, Parlane reigned, in fact its the same G51 2XD where my older brother before me raved about Brand, Baxter and Caldow. That's not to say some things haven't changed along the way. I no longer alight from a train at Partick and take the subway to G51 2XD. The latter mode of transport of course put me in touch with my own mortality the week after the Moorgate Disaster. Those who travelled on the old underground will know exactly what I'm talking about. And of course there is no longer a maritime passage to G51 2XD, for those of us who embarked from Kelvinhaugh and Finnieston during the long overdue upgrade of the aforementioned subway. And despite this being an age of Health & Safety I no longer wear the obligatory customised hard builders hat, nor do I eat unwrapped cheese or ham rolls from a cardboard box which had seen better days (along with the rolls) all served with a dessert of macaroon bars. The six foot Union flag which once adorned my shoulders is now replaced by a small metallic one on my lapel. The symbolism may have changed but the beliefs most certainly haven't. But should I trust my sensory perceptions that my club is very much alive despite repeated assertions to the contrary ? Perhaps...but a little more objective evidence wouldn't do any harm. Lord Nimmo Smith, who chairs the SPL 's independent panel panel probing alleged undisclosed payments to players by the â??defunctâ? club, and which the club which currently plays at G51 2XD is being brought to task for, stated that Rangers FC is a recognisable entity which continued in existence notwithstanding the change in ownership. Pretty conclusive. But there is more bad news for the proponents of Sevco... ECA - RANGERS And those pesky Europeans are at it again....must be some kind of grand scale conspiracy... UEFA - RANGERS 88th in UEFA rankings. I'm sure you would all agree that's not bad for a football team, who as some would have you believe, have never played in Europe before. So I will keep making my pilgrimage to G51 2XD to see the Rangers, and I will leave those proponents of Sevco and â??defunctâ? to their own deluded and hate filled wishes. But I have a parting life lesson for them from a little boy who, when he first went to see his beloved Rangers, still believed in Santa. Believing in something does not make it true, no matter how much you wish for it to be so. And the Rangers will still be here when your keyboards eventually fall silent.

Two events caught my eye on the internet cyber world over the weekend. The first was considerable excitement on some Rangers forums that a Scottish newspaper intended to print a recording of a high ranked football official alluding to "burying Rangersâ?. The second notable occurrence was a blog by Ms Angela Haggerty, editor of Phil Mac Giolla Bhain's book - Downfall. Ms Haggerty as some of you may remember was particularly angry and outspoken when the Sun newspaper decided against serializing the aforementioned book, suggesting it's author was "tarred with a sectarian brush". This is how the Scotsman newspaper reviewed the book recently..... Ms Haggerty of course has been a guest on disgraced lawyer Paul McConville's blog Random Thoughts on Scots Law. For those thinking of visiting this shamed lawyers blog let me give you some advice to help you navigate his blog. Rangers, who have managed to generate over 600 "random thoughts" for Mr McConville, are not some mass murderer whose release, on compassionate grounds proved the catalyst for both political and legal arguments. You will find a person fitting that criteria under A for Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrah. Surprisingly this had only managed to generate 1 random thought for Mr McConville. Funny that. Of course McConnvile himself is no stranger to being a guest on the blog of others having featured on the Scotzine website recently. Oh what a wicked Web we weave. Surprisingly there is a connection between those excited Rangers fans I referred to on the opening paragraph and Ms Haggerty's latest blog offering. The connection is in the word â??injusticeâ? which Ms Haggerty uses almost as frequently as she uses the word Sevco. Do we as Rangers fans really have to hear on tape that some on the upper echelons of our footballing hierarchy wanted Rangers dead and buried ? Do their actions not speaker speak louder than any words, recorded or otherwise ? Have we forgotten that the footballing authority in this country abandoned the fundamental principle of justice, that you are innocent until proven guilty, as they sought to deal with our club ? That their solution of a five way agreement was a presumption of guilt which they tried to blackmail our club into accepting ? That a host of football chairmen from the SFL were publicly commenting that the football authorities in this country were bullying, threatening and intimidating them to pursue a course of action with regard to our club ran contrary to natural justice ? That the government agency investigating Rangers alleged tax discrepancies was leaking confidential information to a number of unknown persons who used that information to manipulate and per-meditate public and media perception with regard to the outcome of this case. Having failed to stem the leaks, that same government agency failed to involve the Police in the search to attempt to identify those responsible, such leaks of course represented a Breach of the Official Secrets Act, The more cynical amongst us have even suggested that HMRC were less than thorough and professional in their actions, as the consequence of such leaks, despite their criminal nature, suited their purpose. So no, I don't need to hear a recording to know that some within the echelons of our footballing authorities did everything within their power to see our club dead and buried. But of course none of the injustices aforementioned are cited on Ms Haggerty's latest blog. Still.... perhaps her next job will be to edit the Oxford Dictionary, that will give her the perfect opportunity to look up the definition of â??injusticeâ?.

