Chris Hughton. Nice man but NEVER a Norwich man.

[Rudolph Hucker 0]

Chris Hughton is undoubtedly a decent human being, well mannered and articulate in a beige kind of way. I wish him all the best for the future knowing he is unlikely to ever be short of a few bob.

It should be clear to anyone who follows football that players and managers suit certain clubs. For most it is usually ONE club where they excel but for many it can be a number of Clubs.

Equally, many players and managers NEVER fit at certain Clubs for whatever reason and this is true of Chris Hughton at Norwich.

Despite the history of ex-Spurs men finding a home from home in Norfolk Chris always was Spurs.

He may have been liked at Newcastle but the fans never really got the chance to see what he couldn''t do at EPL level, likewise Birmingham City.

His name was seldom called out by the crowd. When it was he got very excited; but it hardly ever happened. He just seemed on a different wavelength and despite his diplomatic manner he was never warmed to. He was respected, he was liked but he was never loved or taken to the hearts of Norwich supporters.

The only reason I could offer for this is that blinded by anger over Lambert they plumped for a manager whose methods were alien to the style we had got to love and had the players to perform. It seemed like a long unravelling and for me the successful run he had he gained with the residue of the team spirit he inherited then eroded.

I am angry about the comments from the likes of Lineker and Savage. Hughton clearly has a lot of mates in the game and they are slagging Norwich off for sacking him. They were always going to whenever it happened but these pundits

are part of the disingenuous cartel of football who will criticise on the one hand while feathering their own nest on the other. They are cowards far removed from having to take the real decisions and live their lives through multi angle replays and hindsight.

I personally felt it was too late to sack Hughton but it may well be that the players had simply stopped listening to him and a fresh voice will make some difference.

The concern here is that we seem to have developed a prima donna attitude in our dressing room and the performances of some players, for me, has been nothing less than dishonest. These players will look at Neil Adams and see him as someone given five games and then he''ll be gone so why should they listen to him too? That is Neil Adams challenge. If he was a manager going to be around next season, like Pulis for example, the players would know he held their futures in his hands.

So, good luck Neil. I hope you are getting real backing from the Board which will allow you to lay the law down; anything else is just tokenism on their part.

Neil Adams, unlike Hughton, IS a Norwich man. Bryan Gunn was but in a lottery ticket way. Adams has coached and last season his players and the spirit they showed were the highlight of my season. Adams never missed a penalty; you can only do that if you step up certain you will succeed and his players emulated that. The biggest change Adams could make would be to have us playing without fear as his youth team did; but he''s got precious little time to do it.

If we were bold we could look at Saturday and say: they relegated us, let''s relegate Fulham as we save ourselves. It''s pay back time, let''s break them.

If we were bold we would say: Liverpool can''t defend. Villa proved that attacking them, as they did at Anfield, is the best way of defending against them. Liverpool have poured scorn on us in recent games as has Suarez, they are expecting to win easily. Let''s stick some tasty tackles into Suarez and put a massive dent in their title aspirations.

Man United got away with it here in December. They can be beaten as can Arsenal who seem to have similar problems to ourselves.

We''ll see what the reaction is: Neil Adams has only got to nail it once and new brooms often get that initial win. If he doesn''t they it won''t be for his want of trying. It will be because of the months of decline set in motion by Hughton.

Good luck Neil Adams. You have nothing to lose. Your Club have everything to gain.

[Bill 1,788]

excellent post

and you have hit on the one factor that has been overlooked"...................but it may well be that the players had simply stopped listening to him"that happened some way back and from what I can gather he was ''ruling'' by fearstep out of line and you are outmaybe that was what the board wanted when they gave Lambert the heave ho, but they hung on too long with HughtonI am very optimistic, the players may be able to play with expression not fear, they know there is no excuses no more and if they can get a win at Fulham there is every liklihood that they can remain in the PLonwards and upwards

[im spartacus canary 0]

Excellent post i''m almost welling up... and agreeing with city 1st ? a truly historic night  OTBC

[50 years a Supporter 0]

Agree - excellent and balanced post - and by no means overly optimistic

Russell Martin said on his Canary Call interview on Saturday that attitude and motivation were the difference between winning and losing.

They now have something (and someone) to lift them ........

[BOO 0]

Nothing to lose and all to gain, at least we now have a chance. Good post.

