I haven't been keeping up with Kaspar's progress at Falkirk I'm afraid. To be honest, a lot of us were hoping we could have held onto him a little longer. He was one of the major reasons (if not THE major reason) why Bury managed to stay in League 2 last season. It was a particularly worrying few months as you can imagine; bottom of the entire league for the first time in 120 years!

Well, looks like we managed to scrape through by the skin of our gritted teeth for the second consecutive season! Cut it extremely fine again and only really 'mathematically secure' due to Boston and Wrexham having yet to play each other.
Just have to wait to see how many promising players we manage to sell (or whose loan terms don't get renewed) during the summer recess before thinking in earnest about next season.

Another St Pauli - Shakers connection is that we will be wearing a nice chocolate brown away kit next season.

Bury ist Braun Weiss

Well I never!
I´m not usually one for buying the actual team shirt (my theory being that they are designed for healthy young athletes to wear for 90 minutes - not some overweight bloke in his late forties who drinks too much and smokes tabs!) but I may make an exception this time!
(Hard work these German keyboards - some of the letters are in different places! Maybe the fact that I´m still hungover from the promotion party isn´t helping)

Am I correct in thinking that Coventry once had a brown strip?

I remember that. Some hideous bloody thing in the 70's I do believe. Yuk!

With some wierd 'T' shape on?

I think their sponsor was Talbot, but then again, was it too early for shirt sponsorship?

I don't know what's scarier....the brown shirt of that ginger fro!

Not sure if this should be in the 'serious note' thread really.
Anyway, earlier today, I was with a couple of friends in The Trackside bar next to Bury's Bolton Street station; home of the East Lancs Railway and a real ale pub. I was surprised to see a few patrons of said establishment wearing what looked to me like Nazi regalia. One guy was wearing a T-shirt with "Liebstandarte World Tour" on the back (the name of Hitler's 'bodyguard' regiment). Now, when it comes to idiots in their late teens who, through some misguided sense of 'patriotism' decide that they want to lend their allegiance to the BNP, I can deal with that (being at heart a pacifist), diplomatically and can even say that I've managed to 'convert' a couple of these 'lost souls' previously. When it is men of a similar age to myself (late 40s) who should know better, I tend to struggle.
I had, (in the same establishment) some months ago the displeasure of one night seeing some arsehole wearing a swastika armband. He seemed to think it was funny and, at the time, I resisted the temptation to 'stick one on him' and asked him to remove it as I found it offensive (in fairness, to murmured approval from some other patrons), which he did.
On making further enquiries, I'm led to believe that the place has recently acquired a reputation as being patronised by the far right; furthermore there is some 'question' as to where the licensee's loyalties lie politically.
My dilemma is:-
I like the bar and it is one of only two 'real ale' pubs anywhere the town centre.
Do I?
(a) Simply avoid the place and drink somewhere else
(b) Report the fact to Bury MBC's licensing authorities (surely it must breach some byelaw)
(c) Get a team together and go down and 'kick arse.'
Any thoughts?

My experience of the trackside is that I can't imagine the landlady having any political views whatsoever.

I am however aware of an incident that happened during one of the ELR's war weekends where some idiot turned up as an SS officer and caused offence to those in attendence. He was asked to leave the event.

Just pulling ideas out of the sky, I wonder if the incidents you've witnessed are somehow related and they are trying to cause further wind up?

As you say it'd be a shame to stop going in as the opportunities for good diverse real ale in Bury centre are shocking

I'd heard about some kerfuffle with the wartime weekend thing, though that was the previous weekend whilst I was in Hamburg for the Dresden game.
Apparently after I'd left, (not being able to resist the temptation to place a "St Pauli Fans Gegen Rechts" sticker in the gents before doing so), one of yesterday's 'offenders' who was known to one of the mates I was with from their schooldays came over talking some (admittedly drink-fuelled) nonsense, bragging that the weekend prior he'd been down there in his 'black Waffen SS uniform' (I'm no military histrorian but I'm fairly sure they wore field grey anyway). And showing off an SS ring. This particular tosser (mid fifties) is apparently ex Bury Grammar School.(EDITED; I REALISED I WAS IN DANGER, BY ALMOST NAMING THE INDIVIDUAL, OF BECOMING AS BAD AS THE REDWATCH SCUM) From what I'm told the dickhead then asked one of my mates if he would "join the 'party.'"
Anyway, it goes without saying that he was told, in no uncertain terms to "Fuck off", went to sit with his mates (including the guy in the 'Liebstandarte' T-shirt) who all promptly drank up and left.[/b]

Well, this last post suggests that your immediate problem with the venue may be resolved. If it re-occurs maybe we should think about holding Brownstock '08 there...

As regards the uniform of the Leibstandarte, the black dress uniform would have been worn by the bodyguard, and on ceremonial occasions. The active service units, like the other branches of the Waffen SS, initally had field grey uniforms which were distinguished from the Wehrmacht (regular army) divisions by a band on the cuff bearing the divisional title. After an occasion when Hitler felt that the Leibstandarte Division had not fought with it's usual fanaticism he threatened to remove this "honour" scroll from the uniform. The field grey uniform was later replaced by camouflage from around mid-1943. There was a bit of a media kerfuffle about ten years ago when the current German army was issued with kit which was obviously based upon a famous Waffen SS camouflage. (It's the small spotted brown-black-green one now worn by students the world over if you're interested.)

While the image of the swastika is banned in Germany - to the extent that various local governments have lobbied to have the "Gegen Rechts" and crossed red circle anti-fa swastikas banned too - it isn't banned in the UK. The only legislation that springs to mind that might be of use is the recent "incitement to racial hatred" stuff, and even the most sympathetic copper would tell you that (s)he'd be hard pressed to even issue more than a mild verbal rebuke in the instance you describe. You'd be better off making a loud scene and embarrassing these aging twats into leaving (or doing something stupid they may later regret in the carpark).

Hmmm.
Some possible link between these idiots and steam trains perhaps? Something to do with the Nazis getting the trains running on time? I work with a 'train buff' who mentioned a similar incident connected to the East Lancs Railway (can't remember the details, I'll ask him tomorrow).
I think it unlikely that these types are actually 'active' and are probably just into the 'dressing up' side of things for whatever reasons.
It's possibly one to pass on to the Searchlight people though just in case.

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