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it" Despite often being attributed to Voltaire himself, it was actually Evelyn Beatrice Hall (Voltaire's Biographer) who penned these words. One line in and I digress already, that, even for me must be some kind of record. But to more serious matters.... I have to confess that David Leggat's Legoland Blog is not my first bookmark for Rangers related issues. But in true Voltaire fashion I have to say I was utterly appalled at his recent treatment at the hands of Strathclyde Police. In fact we all should be appalled – it was a full frontal assault on the principle of freedom of speech in this country. His alleged crime ? Naming an individual who had been mentioned on twitter by someone else (without sanction I may add) as a suspect in the HMRC leaks of the Rangers Tax Case. In other words... good for the goose is not necessarily good for the gander. I thought the fundamental principle hammered into every recruit who passes through the Scottish Police College is that they would discharge their duty without fear, favour malice or ill-will towards anyone. Back to college for some methinks. Post incident Leggo has directed much of his ire over the incident towards Strathclyde Police lawyer Duncan Campbell. I think he is barking up the wrong tree. The decision for the Police to become involved was an operational matter not one made by some lawyer employed by them to sift through employment contracts etc. Sure he may have been consulted for his legal knowledge, he may even have advised the Police, but at the end of the day the decision for the Police to become involved in what at worst amounted to a civil case of defamation( if even that), was purely an operational decision taken by a Police Officer, and probably a fairly high ranked one at that, within Strathclyde Police. Furthermore in cases which have a considerable grey legal area, my understanding is that the Police are far more inclined to contact the on call Procurator Fiscal for advice rather than some lawyer employed by them. They are after all answerable to the Fiscal. But it doesn't end there. For Leggo alludes to the fact that if he did not remove his blog article he was offered a nights bed and breakfast courtesy of Strathclyde Police. I thought in these days of liberty, human rights and lawyers strikes, that arrest was not the preferred option when the interests of justice could equally be served by service of a copy complaint/summons on the accused. After all Leggo did not fit the common law criteria for arrest. He was not of “no fixed abode” because Strathclyde Police, after all had come chapping at his door, nor was their an evident intention to abscond or a need to prevent a repetition of the offence. So why such heavy handed tactics to oppress freedom of speech ? The whole incident is now of course subject of an official enquiry and I'm sure Leggo, in his own indomitable style will keep all interested parties updated. But on the subject of Police Investigations, or perhaps lack of them in this case, I didn't share my fellow bears joy upon hearing the news that Sir David Murray had instructed his lawyers Levy McRae to petition the Crown Office to launch a criminal investigation into the leaks at HMRC during the now ill-fated Rangers Tax Case. My initial reaction was “What ?”. Are you telling me that a government agency which was leaking information at such an alarming rate, which allowed the beneficiaries of that information managed to hold a whole nation captive for several months, and the quantity and the quality of the leaks even allowed them to win awards, had not involved the Police to date ? That the epidemic level of breaches of the official secrets act were not reported by those in charge at HMRC ? If not then we deserve answers as to why not. Why has such glaring breaches of criminal law not been reported by those whose job it is to investigate ? My information is that despite an internal investigation by HMRC the perpetrator (s)of these leaks has not been identified. So in the most high profile tax case in Scottish history the investigating agency are aware of tsunami size leaks and breaches of the law within yet, to date it remains unreported as a crime ? Why were the Police who have the power to search homes, the technology to forensically check computers, the ability to examine documents for DNA and fingerprints, the authority to access phone records, not brought in to identify the culprit ? Forget conspiracy theories, if this matter has not been reported to the Police we are talking about professional incompetence at a level which should prove to be a catalyst for a government enquiry into the whole affair. I must go for now....I have a letter to write to my MP.

