No one cares that you lost a war. The war is past. No, I am not British nor pro-British/Top Gear.
I dont even know what the fuss is all about. Nor did I notice the number plate, nor do I know of any war(s) that happened between these people.
On the other hand, 51% of me is sure that Clarkson had that number plate on purpose.
Obviously it's a sensitive issue. I can understand a protest, tell the Top Gear crew they're not welcome and turn them away; but to commit violence against the entire group? Ridiculous.
Hopefully it's just a small portion of the population making the rest look bad!
The worst part was some of the protestors didn't know why or how they'd been offended. they'd just heard something about the war from others and were there because they were outraged.
...
Gimli: Youll find more cheer in a graveyard.
Yeah I agree. I understand why it's sensitive and why people would be upset, but like you said just tell the crew that they have to leave and have officials escort them to the border. They were acting like barbarians the way they responded.
Now from seeing the plate and briefly reading about the conflict I am at least 90% certain that it was intentional.
There are 17,576 possible three letter combinations that could have been at the end of that plate, and they just happened to be FKL, which works perfectly as an abbreviation for Falklands, and he picks the car that would get H982. In fact here is an article that breaks down the math of how unlikely it is that could have been entirely by accident:
http://www.cityam.com/1412417770/jeremy-clarkson-falklands-number-plat e-fiasco-how-likely-it-registration-was-accident
Now I'm sure some of those numbers are debatable, but the article ultimately concludes that the chances of that being completely by accident are 114,112,500 to 1. Now even they admit that as unlikely as that seems it's still possible as weird plate combinations happen more than we might realize, but I'd be extremely surprised.
Plus, one factor that article didn't consider is the uniqueness of the situation. It wasn't just that any old car anywhere ended up with that combination. Considering the hundreds of millions of cars that are made and registered worldwide every year it would be no surprise if someone found that combination somewhere in the world, but it didn't show up just anywhere. It showed up on a UK car that was bought specifically with the intent of being driven through South America, and specifically Argentina for a large portion of that trip. There have been disputes over land between many countries and groups of people for many centuries, but the disputes over the Falkland Islands is a conflict unique to the UK and Argentina, and of course Top Gear is a UK show that was filming episodes in Argentina using a car with a license plate that works almost perfectly as an abbreviation for the year and name of this conflict that is again unique to the two nations.
And another thing on the same subject: of the many cars and many places driven on Top Gear since it's debut well over a decade ago; what are the odds the one time they go to Argentina they would just happen to pick that exact car with that exact plate? Some have speculated the plate had been on the car for quite some time before Top Gear purchased it, but even if that were true it just fits together all too well to seem like an accident.
Now I don't know if there really is a way to accurately calculate the probability of this (although I'm sure some could form algorithms that would give us at least a rough estimate), but if we were already at 114,112,500 to 1 then I'd say after factoring this in we are already well over one in a billion. Too perfect to just be an accident.
But yes, I agree that the Argentinian people should have just told them to leave rather than attacking as an angry mob.
If you don't want to be spoiled, you shouldn't be here in the first place.
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Regardless, as I already said it just fits together all too well. Even if they didn't chose that number plate they chose everything else. There are plenty of other V8 cars they could have taken to Argentina, yet they chose the one with that plate. Seriously, the odds that it was an accident are astronomical.
If you don't want to be spoiled, you shouldn't be here in the first place.
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by MarkAntony
So you'r saying that they found the number plate and thought yes, we'll make the show around this?
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You do have a good point. But you are forgetting a few things.
You are basically making a false dichotomy. You are assuming that either it was intended from Clarkson, or at the very least from the Top Gear producers, or it was completely random.
But there are other possibilities.
Keep in mind which car the plate was on.
It was a Porsche 928. And the number plate was H982. Sure, ideally it should have been P928, but it was still pretty close. It was also said in one of the other threads here, that when it was bought by Top Gear, there were only two such cars for sale in Britain. So I don't find it surprising that they chose the car that had a license plate that matched the car.
On the other hand, you might ask why that car ended up with that license plate originally.
Now, of course I don't know who the original owner was. And I don't know if it's possible to influence which number plate you get when you buy a new car in Britain. But I would not be surprised if the original owner wanted a number that would match the car, but found out that he couldn't get 928, but that he could get 982. And it might be that when he found out he could get 982, he figured he wanted something that pointed to the Falklands war. And so intentionally got the FKL ending as well.