As far as players attitude to Adams is concerned, I don''t see a problem with them viewing him as a short term manager, they are pros and they don''t want to go down. They will be relieved that they now have a fighting chance and I think they will play for him.

[Citizen Journalist Foghorn 0]

[quote user="RUDOLPH HUCKER"]

I am angry about the comments from the likes of Lineker and Savage. Hughton clearly has a lot of mates in the game and they are slagging Norwich off for sacking him. [/quote]The same Savage who tipped us for relegation yesterday.  Seems we can''t win in the eyes of the clueless.As adequate a manager as Hughton was for a time, I don''t think he was ever going to last here.  He seemed in awe of every other club, and in his heart never believed in his players or Norwich as a football club.

[Bill 1,788]

As said Adams is a ''City'' man and will have been around the squad the whole time and before Hughton''s time hereHe will have the credibility of the FA Cup Youth win and will do much to heal the rift between management and players - something that was evident when all three were heaved out at the same time.That win was brought about by careful planning and an ability to motivate the players, both of which have been clearly lacking throughout the whole of Hughton''s time here.I watch Chris Hughton from the close proximity of the Main Stand against Ajax an it was very evident that even at that early stage there was no warmth between him and the players. That has not changed and explains why in the past few months players have so frequently been wheeled out to deny their is any such rift.Aadams job will be to motivate and fire up a squad that has been ground down by negative tactics and a defeatist approach to games - coupled with petty tyranny at Colney.My only fear amongst all the sighs of relief is whether this has come one game too late.

[Waveney Canary 0]

I doubt the hapless fool will ever make the hall of fame!

[Mellow Yellow 18]

Best post i have seen for a long time...says it all really.I was a Hughton supporter till the WBA game when I saw an apathy from the team I did not like at all, the look of a team on the way down. Adams is a risk but with Hughton I now think that unfortunately we would have gone down anyway.

[Reggie Strayshun 0]

Yes. As so often Rudy hits the nail on the head.It make no difference as to when and how any one individual was ''converted'' to being an outer. The important thing is that the board, belatedly, have acted, and it''s incumbent on all of us to unite and give our full support to all involved at FCR.After the initial few hours , now the time for silly backbiting and point scoring is over. There will be time enough for post mortems after May 11th.

[DistantCanary 0]

A cracking post Rudolph.

Unfortunately Hughton has proved he is a nice, decent, articulate chap. Perfectly suited to a position at the FA really same mould as Roy Hodgson very PC never a word out of place.

In my eyes he is best suited to a chief scout scenario where he can be everyone''s mate and carry on watching lots of games with all his mates in the game. Good old Chrissy lovely guy zzzzzzzzzzzz

Not the type of person you want as manager of your football team however, give me someone hungry, inspirational and desperate to prove themselves who in turn finds players in his mould desperate to prove themselves. We have none of those any more in our starting 11.

Not easy finding people like that i know but Mcnally has done it once before and who knows he may just do it again.

[Sooty57 403]

Excellent post

Refreshing to see a well balanced post on this board without a single dig at another poster.

[Stig 0]

It was peculiar, the way I could dissect a Chris Hughton loss, but then after watching his post game interview feel completely different. His softly spoken demeanour, friendly attitude and never once challenging had an almost, perverse, way of winning me over. His ability to instill confidence in me even after a loss was always frustrating to me, and I wonder how many others were own over by his silver tongue. I''ve listened, more than watched, this season from behind the walls of Carrow Road - my last game being almost a season ago for our 4-0 win at this very fixture. I won''t deny, I began my Norwich City support with lambert and this is truly my first experience of a ''bad season'' (I know it could be worse). I truly couldn''t get behind Chris Hughton this season, the football bland and the players shot. I''ve been waiting for this news for a while now, and with it my full support of Neil Adams and the players. OTBC.

[Syteanric 1]

[quote user="RUDOLPH HUCKER"]. Adams never missed a penalty;.[/quote]

 

Swansea City, League cup 1st round, 1997/98.. Roger Freestone saved it low to his left.

[MancCanary 0]

Great post Rudolph.

I think from reading this thread that the senior player who spoke up to the board about Hughton could well have been Russell Martin - taking in to account what he said on Canary Call.

