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Art Art Istry 18-08-18

Art and Artistry still Free

by

John Clements

 

There have been many words written and spoken about the 'Hall report'.  One of the major comments seems to centre around the cost or how much the RPRA spent commissioning it.  In my opinion this is a 'Red Herring'. Money or cost leave out the vital element of which the 'Hall Report' is an example. What ever we say about the report the report it is  a cultured document in that it attempted to inject reason and in the process tested the culture of the RPRA Council.

 

Time and time again the RPRA has shown itself to have a ‘Dumbing Down' 'Culture'  for everyone else except themselves. so it is no surprise that they rejected this report and it has little to do with money. Or what they spent.

 

If the RPRA had the intention and desire to improve the culture of Pigeon Racing here in the UK and to improve the public image of the sport they would have provided some reasoned argument as to why they rejected the report but unfortunately they did not.

 

If we go back further into the modern official attitude within the sport.  The reason why 'dumbing down' has been encouraged  is because a dumbed down fancy is likely to be less informed and more likely to buy pigeons whilst a more  informed cultured fancy is less likely to buy or to buy only rigorously selected single birds in tiny numbers, but this was not an idea thought up within the council itself. The ‘dumbing down’ idea was imposed on them from elsewhere. In short they were hijacked.

 

Whether the RPRA and the overall leadership of the sport  can change  or come to realise they were culturally  hijacked is open for debate. I think it unlikely at the moment but I remain optimistic because there is still a small vibrant culture  of  creative talent in pigeon racing than will never be completely extinguished. Creative talent is of course an expression of a culture that has not been hijacked but is still free.