I've lost count of the number of times I've watched Apocalypse Now, and yet despite countless viewings, I'm still undecided on Willard's feelings at the end towards Kurtz strategy. Did he sympathise or find the tactics abhorrent ? For the younger bears out there who may not yet have enjoyed this Coppola classic - the story revolves around a special forces commander Col Kurtz (Marlon Brando) who had gone rogue. Frustrated with fighting an enemy who won't play by the rules Kurtz embarks on an unconventional and irregular strategy of doing unto others as they would do unto you. Except worse. Much worse in fact. Suffice to say that the words Geneva convention did not feature in the Brando's unconventional and irregular strategy. So much so that the Pentagon despatches another special forces operative, Captain Willard (Martin Sheen) to bring closure to Kurtz's regime. Of course unconventional and irregular doesn't have to contain the element of brutality. During the Falklands war I served in a commando unit who did much of it's fighting behind enemy lines. We operated on a mantra of the three d's - disruption, destruction and demoralising. Post war a summation of our role was described as “unconventional, irregular but highly effective" Without I may add, the element of brutality espoused by Col Kurtz aforesaid. These last few months have seen the Rangers support face an enemy who, like Brando's adversaries refused to play by the rules. Our club was branded guilty without trial, our chairman blackmailed by those who are expected to display governance, fairness and justice. But injustice did not stop at Rangers doorstep. SFL chairmen were bullied, intimidated and threatened to embark on a course of action which ran contrary to any sense of natural justice. Unlawful and unjust sanctions were imposed upon our club. Shame on them. The Scottish press participated in the bloodfest labelling us cheats tax dodgers and much worse. Government agencies breached criminal law in the stampede to damage or club beyond repair. Internet bloggers manipulated government agency leaks in an effort to further destabilise or club. This bloodfest became an unstoppable force whose intent was clear – the death and destruction of Rangers FC. Scotland became the scene of the eternal cosmic conundrum - the unstoppable force versus the immovable object. Two forces propelled by those timeless human emotions – love and hate. And at at the end of carnage there was only one left standing. The immovable object - the Rangers support. Driven by love rather than hatred, and against all rational thought and soothsayers of doom, the Rangers support proved to be the unflinching and unbeatable vanguard of Rangers football club. Their love for a football club, which for many symbolises their very identity, was put to the test. They were not found to be wanting. It's perhaps symptomatic of the problem, that press reporters outside Scotland, from far flung continents, want to report on the supporters who would not let their club die. Perhaps those Japanese reporters at Ibrox recently felt the unflinching loyalty and devotion of the Rangers support in the face of adversity would resonate in a culture which still holds the values of the Samurai in high regard. Its against this backdrop that the boycott of Rangers forthcoming Scottish Cup tie at Tannadice could therefore be described as both unconventional and irregular if not surprising. Dundee United chairman Stephen Thomson epitomised everything which was wrong with Scotland during the Rangers crisis. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18365480 No Stephen views haven't hardened – unbridled hatred was allowed to replace a desire for fairness and justice. Lack of remorse ? You want us to apologise because you have pre-empted the result of a tax tribunal and declared us guilty ? And how dare we have the audacity to challenge a ruling which the court ultimately ruled was unlawful within the context of the SFA's own regulations. I become infuriated when I hear journo's, post tribunal verdict, state they “understand Rangers fans anger”. No they don't. They have no idea at all. Only Rangers supporters truly understand the anger. There is a fury within the Rangers support which burns in a manner akin to napalm – it cannot be extinguished. A fire of righteous indignation has spread right through the Rangers support. If Scotland was to genuinely reflect on it's treatment of Rangers over the last few months, it would quickly realise that the club is due a heartfelt apology. Whether such an apology is forthcoming is another matter. If it was, it would go some way to dousing those flames of anger within our support. If however, its not then the unconventional and irregular may become the norm, with a brutality which would put Kurtz strategy to shame, and Scottish football will face a financial apocalypse as a consequence. Perhaps as ever, “sorry” will prove to be the hardest word. We have come a long way from the opening paragraph and the jungles of Cambodia so perhaps it's fitting I close with the words of Lt. Col. Bill Kilgore (Robert Duvall) from the same film.... “I love the smell of napalm in the morning. It smells of victory”.

I realise that AMMS - but if we take Spiers as an example - he crosses the full spectrum of press/media - radio/tv/printed word. The reckless arrogance of which I spoke and which he epitomises, does not alter whether he be in print/on radio or tv.

Ta - done.

One could be forgiven for thinking that David Cameron's quick response to Lord Leveson's findings, and his caution about “crossing the rubicon” because of press phone hacking, was derived solely due to a quick scan of the findings, with most of his short focus being on the phone hacking bits. What he has failed to take account of are the many many lives ruined not by phone hacking, but false, erroneous and inaccurate articles. The type of article which one of the witnesses stated drove her son to suicide due to the false articles printed by the press about his murdered sister. Perhaps this was epitomised best by the McCann's who when interviewed cited a newspaper report about them “selling Madeline” rather than any reference to phone hacking. Those of us in the Rangers family have witnessed such press vilification over the last few months. Lies, manipulation of facts, reporting which lacks balance and fairness and often fact, characterise how the Scottish Press have reported the crisis at our club. In fact some, such as the BBC, have been directly responsible for some of that aforesaid crisis, due to their conduct. But David Cameron has a major problem as he tries to convince us that the press are some kind of moral guardians of society and thus should not be exposed to legislative scrutiny. For instance what happens when those moral guardians are themselves immoral ? What happens to that guardianship when members of the press believe themselves to be above the law. ? Where was such guardianship when murder victims phones were being hacked ? The culture of phone hacking seems to have been accepted practice amongst a considerable number of journalists. Where were all the whistle blowers exposing such abhorrent practices ? There is a reckless and cavalier arrogance amongst some of our press much of which has been evidenced during the Rangers tax case. 24 hours after a first tier tax tribunal had declared Rangers not guilty Graham Spiers was writing an article about the immorality of EBT. Not bad for a man who had been exposed on national TV hours earlier as a liar. No remorse or apology for his false and damaging accusations, just an attempt to justify them. BBC Scotland and Channel 4's Alex Thomson have followed a similar line. The pen is mightier than the sword – but so too is the poisonous pen. It's not even a month since Lord MacAlpine was falsely accused of being a paedophile by members of the media. How does that fit into Mr Cameron's rubicon ? But emotional damage is not the only by-product of poor, sub-standard and malicious journalism . The coverage of the Rangers use of EBT's has demonstrated there is a financial cost as well. Since the verdict many people have been asking “What if ?” It's a good question. What if the BBC documentary had not been so one-sided and biased would the Rangers name have been less toxic and thus more attractive to buyers if they had not been led to believe the first tier tax tribunal was a foregone conclusion which would not go in Rangers favour ? The recommendation by Lord Leveson that the press requires to be legislated will find little opposition amongst the Rangers support after what we have endured these last months. There is a saying that “society gets the press it deserves”. Perhaps a caveat to that is that the press gets the legislative control it deserves.

