This is a somewhat strange story from the UK that will probably mean absolutely nothing to the rest of the world.

Ron Atkinson has been forced to resign from his job as a football analyst (on ITV and for The Guardian newspaper), after making some unfortunate remarks after the Monaco vs. Chelsea game when he thought his microphone was switched off. He was complaining about the performance of Chelsea player Marcel Desailly and said

He's what is known in some schools as a fucking lazy thick nigger

Subsequently we have heard from countless people that Ron is "not a racist", and that when he was manager of West Bromwich Albion he signed three black players. However, Ian Wright has claimed "Every time I see Ron Atkinson he is making the latest popular racist joke at me and I don't really want to hear that."

There are a few theories on people who make racist remarks but genuinely appear not to be racist. My view is that they do have ingrained racist attitudes that they normally manage to supress (and may deny), but which are still there. On a conscious level they are able to be tolerant and reasonable, but they also can't help saying racist things (perhaps without realising what they are saying). Another theory is that people say these things because they want to appear 'big', and when they are shouting their mouth off they make comments without really thinking about it. Probably a bit of both in this case.

I was watching the build-up to the Newcastle vs. Chelsea game on Sunday, and Sir Bobby Robson was having his say. He talked very confidently for a couple of minutes, but it was total gibberish and utterly without any meaning (yet he is one of the most successful managers in English football). Many people in the football world do have a special talent for this, but Ron Atkinson is acknowledged as one of the masters of this art. Obviously he does know something about football, but that doesn't mean he can always express himself very well, and very often it's hard to know whether there is any meaning behind what he says or whether he is just talking rubbish. There are a few websites devoted to the mysterious world of Ronglish, highlighting some of his more bizarre comments.

He was somewhat unfortunate (in one sense) that the remarks were broadcast. The comments were made during a commercial break, but a few TV stations overseas were still carrying a live feed and people in Egypt heard the comments and complained. The moral is that it's a good idea to check whether the microphone is really switched off.

Or whether there are any Labour MPs in the room... Recently, Tory MP Ann Winterton got herself in trouble for making a racist joke about the Chinese who were drowned in Morecambe Bay, and like Ron Atkinson she couldn't understand what all the fuss was about. She made the remarks at a private dinner, but a Labour MP was present and found the joke unacceptable. I think she was sacked from the Conservative Party, but she eventually apologized and was re-admitted after the fuss had died down. Presumably Ron Atkinson will also be back before too long.

One amusing aspect of the Big Ron story is that 'serious' newspapers such as The Guardian printed the comments in full, whereas the 'popular' papers added asterisks. So the papers that give us intimate details of what pop stars and footballers get up to in private feel that their readers might be offended by seeing rude words that they probably hear (and use) everyday. It's a strange world.

Mind you, the front page of today's Guardian has a photograph of David Beckham asleep. What's that all about then?