[Bill 1,788]

"Not the type of person you want as manager of your football team

however, give me someone hungry, inspirational and desperate to prove

themselves who in turn finds players in his mould desperate to prove

themselves. We have none of those any more in our starting 11."eh !we have 25 of them in the squad, it''s just that Hughton stifled them with his negative and almost defeatist approachHughton was hungry and desperate to prove himself, be under no illusion about that. The problem was in the methods he used.Players who reach this level, and are signed by City are well motivated. What they don''t expect is to be constricted by absurd tactics that focussed almost solely on stopping the opposition. There is a wonder Laurel and Hardy clip where Stan decides the best way to stop himself from getting a pounding in the ring is to fling his arms around his opponent and cling on for dear life - that was Hughton.The club had brought in those players, Hhughton had little to do with that side of things - which some may argue was the root cause of the failings.However when the tactics and the consequent results are as dire as they were is there any wonder that players loss faith ? Try playing cricket when the manager insists taht it is better to hold the bat by the thick end  and that the wicket keeper should stand on the boundary to stop any fours being scored. Any dissent was met with the cold shoulder, and the pleasant man in front of the camera was not the same man at Colney. Basically he was a bully, using his position to force his way, rather than by consent.That you could write the above quoted paragraph beggars believe and makes me wonder if you have watched many City games.

ps again. I would strongly urge folk to read the OP .... simply a brilliant piece.

[Jack Flash 13]

The decision timing may not be as bad as the so called experts think - the bounce back factor often lasts only a few games, then reverts back to norm, and that being the case 5 games to stay up may be feasible. The key moment for me, a fence sitter until Sat, was that roll the dice and cross fingers moment when CH sent on Becchio. Clutching at straws came to mind.

[ricardo 7,328]

[quote user="City1st"]"Not the type of person you want as manager of your football team

however, give me someone hungry, inspirational and desperate to prove

themselves who in turn finds players in his mould desperate to prove

themselves. We have none of those any more in our starting 11."eh !we have 25 of them in the squad, it''s just that Hughton stifled them with his negative and almost defeatist approachHughton was hungry and desperate to prove himself, be under no illusion about that. The problem was in the methods he used.Players who reach this level, and are signed by City are well motivated. What they don''t expect is to be constricted by absurd tactics that focussed almost solely on stopping the opposition. There is a wonder Laurel and Hardy clip where Stan decides the best way to stop himself from getting a pounding in the ring is to fling his arms around his opponent and cling on for dear life - that was Hughton.The club had brought in those players, Hhughton had little to do with that side of things - which some may argue was the root cause of the failings.However when the tactics and the consequent results are as dire as they were is there any wonder that players loss faith ? Try playing cricket when the manager insists taht it is better to hold the bat by the thick end  and that the wicket keeper should stand on the boundary to stop any fours being scored. Any dissent was met with the cold shoulder, and the pleasant man in front of the camera was not the same man at Colney. Basically he was a bully, using his position to force his way, rather than by consent.That you could write the above quoted paragraph beggars believe and makes me wonder if you have watched many City games.

ps again. I would strongly urge folk to read the OP .... simply a brilliant piece.

[/quote]I don''t know where you get all that stuff from, C1, but if there''s any shred of truth in it then why was it allowed to go on? If the players were agin'' him then why didn''t somebody go to McNally?I suppose the truth will come out in the end, it usually does but if you are correct then a lot of needless damage has been done to the club with very little time left to get back on an even keel.The Board kept faith with their chosen one and ordinarily I would have applauded them for that but surely they should have had someone keeping tabs on things. It''s right that they backed their man but not if they knew there was an unhappy ship.All this stinks of poor communication to me.

[Surfbird 1]

What a lot of twaddle - was Lambert a ''Norwich'' man?