Get them to a friends house who has one - every fanzine/website/blog should be stressing the urgency of this petition reaching the 100,000 mark.

It has been some considerable time since, with the help of a Vanguard Bears dossier, I wrote about the bias and lack of factual reporting towards our club by BBC Scotland. (A River Runs Through It) It will come as no surprise to anyone that the Vanguard Bears dossier regarding BBC Scotland is considerably heavier now, given what has transpired over the last few months. But it was today, and from the pen of a non-Ranger that the final death blow was delivered to BBC Scotland. That it came from from a man who has worked for the BBC for over 40 years, and who is respected as something of an â??elder statesmanâ? amongst Sport Journalists, merely served to highlight how far BBC Scotland has fallen. A fall from which it may never recover, certainly not in this Bear's lifetime. I wont let them and I would suspect there are many reading this who feel exactly the same. Archie MacPherson didn't mince his words. He thoroughly condemned their lack of journalistic integrity, in fact he even taunted them to use their skills to produce a documentary which asks why Rangers appear to have been singled out for such microscopic examination and failed by so many who are required to be impartial. I think you will find Archie that those who were responsible at BBC Scotland, for so openly manipulating facts, just don't have the appetite or enthusiasm for such an examination - not if it serves to vindicate Rangers and point the finger at others. They are not hacks they are hags who have concocted a cauldron of poison, venom and vindictiveness towards our club. Anyone partaking of this vile brew will notice the bitter and sour taste is caused by an essential ingredient being absent â?? objective reporting. Their organisation is currently banned from Ibrox, and appear quite comfortable with their imposed exile. That ban stems from their footage prior to the Rangers v Motherwell match. A montage which the Samaritans organisation saw fit to criticise. They seem to be comfortable with the fact that they have marginalised a considerable proportion of the Scottish people against them. They have either leaked or colluded with internet bloggers regarding their â??exclusive interviewâ? with Craig Whyte, as details of this â??exclusiveâ? appeared on the blog of a man described as â??tarred with the sectarian brushâ? a whole day before BBC Scotland released it's well er...not so exclusive. It came of course as no surprise to the Rangers support that BBC Scotland decided that a man whose lack of credibility and integrity they had worked tirelessly to expose whilst chairman of Rangers was suddenly credible enough to earn an exclusive platform at the BBC to spout his lies just as Charles Green was trying to attract investment into Rangers by way of a share issue. Co-incidence ? Not on your nelly. There is a touch of irony about Archie's timing however. It comes on the day the BBC are reported to have sacked 2 members of staff for misuse of social networks following an FOI request from right wing think tank Parliament Street. Speaking afterwords Parliament Street Director Steven George Hilley commented .. Perhaps. But not nearly as much damage as has been caused by those currently working for BBC Scotland at Pacific Quay with their clear anti-Rangers agenda.

My thoughts also Anchorman. Surely there is no way in this day & age that such regular leaks on such a grand scale could be committed without being caught.

I was bemused this morning by a tweet from journalist Tom English which read.... â??rangerstaxcase was a phenomenon. Total respect for the quality of that blog's information. But it became bitter and pompous and lost its wayâ? It would appear post verdict that the bewitching powers of the Rangers Tax Case Blog still appears to be exerting it's enchantment. What Tom English fails to recognise is that the quality of the information he refers to was obtained as a result of an employee (s) of HMRC breaching the trust of his/her employer and consequently embarking on a course of criminal conduct. Furthermore the â??bitter and pompousâ? nature of the blog's writers gained a credibility and respectability. It was honoured with awards, such was the extent of their stream of exclusives which appeared on an almost daily basis. Intelligent people ignored the clear motivations of those involved with the blog, they were â??in the knowâ?, their information and revelations were second to none. It appeared at times they had a hotline or a passport to the evidence HMRC's investigators had collected. Post verdict there are now recriminations from the journalistic community towards this blog which appeared to enchant a nation to believe Rangers FC were guilty. And of course those of us in the Rangers family are quite rightly demanding the role and conduct of HMRC be examined. But this should not be done out of anger or recrimination, nor should such demands for an enquiry be confined to those of who are Rangers supporters. The Rangers Tax Case Blog was successful in making the name of Rangers toxic. The financial consequences of this are well documented and do not need repeating. But they were only successful in achieving this, and their awards, as a result of the steady stream of leaks which came from HMRC and which they used to full benefit. Without such disclosures this would merely have been a â??bitter and pompousâ? blog. Therefore it is not only in Rangers interest, but also the public interest for a full and public investigation into HMRC. A member or member(s) of their staff are responsible for a gross breach of trust and have embarked on a course of conduct which is criminal. http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/manuals/cogmanual/cog904510.htm Given the numerous exclusives which the Rangers Tax Case Blog revealed it would appear that these breaches of trust and criminal behaviour were not just a one off but were committed repeatedly and in a consistent manner. Therefore the following questions at the very least need to be answered by HMRC :- Did they launch an investigation into the leaks. If not why not ? Was the culprit identified and if so what punishment did he/she receive ? Was any person prosecuted as a result of these leaks ? Given that these leaks are criminal were the Police involved ? If not why not ? How was it that an employee of HMRC was able to provide what appears to be a steady stream of information over a consistent period to the Rangers Tax Case Blog ? What action plans did HMRC management put in place to prevent such leaks ? These questions are not going to go away. Given the consequences and the damages which these leaks caused it is absolutely essential that a full scale enquiry is launched. The demand for this is not going to go away â?? if the many thousands of persons who have signed the online petition are ignored then we will simply escalate the matter further. You can rest assured of that.