And so it might be that the number plate was COMPLETELY intentional by the original owner. But that the Top Gear crew did not influence that in any way, and might even be completely unaware of it.
However... it might also be that once whoever decided which car to buy saw the license plate, he decided to go for that car BECAUSE of the reference to the war. Furthermore, everyone is blaming Clarkson. And nobody seems to remember that they have a complete crew working for Top Gear as well. And to be honest, I don't even believe that Clarkson has the final say in everything that he does. So if this was done by Clarkson alone, I am pretty sure someone in charge would have said "We're not going to Argentina with that number plate". So if anyone at all should be blamed, I would say it should be the producers.
Top Gear/Clarkson, May and Hammond do intentionally "push people's button's". They have had "trouble" in other nations as well... specifically in Mexico and the U.S. deep south.
In the deeply conservative and religious American south, the guys overtly ridiculed religious folk and then painted "Man Love Rules - Okay?, Hillary for President and NASCAR Sucks".
Now, while I personally found this hilarious, some people do not take overt and intentional acts of provocation lightly. Some people don't take "jokes" as jokes either... and what was painted on the cars was an obvious intent to provoke. They knew what might happen as a result of their actions but did it anyway for the sake of the show.
Given the above history, I find it entirely believable, actually very likely, that the FLK (Falkland Island) license plate was placed intentionally, and on a British car, to provoke a reaction.
Should the Argentinians, or the Americans in the deep south of the USA, have reacted with violence? Of course not but people don't always act as they should, do they?
As an Argentine I agree, that was barbaric and a shame, somebody could have been badly hurt :(
Also agree the plates were placed on purpose, they wanted provocation and unfortunately they succeded. If they make a Ferguson or Missisippi episode, they could make 'KKK' plates to offend more people and later play the victim.
I repeat: the mob reaction was horrible, criminal! But was just what they wanted when they placed that car plate.
Without wanting to start an international incident, the chances of Clarkson ending up with that number plate were 50%, or a one in two chance if you like.
He specified to the procurement team that he wanted a 928, of which there aren't many left in reasonable condition in the UK now. More importantly, he specified that he wanted a manual gearbox, which at the time of purchase, there were only 2 for sale in the whole UK. One was an absolute dog and would never have lasted for the duration of the show, the other was the one that you saw on screen.
It is important to note that Clarkson himself did not pick that specific car. Top Gear has an absolutely massive number back room staff, including a team that find the cars on the show. He told them what he wanted, the researchers and procurement team the work together to find a vehicle that can (with limited spares and tools in the film crew's vehicles) manage the journey. That was the only one available.
The plates are legit. They were not changed. The records are held with the DVLA, the BBC have investigated it, a small army of internet warriors have also investigated it, the DVLA (UK vehicle licensing) have confirmed that was the plate the car was originally registered with and everything points towards it being nothing more than an unfortunate coincidence.
Another thing to remember is that when Fernando Zylberberg filmed the deliberately controversial Argentine Olympic team's promotional video in 2012 where he trained on the war memorial to the British soldiers who died in the Falklands war, when the Argentinian team arrived in Britain, we welcomed them with respect, hospitality and graciousness. We dismissed that very disrespectful act, then just moved on in a civilized manner. There was no stone throwing, no arguments, no insults, no mob attacks. We applauded their arrival into the Olympic stadium.
SEX - Breakfast Of Champions!
seems a bit unlikely that someone didn't notice it though before they went, and maybe pointed out that it was unwise. For instance, my husband works for Sky Sports, and once years ago he was doing a boxing with a big star called Nazeem or something. Anyway, they were going to have him come on in a big car with a numberplate saying Naz 1, until somebody pointed out that from a distance this looked like 'Nazi'. So it seems a bit improbable that someone didn't notice this one. could they not have changed the numberplate? Someone could have authorised that surely? admittedly the argentinian response was way over the top, but all the same, a deliberate intention to provoke cannot be ruled out I feel.
shareOh get *beep* Aside from the fact that the plate has been confirmed by the DVLA to be the original plate, who cares if it was intentional? You scumbags made an Olympic advert on a *beep* war memorial.
You invaded our land, killed our people and were decimated and you expect sympathy?
I just watched it and did anyone else notice you see hammond s plates and captain slows plates all the time, but never Jeremy's?
shareThey pulled the front one off in part II. After they have read about the rage online. They couldn't have refilmed the first part. And they couldn't change the plates. So they have come up with a compromise
shareAh okay. Just found out the falkland islands are still british territory. I get the anger a bit better now. Weird that i didn t know britain still had a colony.
shareBritain doesn't have a colony you uneducated moron.