[Bill 1,788]

if there is any shred of truth in itSadly it is all too true, as I have been saying oon here since the ''rumpus after the Villa game last seasonIt has been a constant source of amazement and frustration that Hughton was kept onLook at the stuff with Becchio in the press, then he appears as a sub, Hoolahan over Jan, Fer snubbing Hughton when celebrating and going straight to Bassong who had long fallen out with HughtonI can only imagine that when Lambert was ''shoved sideways'' the board wanted someone who would not side with the players - and ''hard man Hughton was brought in. A position and attitude that was not only condoned but wanted by the board so it rather put them on the spot when it come to sacking him.mWhat they didn''t want was the players trying to decifde things as with Lambert. It was the player revolt Saturday night that finally did for him - by that soundings were taken and the consensus was ''enough is enough''. I don''t believe it is one of communication as McNally is fairly hands on and will listen to almost anyone, and replies. I just think that Hughton has two sides to him and was able to assure the board that it would all come good - after all had he not delivered 11th place last season ? Bowkett even confidentially talked of ''mid table mediocrity'' such was his (supposed) believe in Hughton.Saturday was as much about the manner of defeat as the defeat itself. The players were dispirited and Hughton was clueless about how to change things and how to motivate the players, the ''whip'' had been used too many times.To see such a decent fellow as Ruddy argueing with the fans was perhaps a defining picture of the straw finally being broken.Time to rebuild.... the player''s confidence and belief and the bonds between the supporters and the players and clubonwards and upwards

[lake district canary 4,530]

[quote user="City1st"]if there is any shred of truth in itSadly it is all too true, as I have been saying oon here since the ''rumpus after the Villa game last seasonIt has been a constant source of amazement and frustration that Hughton was kept onLook at the stuff with Becchio in the press, then he appears as a sub, Hoolahan over Jan, Fer snubbing Hughton when celebrating and going straight to Bassong who had long fallen out with HughtonI can only imagine that when Lambert was ''shoved sideways'' the board wanted someone who would not side with the players - and ''hard man Hughton was brought in. A position and attitude that was not only condoned but wanted by the board so it rather put them on the spot when it come to sacking him.mWhat they didn''t want was the players trying to decifde things as with Lambert. It was the player revolt Saturday night that finally did for him - by that soundings were taken and the consensus was ''enough is enough''. I don''t believe it is one of communication as McNally is fairly hands on and will listen to almost anyone, and replies. I just think that Hughton has two sides to him and was able to assure the board that it would all come good - after all had he not delivered 11th place last season ? Bowkett even confidentially talked of ''mid table mediocrity'' such was his (supposed) believe in Hughton.Saturday was as much about the manner of defeat as the defeat itself. The players were dispirited and Hughton was clueless about how to change things and how to motivate the players, the ''whip'' had been used too many times.To see such a decent fellow as Ruddy argueing with the fans was perhaps a defining picture of the straw finally being broken.Time to rebuild.... the player''s confidence and belief and the bonds between the supporters and the players and clubonwards and upwards[/quote]

I am sure there is a grain of truth in some of the things you say, but you throw in so much twaddle along with it, its almost impossible to distinguish what might be accurate and what is conspiracy theorising - which if you are honest with yourself - you will admit you are prone to. 

[Bill 1,788]

[quote user="lake district canary"][quote user="City1st"]if there is any shred of truth in itSadly it is all too true, as I have been saying oon here since the ''rumpus after the Villa game last seasonIt has been a constant source of amazement and frustration that Hughton was kept onLook at the stuff with Becchio in the press, then he appears as a sub, Hoolahan over Jan, Fer snubbing Hughton when celebrating and going straight to Bassong who had long fallen out with HughtonI can only imagine that when Lambert was ''shoved sideways'' the board wanted someone who would not side with the players - and ''hard man Hughton was brought in. A position and attitude that was not only condoned but wanted by the board so it rather put them on the spot when it come to sacking him.mWhat they didn''t want was the players trying to decifde things as with Lambert. It was the player revolt Saturday night that finally did for him - by that soundings were taken and the consensus was ''enough is enough''. I don''t believe it is one of communication as McNally is fairly hands on and will listen to almost anyone, and replies. I just think that Hughton has two sides to him and was able to assure the board that it would all come good - after all had he not delivered 11th place last season ? Bowkett even confidentially talked of ''mid table mediocrity'' such was his (supposed) believe in Hughton.Saturday was as much about the manner of defeat as the defeat itself. The players were dispirited and Hughton was clueless about how to change things and how to motivate the players, the ''whip'' had been used too many times.To see such a decent fellow as Ruddy argueing with the fans was perhaps a defining picture of the straw finally being broken.Time to rebuild.... the player''s confidence and belief and the bonds between the supporters and the players and clubonwards and upwards[/quote]

I am sure there is a grain of truth in some of the things you say, but you throw in so much twaddle along with it, its almost impossible to distinguish what might be accurate and what is conspiracy theorising - which if you are honest with yourself - you will admit you are prone to. 