Noted. I could and should have been more careful with my choice of words.

â??Why the feck wont they die !!!!!!!!, weâ??ve done everything to de-stabilise them.â? Why is it a football club in the lowest league of Scottish football can eclipse the attendance figures of the combined matches in the so called top tier ? â??Why are they doing this ffs !!!. How can they buy season tickets after Whyte - this new guy is an unknownâ? In 2012, following their club being forced into liquidation by a largely unknown Mr Whyte, Rangers supporters en mass saved their club from further financial ruin by buying season tickets on an unprecedented scale. This despite little being known about the new owner Mr Green. Their actions were not motivated by financial projections or business plans, but by the love of something that is more than just a football club. Way more. â??What do you mean Sky insist any deal is dependant on showing Rangers ? FFS they are in the third division of Scottish footballâ? Rangers FC, Third Division SFL, command the highest viewing figures of Sky Television's Scottish televised matches. â??They are fecked. Mark's documentary has won a BAFTA and we have the Orwellian Award. Scotland has them convicted and Phil's book will be the coup de gras. That fecker Traynor remains they only fly in the ointment.â? In October 2012 the Daily Record suspended online comments from readers due to abuse of other posters and Daily Record journalists.. Their Chief Sports Correspondent, James Traynor, was one of the few journalists in Scotland who maintained a favourable stance towards Rangers FC. His blog was the target of a particularly vociferous and vindictive campaign due to his determination to keep an open mind on Rangers FC. Ironically, at this time Channel 4 news correspondent Alex Thomson saw fit to write about so called intimidation by Rangers fans. In November 2012 a first tier tax tribunal ruled in favour of Rangers FC and rejected the claims of HMRC that they were guilty of tax avoidance. Post verdict the Rangers Tax Case Blog, the recipient of an Orwellian award for journalism, frantically attempted to delete all files pertaining to their award winning site. â??Two fuura pound, two furra poundâ? â??If Rangers play on the streets, we will fill the pavementsâ? As Scottish Premier League Clubs are forced to offer â??saverâ? deals in order to attract supporters to to matches, on Friday 23rd November 2012, Elgin City announce their forthcoming match with Rangers is cancelled due to the over sale of tickets and on the health and safety advice of the Police. One word.. Rangers. The legend goes from strength to strength.

It resembles the desolation of the aftermath of a battlefield. The keyboards of the Rangers Tax Case bloggers have fallen silent in a manner akin to a Nazi artillery unit. Their frantic and forlorn attempts to delete all trace of their blogs the actions of an innocent man/men ? I say forlorn because they are still available via the google servers albeit as raw data. Of course like any battlefield pockets of resistance remain. We were treated to Graham Spiers post verdict espousing on the immorality of EBT's. Pardon me Mr Spiers, but I will pass on lessons on morality from a man who was caught lying on national television only this week. James Traynor, one of few journalists to emerge with any credit from this whole debacle, summed it up perfectly. He was ashamed to be part of the fraternity of Scottish journalists. Let me say this to you Jim, you should feel no shame nor should you feel guilty by association. Nor should the guilt be attributed to solely to one area of Scottish society. Many months ago I wrote that Craig Whyte's shame proved to be the catalyst to a nation's disgrace. An entire nation seemed to sweep aside the fundamental principle that a party was innocent until proven guilty. Holyrood was silent as a nation moved to convict Rangers. Where were the moral guardians of our society, of fairness, equality and justice ? The word â??cheatâ? became synonymous with Rangers. But not only did Scotland abandon a fundamental principle of law upon which every civilised nation is built, in it's thirst to quench and justify it's hatred of Rangers, it drank from whichever watering hole would give it succour. So often in testimony the character of the witness does much to verify the credibility of the evidence being given. A failed and disgraced lawyer who can only practise under the strictest of supervision. A man who has been forced to change his surname with the regularity of a person on a diet of All Bran and prunes. An anonymous blog whose intent was clear â?? to destabilise Rangers Football Club. Perhaps their Orwellian Award will serve as the greatest reminder and indictment of this nation's disgrace. Or perhaps not. For some of the aforementioned gained a respectability and credibility due to gross unprofessional and criminal conduct by some in publicly accountable bodies. Its is still unclear the motives behind the leaks from HMRC to the Rangers Tax Case Blog. But it gave a website driven by hate the ammunition of exclusives to fire bullets of credibility and respectability. Equally so for the man of many surnames who managed to gazump BBC Scotland's â??exclusive interviewâ? with Craig Whyte by posting details of the interview the day before it's BBC Scotland release. Its shouldn't be the anger of the Ranger's support which is the catalyst to official in-depth investigations regarding these bodies aforementioned, but a desire to find the truth and bring those accountable to book. Perhaps those outside the Rangers family should be asking questions of the official bodies whose conduct and behaviour was instrumental in feeding this bloodfest. Because not only did they fail Rangers â?? they have failed society, all of it. There is a saying that a broken clock is right twice a day. Therefore its perhaps fitting that I mention when Graham Spiers is right. Rare happenings should after all, be highlighted. He was right when he said that as a result of the tribunal victory Rangers fans will be more dangerous than ever. We will be. We have learned not to trust, not to be naïve. We have seen the hatred of our club manifested. We have seen a total abandonment of all safeguards of decency and fairness in the clammer to kick our club when it was down. We have learned we cannot even trust those who are required by law to be objective and impartial, that the term fair-minded does not apply when Rangers are the subject. You gave it your best shot, you played dirty, you were underhand, cowardly. You deceived, you manipulated. But you failed. But you did succeed in one respect. You have awoken the sleeping giant and filled it with a terrible resolve. I have learned that not only is the pen mightier than the sword, so too is the poisonous pen. It is time for them to prepare to reap the seeds which they have sown.