How could you not know what the Falklands are? Why would the Falklands not be British? Do you think that argentinian imperial aspirations and invading a peaceful territory makes it somehow there's?
What the hell is wrong with you?
I lolled out loud; uneducated moron....Do you really think they teach that stuff in history all around the globe? I'm not from the UK and I'm sorry to say, but minor things like that don't make it to history books in other countries.
shareThe Falklands is as much a british colony as Hawaii is an american colony.
The Falklands is british only because the people who live there WANT to be british. If the majority of the Falklanders had wanted to join Argentina, I am 100% sure they would have been allowed to do so.
I don't think anybody really has the right to pass down judgement on the Argentinians. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't the right way to react, but let's not get all high and mighty and act like they're a bunch of savages or something. There's barely a country in Europe that hasn't had some sort of football riot. Canada recently had riots over a hockey game, and in the States we have had riots over the stupidest of sh!t, the Cabbage Patch Riots are one of the more obvious examples. Violence over a very sore subject involving the loss of life is more understandable than beating somebody up over a doll or stabbing somebody for wearing a different colored football jersey.
See you guys at the 10 year prison reunion - Ben Richards
What a moron, the entire thing was staged.
www.manlymovie.net
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Clarkson can't lose.
Whatever the Beeb decide to do with him, he hasn't signed a new contract yet anyway. At the end of this month Clarkson...and Hammond...and May...will be free agents. If that happens, Sky, ITV, BT and even Netflix will do whatever it takes to get him. If all 3 of them go from the BBC, it'll be like bidding for the Premiership TV rights between the other broacasters, of which there are many.
The BBC only really have 2 choices, fire him or keep him. If they fire him, they lose out on his marketability. Cock or not, he is massively popular all around the world. Keep him and they have to publicly back down, let him know that they can't afford to lose him and puts them in his pocket. Whatever they do, they lose out one way or another.
With Top Gear regularly pulling something like 350 million weekly viewers across the world, those are figures not too far off Formula 1 viewing figures and look at the levels of commercialization F1 generates. Now imagine that you're an international commercial broadcaster, have a sh_it load of money and Clarkson and c/o just came on the market...
If Sky got them for example, you can absolutely guarantee that they'd build them into their F1 coverage somehow. Look at how many none petrolheads watch Top Gear, then imagine how many extra viewers you'd get if they were on Sky's F1 channel? And that's before you give them a new Top Gear show of some kind.
If he has hit this guy, then he's a twat plain and simple. But even by being a twat, he's been headline news for a couple of days. You just can't buy that kind of publicity.
Clarkson will know this. I doubt it's something that's been lost on the other two either when it comes to renewing their contracts.
SEX - Breakfast Of Champions!
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It may be a bitter pill for some, but I've got Sky so I really don't care where he goes, if he goes. To be honest, I'm more aggrieved at paying £140 a year to watch less than a dozen shows on the BBC (Top Gear is the only thing I have watched on the Beeb for years).
As for the F1, the Beeb offer a half cocked attempt at showing the F1. They only show 50% of the races live, miss out on many on the better races, Suzi Perry knows fu_ck all about the sport and Coulthard is a sh_it commentator.
Sky on the other hand has a dedicated 24 hour, 7 day a week channel just for F1. They broadcast the entire season live (all practices, qualifying and races), have David Croft and Martin Brundle (two of the best in the business) commentating, film exclusive documentaries, biographies, daily news reports, etc, etc. Yes, there are adverts, but they never go to commercials when there is live on track action. The live coverage is uninterrupted.
On top of that, you get Motors TV that shows all the Blancpain, GT3, Aussie V8, USCC etc races and Eurosport that covers the World Endurance Championship too. It might be expensive, but for a petrolhead Sky is a godsend! As for the BBC, they're just busy selling off all their live sports rights as of late. Their sports (any sports) coverage these days is a joke! They're supposed to cater for the majority with a wide variety of interests, but only seem interested in producing shows about gardening, 'talent' shows and Victorian women in corsets these days. I'm looking at the BBC1 schedule for tonight right now...The Big Painting Challenge, Countryfile, The Voice UK, a remake of Poldark (which was crap first time around)...and this is supposed to be their flagship channel for fu_cks sake! It's absolutely sh_ite.
SEX - Breakfast Of Champions!
On the other hand, 51% of me is sure that Clarkson had that number plate on purpose.