After the ghastly terrorist attacks this morning, I suppose most of us thought and said the same kind of things we usually do, but may I point out that the situation this time is slightly different, in that the immensely-looked-forward-to (by locals, though in all honesty not by me – if it were Rangers that'd be different) visit by Manchester United is imminent.

Friends I've spoken with today have averred that MU will pull out, which I think would be a damned shame, not simply because of the disappointment among their millions of Indonesian fans, but because it would represent a significant win for the terrorists, whose most exquisite delight is depriving us of our lives…but a close second-best is disrupting our lives, and what could be more disruptive than ruining an occasion heralded for weeks as a big plus for Indonesian soccer?

I'm sending off an email to Manchester seeking a pledge that they'll not cancel, so could I urge others on IM to do the same.
It's important, in the absence of any personal ability to hit back at the scum-bags, that we do all we can to minimise their impact.

Yeah, can't see it's down to disgruntled opponents in the recent election, too flip. The bad guys are surely the usual suspects, the goaties, and as you say, MU's absence may stir otherwise quiet hostility to fanatics into something more vocal.

Anyway, my email is now in Manchester, and who knows, if enough of us make our views known, they may reconsider.

If the cancelation of MU will cause a lot of people get angry with the bombers and their ideological apologists I'm all in for it. But it's sad to see a lot of people are more concerned wit MU than the victims of this cowardish act.

Lairedion, I don't think even the keenest fan is more concerned about the cancellation than about the innocent dead.

Why I personally feel strongly about the MU aspect is that cancellation is running up a white flag, when the same innocent dead should be honuored by steadfast refusal to give an inch to the vermin.