Its hard to know where to start. So many highlights as a result of the tax tribunal verdict. Fortunate then that Phil Macgiollabhain with his many repetitions over the last few months of the 5 stages of grief had, paved the way of our understanding of what was to come. And come they did as those Rangers haters came to terms with the loss of the ogre which gave some sort of warped justification to their hatred of all things Rangers. Rangers didn't cheat. Nor match fix. Nor were they guilty of financial doping. They didn't rob our front line troops of essential supplies or schoolchildren of their textbooks. The denial phase of grief was particularly amusing. Watching Spiers on national TV squirming and stuttering and denying he had used the term cheat was hilarious whilst at the same time tweets of his screenshots, confirming to the contrary, were winging their way around the internet world. But that was not my favourite. For me thousands of obsessed Rangers haters pouring over every single word of the tribunal summation desperately seeking some form of justification was even funnier. One in particular caught my eye concerning an amateur tax expert called Luigi on Twitter... @tomenglishsport I accept you've had little time to react to FTTT, but have you read paragraphs 159,161&163 of judgment? I suggest you do. To which Tom English replied ... @Luigi19701 Those sections are from the HMRC QC, not the tribunal judges Cue collapsing world. Oh how I laughed. But it didn't end there of course. Random thoughts (for random read â??obsessed") disgraced lawyer Paul McConville was conspicuous by his absence. His random thoughts on the Rangers tax verdict (which would have been his 600th odd random thought on our club) were a lesson in brevity as he had to nip out to his daughters musical recital. Wonder what she played â??Who's sorry nowâ? ? But it's a story which just keeps on giving and giving. Traynor's piece in the Record today, where he trounced all and sundry for their hatred, their willingness to accept as gospel those bigots and Rangers haters who suddenly became â??tax expertsâ? was food and drink to this Bear. And on the subject of food...I'm off for some jelly and ice cream.

Not sure about the pics GS but he certainly had most of the content of the BBC "exclusive". Quite clearly leaked to him - if there has been no internal investigation then we can safely assume that there are a number of people complicit in fedding him information. Furthermore I understand the BBC interview did not place on these shores. Good to know licence payers money was used to feed 3 names blog.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-19975957 Some of you will have noticed I've been relatively quiet of late. In truth this self-imposed exile has been to allow a situation to develop or perhaps, more appropriately, not develop. You see the enemies of Rangers, within Pacific Quay made what I suspect is a considerable error last month. It came as a surprise to all of us that BBC Scotland claimed an â??exclusiveâ? interview with former Rangers owner Craig Whyte. Much of that surprise was due to the fairly acrimonious relationship the aforementioned appeared to enjoy. After all was in not a series of damaging revelations made by BBC Scotland which caused Whyte to ban them from Ibrox and threaten court action against them ? Adding to the surprise element was the fact that this media organisation were allowing Whyte such a platform after they had repeatedly over a series of months called into question both his integrity and credibility. And surprise surprise, this â??exclusiveâ? interview, and apparent turnaround in attitude by BBC Scotland towards Craig Whyte, emerged as Rangers new owner Charles Green was trying to attract investors to the club by way of a share flotation. But of course BBC Scotland got gazumped. For details of that interview were released on internet blogger Phil Mac Giolla Bhain's website on the 16th October under the heading â??Hurricane Craigie set to hit Ibroxâ? a whole day before BBC Scotland released their â??exclusiveâ?. There is no other explanation other than someone at BBC Scotland leaked details of the â??exclusiveâ? interview to the internet blogger. So put yourself in the shoes of the BBC Scotland editorial staff. You obtain something of a media â??exclusiveâ? and use licence payers money to facilitate the â??scoopâ? only to find that someone within your organisation has leaked details of the interview to an internet blogger who manages to steal the thunder. What would you do ? The words â??internal investigationâ? spring to mind. Did they have one ? After all someone at Pacific Quay undermined BBC Scotland's exclusivity regarding this interview. If so was anyone disciplined for this breach of trust ? If no such internal investigation took place I would like to know why. Particularly when BBC Licence payers money is used to facilitate an â??exclusiveâ? interview, which an internet blogger in Southern Ireland somehow managed to get the details of before the story was released. I appreciate Lord Patten is busy with other matters at the moment, perhaps someone else at the BBC Trust will answer my query. After all nothing seems â??exclusiveâ? these days....

