Haka'd Out

Rant time. I thought during the Commonwealth Games I would get rapidly pissed off at the number of times I heard "Advance Australia Fair", and true to form, every time we get one of those minor medals some Aussie is on top of the dias and those sickening strands blare out of the TV. But unexpectedly something else has got up my nose big-time, and that is the use of the haka.

Before the Games, we were "promised" less hakas by the Chef De Mission. So what the fuck are the swimming boys doing the haka when one of their teammates comes SECOND or THIRD ???

Cringe factor huge. There is nothing worse than seeing skinny white boys doing a Maori war dance, especially when we haven't won?

Seriously, I'm starting to get embarrassed by the use of the haka. While I'm no expert on Maori culture, every New Zealander knows the haka is a war dance, and according to Wikipedia, "typically used by warriors before a battle, proclaiming their strength and prowess and generally verbally abusing the opposition" (my emphasis)

Using the haka AFTER the event has always been a little suspect in my book, given its origins, and we can blame the Rugby Sevens and League boys for that - they should know better.

But using it after the event when we haven't won??? I can understand the swimming boys being a little pumped up at the sight of a precious medal, but if they stopped and thought for a moment, breaking out into a haka, telling all and sundry about their strength and prowess for finishing second or third, and verbally abusing the poor chap who has just won, is embarrassing, disrespectful and pathetic.

On the other hand, I think the T-shirts the NZ Badminton side - a.k.a. the "Black Cocks" - have made are just brilliant. For those who haven't heard, this is what NZ supporters have been wearing at the badminton venue:

(Caps) Not a Soft Option
(Mens Tshirt) Black Cocks: Expect Big things
(Womens Tshirt) Nobody Likes To Come Second

I'd love to know what their opposition - which included Jamaica and Kenya - thought of them!