[/quote]you haven''t a far ken cluenow why don''t you tell us all instead, where this supposed house of yours is in the Lake Districtthe one that is 300mile from Norwich

[ricardo 7,328]

[quote user="City1st"]if there is any shred of truth in itSadly it is all too true, as I have been saying oon here since the ''rumpus after the Villa game last seasonIt has been a constant source of amazement and frustration that Hughton was kept onLook at the stuff with Becchio in the press, then he appears as a sub, Hoolahan over Jan, Fer snubbing Hughton when celebrating and going straight to Bassong who had long fallen out with HughtonI can only imagine that when Lambert was ''shoved sideways'' the board wanted someone who would not side with the players - and ''hard man Hughton was brought in. A position and attitude that was not only condoned but wanted by the board so it rather put them on the spot when it come to sacking him.mWhat they didn''t want was the players trying to decifde things as with Lambert. It was the player revolt Saturday night that finally did for him - by that soundings were taken and the consensus was ''enough is enough''. I don''t believe it is one of communication as McNally is fairly hands on and will listen to almost anyone, and replies. I just think that Hughton has two sides to him and was able to assure the board that it would all come good - after all had he not delivered 11th place last season ? Bowkett even confidentially talked of ''mid table mediocrity'' such was his (supposed) believe in Hughton.Saturday was as much about the manner of defeat as the defeat itself. The players were dispirited and Hughton was clueless about how to change things and how to motivate the players, the ''whip'' had been used too many times.To see such a decent fellow as Ruddy argueing with the fans was perhaps a defining picture of the straw finally being broken.Time to rebuild.... the player''s confidence and belief and the bonds between the supporters and the players and clubonwards and upwards[/quote]Well that''s a very sad tale and much sadder because most of that has been kept from ordinary fans. Hughton always came across to me as a decent bloke although I will admit that his quiet manner at AGM''s and Fans Forums never filled me with huge confidence. At the time I thought that it was the right decision to stick with him, after all, the Board should have a better handle on things than most of us ordinary fans.

[BOO 0]

There have been plenty of indications of the problems, the Holt and Morro comments, the bizare change of approach at the end of last season, Becchio getting on the pitch after his outburst, etc etc. It just depends on your viewpoint as to how you interpret all this stuff.

[Bill 1,788]

VW it is not a case of interpretation, but one of knowing.The burst up last season came from the horses mouth, so to speak.The club has done a good job of keeping a lid on stuff and will come down hard on any loose talk, but I know somebody who works at Colney and stuff does come out.Radio Norfolk is not so tied to the club as is Archant so mre probing questions are asked. Where do this questions come from, thin air ?As I have said, see what else slowly seeps out and then see whether what I have stated adds up.

[lake district canary 4,530]

City 1st''s rantings and claims are all very well, but if  Hughton was all the things City 1st suggests  - why would Redmond choose to come here?   Why did Bassong want the move, as he knew Hughton.  Why did Gutierrez choose to come here?   Why would Hooper want to come here knowing that his ex-manager Calderwood was here?   If Hughton  was such a bully (your word, not mine), why could we do so well some games and not others?    Managers have to be tough and have authority - yet you say he uses the whip to force his methods.   Perhaps he wasn''t getting the desired response from his players and had to get more forceful to get his methods across. 

Hughton imo had very high standards of what he expected of the players - and that they weren''t able to do it often enough was presumably a cause of frustration for him.   You could argue - and people have that he should have adapted his system to suit the players available - but on the other hand his remit was to create something long lasting and of a higher standard than previously.  That was always going to be difficult. 

City 1st "knows" someone at Colney, well whoopidoos.  You get to know a few titbits from one or two people - who have their own axes to grind - and a one sided picture comes out.    I prefer to try and see both sides of the argument - and I don''t believe for one minute the problems are as black and white as City 1st makes out.   He speaks as if he knows things as a certainty - but only ever gives the bleak side of things.  I get accused of being one sided with my comments.   Well imo City 1st is so one sided in his views of Norwich City Football Club it borders on idiocy.   We never get a balanced view from him.    One sided, biased tittle-tattle, City 1st, based on things you have heard second hand.   No better than telling stories in a school playground. 