Its a good article. There is so much fundamentally and morally wrong with BBC Scotland's latest antics...I just dont know where to start

The following article was written after I became privy to an exchange of e-mails involving Channel 4 Presenter/Chief Correspondent Alex Thomson. Those who read my articles regularly will know that I am not prone to sensationalist claims and that I normally restrict my commentaries to matters which are very much in the public domain and which therefore can be substantiated. I have, on this occasion decided to deviate from the norm, and use material which is not in the public domain. I can assure you however, that these e-mails and the content I will refer to in this article, exist and can be accessed and substantiated if required. Notwithstanding the fact the revelations I am about to make describe a course of conduct which is probably criminal, I'm reminded of the fact that at present, there is a government enquiry ongoing, whose remit is to examine the behaviour and conduct of journalists. All the more reason therefore for my deviation from the norm. The background to this story has it's birth in the blog by Thomson “Threats and Silence – The intimidation by Rangers fans”. The content of that blog as we are all aware was a source of anger for many. It contained material which was false, inaccurate and of course drew criticism from not only Rangers supporters, but also Thomson's own peers in the media – Tom English who described it as “hysterical, attention-seeking nonsense” . Of course if nothing else the rise of social networking via the likes of facebook and twitter, and the direct access which e-mails provide, has made the once untouchables, very touchable in respect of readers feedback. It was in such a exchange of e-mails with a Rangers supporter challenging the veracity of the content of Thomson's blog that he made a series of startling revelations. Alex Thomson has made a number of allegations via various media outlets. In particular that he was threatened by a Glasgow based journalist, a claim he has made many times. The latter of course was subject of a formal complaint to the Police and that agency was of course then duty bound to investigate that complaint. This is however how Thomson describes this incident in the e-mails. Everything is reproduced verbatim – including his typing errors. Knowing full well that the threat had been made from a spoof account, Thomson wasted the time and resources of the Police as part of, what he claims was an elaborate ploy to “expose” some kind of sinister web of intimidation. If it wasn't so serious it would be funny. Notwithstanding what Strathclyde Police think about having their time wasted as part of Thomson's “elaborate trap” one wonders what the other journalists in Scotland think about what Thomson alleges. In fact he seems to think they are part of a wider problem of denial. In doing this of course, he calls into question both their journalistic integrity and honesty. Strange from a man who himself has not been entirely honest when he has spoken on air or to the forces of law and order regarding the threat to himself. Perhaps the biggest irony in all of this are those who not so long ago were accusing Rangers of “robbing Scotland of essential services by not paying the tax man” have suddenly become silent in criticising an individual who deprived the people of Glasgow of their services of law and order whilst they investigated a spurious complaint, a complaint which was lodged, not through fear but to serve Thomson's own purpose. Tom English's very public put down seems to have irritated Mr Thomson. He continues... Perhaps Mr Thomson, Tom English has not spoken to the the Police because he has far more respect for them than to waste their time serving his own self-seeking agenda. I think I can echo the wishes of many Rangers supporters when I say I'd love to read the crime report which outlines your complaint, the investigation and the subsequent conclusions from Strathclyde Police which resulted in no action being taken against anyone. As a famous Irish comedian used to say “There's more”. But I'm aware that I have already taken up considerable space and much of your reading time. The Leveson Enquiry seeks to examine the culture, ethics and practices of the media. Perhaps they should extend an invitation to Channel 4 News.

Thanks for the quality of the replies. Rather than go through each individually, as a number overlap I'll try and respond as best I can. Its easy to dismiss some of these bloggers as being marginalised on the net - I would point out that some of them have a considerable number of readers. Furthermore the 3 individuals I referred to in the article are all members of the NUJ - 2 of them regularly appear in the mainstream media. 3 names would have appeared in the Sun had there not been such a dramatic turnaround by that newspaper. Furthermore Alan Rennie editor at the Daily Record has been desperate to recruit the authors of The Rangers Tax case for a regular column. Andy I understand what you are saying regarding government and the passing through of legislation which is "popular" amongst voters - your example about the Tory vote winner "bash the burglar" is probably the perfect example. But I would argue that the sectarian bill is different - its being passed on the assertion that Scotland has a serious problem with it (Our Secret Shame) - if it was just the passing of additional legislation then I wouldn't be so outspoken on it. But its not just legislation - I see recently they have pledged £9 million towards anti-sectarian initiatives. For a country who has 1 in 4 children living in poverty - quite simply that is shameful. PS I now see that due to heavy criticism from all quarters Thomson is now trying to pass off his article as a joke or a bit of humour. What a horrible individual.

