re: Ramires Gets 4 match ban

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It obviously is not

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To the soccer culture sure.

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There is no way that violent conduct is less than diving

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I'm not talking about something violent, I'm talking about what Ramires did. That wouldn't have injured my 2 year old daughter. It may fall under that arbitrary category of FA punishments but it certainly wasn't violent.

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Giving players fines for diving is the way to go.

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Yes, let's fine a guy who makes 200k a week 10k, that'll teach them.

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Giving a suspension for diving is ridiculous.

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Suspending someone for intentionally attempting to cheat the game and the other team is ridiculous? When those actions could cost a player an opportunity they have worked their entire lives for?

I can guarantee 100 out of 100 players would rather have someone do to them what Ramires did than someone take a dive on them and try to get a pen or have them sent off.

I can't fathom anyone who has ever played a sport past the age of 8 taking the stance that diving is more acceptable than an innocuous, harmless little back hand hit out.

ETA: How does someone who thinks like you wrap your head around watching a hockey match?

The same difference as a "violent" act and what Ramires did.

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it certainly wasn't violent.

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In soccer, anything that can be considered a strike is violent.

I don't really care about diving, so I'll let you argue with other people about that.

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How does someone who thinks like you wrap your head around watching a hockey match?

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It's really not that hard. The expectations in each sport are different. It's like comparing a random sucker punch at the bar to two people who have mutually agreed to fight.

So Randy you would be ok with Ramires smacking your 2 year old in the face, as long as he didn't dive first?

Ramires. A punch or elbow is still a strike. His intent was to hit him in the face. That's a suspension in every league outside the NHL.

Ramires will forever hold a special place in my heart

Diving is much worse in my opinion. A weak backhanded slap versus a deceitful attempt to completely alter the course of a match are on opposite ends of the continuum.

Trying to act like act like all punches are created equally is absurd. The world is full of grey and not black and white. Interpretation should always be able to include context.

Diving is the worst part of soccer. The rules are so slanted right now that it is easily worth the risk because the award is so great. Infractions should be designed to mitigate that blatant attempt to cheat the game in a material way.

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Not in mine. Intentionally hurting another person is better than deceiving the referee? Every other player in the game cheats.

Holding your hand up for a foul is an attempt at deception. Crowding around the referee is an attempt at deception. John Terry waving his imaginary card around a referee's face is deceptive. Making an obviously cynical foul to attempt to prevent a goal scoring opportunity (happens ALL the time) is blatant cheating. How are these any different than diving? Cheating happens everywhere in the game.

Diving is reprehensible. But so is every other form of cheating in the game. I find the high-and-mighty haughtiness of fans hilarious. Get off your horse. Studs up challenges and punches in the face are ok? Seriously? That's the kind of stuff that can end player's careers, not diving.

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zero percent chance what Ramires did could hurt anyone.

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Other posters stretched Ramires's action into generalities, so I was speaking in generalities. I don't think Ramires could've hurt anyone with that. I'm speaking of the idea of diving in general being, for some reason, more disgusting than a blatant cynical foul that could seriously injure someone.

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Not if you actually got fouled.

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What if you don't?

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Ref crowding is not an attempt to be deceiving but to intimidate. Though I'll agree it shouldn't happen the way it does.

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Intimidation in this situation is frequently used to deceive the referee into doing what is best for your team. Whether the players know its objectively right or not.

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Not if a card is warranted.

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What happens when it isn't?

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Which is appropriately punished with a free kick/penalty/yellow/red card.

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I get the distinction, but its still cheating. And the appropriateness is arguable considering the interpretation of "last man" is incredibly liberal in the modern game.

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The problem with diving is that there are almost never any repercussions for it while every other aspect of the game is grossly over policed.

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I agree that it should be policed more. Its abhorrent. I guess we just disagree about whether the rest of the game is over policed or not. For instance, Skrtel's constant grabbing of shirts in the box is always allowed and is much worse than diving IMO.

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Nobody ever said that.

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Saying diving is the worst foul in the sport implies it.

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Other posters stretched Ramires's action into generalities, so I was speaking in generalities.

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Fair enough, I've only meant to comment on this particular instance.

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What if you don't?

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Then I will call you a POS douche like Muller in the CL semi the other day.

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Intimidation in this situation is frequently used to deceive the referee into doing what is best for your team. Whether the players know its objectively right or not.

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Semantics. Intimidation, deception, whatever you want to call it I am generally always against it.

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What happens when it isn't?

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Then it's a major bitch move, just like diving.

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I get the distinction, but its still cheating

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I don't really consider it cheating when their is appropriate punishment for it. In soccer even less so because the punishment is almost always greater than the crime.

The main thing with diving that gets me so worked up, aside from the effiminate bitchiness it takes to pull off, is that it almost always goes unpunished. Everyone talks about how they don't like it but no one does anything about it and it would be soooo simple to virtually eradicate.

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I agree that it should be policed more. Its abhorrent. I guess we just disagree about whether the rest of the game is over policed or not.

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Saying diving is the worst foul in the sport implies it.

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I don't know if I said that but what I meant was it's worse than what Ramires did. It's not worse than a dangerous tackle with serious intent to injure or a sucker punch to the face. Unless, of course, said tackle or punch is in retaliation for a blatant dive. Then I'm all for it.