[Tumbleweed 106]

It explains a helluva lot. It was obvious to me early on that the players had no confidence or freedom of expression, a totally different unit from the one created by Lambert. There were many many signs, all small but stuff does come out and some on this MB sought to tie them together and draw conclusions. I have come across many characters in my time who have different faces to them, the worst one in my first job who to customers was as sweet as pie, charming and lovely, but then behind the scenes to us workhorses would scream and shout and could be brutally vindictive.

CH never seemed to create any genuine bond either with the players or fans. How many times have we heard "Chrissy Hughton''s yellow army" sung in the Barclay?

[Bill 1,788]

[quote user="lake district canary"]City 1st''s rantings and claims are all very well, but if  Hughton was all the things City 1st suggests  - why would Redmond choose to come here?   Why did Bassong want the move, as he knew Hughton.  Why did Gutierrez choose to come here?   Why would Hooper want to come here knowing that his ex-manager Calderwood was here?   If Hughton  was such a bully (your word, not mine), why could we do so well some games and not others?    Managers have to be tough and have authority - yet you say he uses the whip to force his methods.   Perhaps he wasn''t getting the desired response from his players and had to get more forceful to get his methods across. 

Hughton imo had very high standards of what he expected of the players - and that they weren''t able to do it often enough was presumably a cause of frustration for him.   You could argue - and people have that he should have adapted his system to suit the players available - but on the other hand his remit was to create something long lasting and of a higher standard than previously.  That was always going to be difficult. 

City 1st "knows" someone at Colney, well whoopidoos.  You get to know a few titbits from one or two people - who have their own axes to grind - and a one sided picture comes out.    I prefer to try and see both sides of the argument - and I don''t believe for one minute the problems are as black and white as City 1st makes out.   He speaks as if he knows things as a certainty - but only ever gives the bleak side of things.  I get accused of being one sided with my comments.   Well imo City 1st is so one sided in his views of Norwich City Football Club it borders on idiocy.   We never get a balanced view from him.    One sided, biased tittle-tattle, City 1st, based on things you have heard second hand.   No better than telling stories in a school playground. 

[/quote]

still seems to over excite you though, doesn''t it ?otherwise two questionswill the next few weeks add more credence to my statements about what was happening at the club ?or your apolgist ramblings that it was all the players fault and Hughton would come good ?

hmmmmm

now why will you not tell us where this place in the Lake District is, 300 m from Norwich - another of your lies, perhaps ?

[ricardo 7,328]

If he says its a case of "knowing" then I think we should accept that he might actually be privy to a bit more than you and I LDC.A lot of this under the counter stuff seems to be leaking out so best not to dismiss stuff because it runs counter to what we''ve been led to believe. I have no contacts anywhere so the best I can do is read the runes based on many years of experience of the machinations at CR. In that respect it''s obvious that not everything has yet come out into the public domain.If C1 says he is certain of what he has been told then I''m inclined to accept it until and unless I find out different.

[lake district canary 4,530]

[quote user="Tumbleweed"]It explains a helluva lot. It was obvious to me early on that the players had no confidence or freedom of expression, a totally different unit from the one created by Lambert. There were many many signs, all small but stuff does come out and some on this MB sought to tie them together and draw conclusions. I have come across many characters in my time who have different faces to them, the worst one in my first job who to customers was as sweet as pie, charming and lovely, but then behind the scenes to us workhorses would scream and shout and could be brutally vindictive.

CH never seemed to create any genuine bond either with the players or fans. How many times have we heard "Chrissy Hughton''s yellow army" sung in the Barclay?[/quote]

This character assassination instigated by City 1st is bordering on the obscene.  Don''t be taken in by his one sided guff.  Managers of football teams have to be tough.   "Brutally vindictive" is a huge jump from being "assertive and determined" - which is what a good coach has to be.  Assertive, strong and single minded would describe Hughton more accurately.     A gentleman off the pitch and strong willed on the pitch.  You wouldn''t want it any other way.   City 1st''s spin is just ludicrous.   

This is in no way a defence of Hughton''s record results wise as he paid the penalty for not getting the results - but I will not sit by and watch this one sided cr*p being spouted out.   There is always friction in a squad of players, as well as the camaraderie.  City 1st latches on to things and obsesses about them - and it all pours out on to here as a form of  a puffed up self-appointed  mock-authoritarian rant.