Here you go Chris http://dartagnanthe4thmusketeer.blogspot.co.uk/

Several years ago I wrote about the demonisation of Rangers supporters in a series of articles using Allports Scale of Prejudice to demonstrate my point. Many who disagreed with me back then have now acknowledged that I and the other Rangers bloggers who warned of this, were pretty much bang on the money. I remind you of this, not to take any plaudits or credits, but to alert you and warn you of an escalation in the process. Remarkably there still seem to be a misconception amongst some that hateful propaganda should be completely ignored, that reasonably minded people should rise above it. Have they ever stopped to consider that there were reasonably minded people in Germany in the 1930â??s who didnâ??t buy into the Nazi propaganda machine but who found they were powerless to stop what they had ignored for too long ? Stop and take some time to reflect Scotland on just where we are. Case in point - The propaganda machine has been responsible for the Scottish government forcing through legislation to deal with â??Scotlandâ??s Secret Shameâ? â?? sectarianism. The academics, with their accredited research say otherwise. The statistics say otherwise. But we have bowed to the propaganda machine. If anyone from the Scottish government would care to disagree, please feel free to contact me with the statistics which show otherwise, and please donâ??t forget to provide me with a dissertation which counters or rebukes Prof Steve Bruceâ??s many years of academic research on the subject. I use the above, not as a political rant about the Scottish government, but to demonstrate how far we have already gone down the road of bowing to the propaganda machine, and how that machine has the capability to impact and affect intelligent and reasonably minded people. Rangerâ??s supporters will be well aware of some of the propaganda websites whose purpose is solely to stir up hatred and angst towards our club. The individuals they feed do not care about the questionable character or morals of the authors, it does not matter so long as they continue to bash and demonise Rangers or their support. I referred to some of them in my last article. Alex Thomson â??s recent blog offering concerning alleged intimidation by Rangers fans was described by Tom English at the Scotsman as little more than â??hysterical, attention seeking nonsenseâ? Nope it was far more than that Tom, it was a 3 course gourmet feast for those who despise Rangers and their support. It matters not that it was inaccurate and erroneous. Nor that the credibility of the author has been considerably tarnished with allegations which the Police investigated and dismissed. Itâ??s feeding the hunger of those who hate Rangers and demand that hunger be satisfied. Therefore it came as no surprise to me that Phil Mac Giolla Bhain was quick to hold up Thomsonâ??s blog offering as some kind of corroboration which justifies his hatred. For that hatred shines through Mac Giolla Bhainâ??s latest offering, an offering which sees a marked escalation in the demonisation of the Rangers support, and which sees a concerted effort by him to link or equate the Rangers support with the most repugnant sections of history and society. â??Herrenvolkâ? â?? a reference to the German master race. â??Fascist underclassâ? and â??klanâ? leave little to the imagination. Of course that is not the only connection between these antagonista. ( This is a term I have coined for those who deliberately set out to feed the haters with one sided or biased articles, and which lack objectivity, obscure facts and seek to demonise the Rangers support) Who write or tweet with the deliberate intention of provoking , baiting or antagonising the Rangers support. Too far fetched ? Not according to Gordon Waddell, who revealed recently on Radio Scotland that Graham Spiers was putting out tweets with the sole intention of winding supporters up. It may surprise many of you to know that Spiers is responsible for one of my most favourite journalistic articles. His tribute to his late father was moving, personal and resonant, it will have touched those who have lost a father on so many levels. Do you think Mr Spiers your late father would be proud of you knowing you are devoting your intellect, education and energy to bait and provoke a group of people who are concerned about their club and the shoddy treatment they are receiving ? That it serves as nothing more than a source of amusement to you ? I think you and I know the answer to that one Graham. But back to the connection. Having written, tweeted, baited, provoked and antagonised the antagonista go running to the Police when the bait on their hook is nibbled. They expect, no actually they demand, that the ever decreasing services of the Police be used up hunting down those they have deliberately provoked and baited with their lies and inaccurate reporting. Quite simply they are every bit as morally repugnant as the bampots who respond to their antagonism with threats of violence. Perhaps next time they seek to waste the time of our forces of law and order, those forces should inform them that not only will they investigate the threats, but they will also examine the article which gave rise to the incident to see if falls under the umbrella of conduct likely to provoke a breach of the peace. Those who have studied prejudice suggest that those demonised normally respond to it in 2 ways. They either â??acquiesceâ? â?? they consent passively/accept it reluctantly submit to it. Or of course they fight back with all they can. We are Rangers. Not only do we not do walking away, we donâ??t do acquiescing either.

Great article chilledbear - excellent work.

Quite simply unbelievable 26th. Wonder how they arrived at such a conclusion.

Did you ever get a reply from them Andy ?