a totally unbiased article in sp regarding my sanctuary by robyn louw

Rob quotes

I've said it before(and it still holds true).................Imagine how piss-poor your management must be if you can't monopolise a monopoly!

.......this is classic.....:

Muhtiman Wrote:

---

> Rob quotes
>
> I've said it before(and it still holds
> true).................Imagine how piss-poor your
> management must be if you can't monopolise a
> monopoly!
>
> .......this is classic.....:


(tu)

Very clever Rob

Razor sharp Rob.....

Optimist, thanks for your comment, which I appreciate. We are all entitled to our own opinions and yours are as valid to you as mine are to me.

I can only interpret things the way I see them - what I saw was that a nervous stressed horse went mad in the stalls, hurt itself, fell over, potentially endangering its jockey, itself and its neighbouring horses. The starting stalls did not function correctly. There was a dog on the track.

I didn't make any of those things up - they are there in the replay for the world to see.

I would be interested to hear if you saw something different to what I did, but as I said, I can only base my opinion on what I saw and my interpretation of events. However, I am entirely open to hearing your opinion and if necessary, revising my own if I got it wrong and would be glad to hear your interpretation of the incident and how you think it should be viewed.

I'm not sure where you get the idea of my being wined and dined by the operators, but again, perhaps you and I view my life differently.

i'm also not sure why you say I never have a good thing to say in my columns? I don't know whether you mean that broadly or specifically, but "never" seems to imply that you are speaking broadly, so I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree on that point.

Also, could you elaborate on the perception you refer to? I'm not sure I know what you mean. I have opinions on things and I put them in writing. I don't ask people to agree with or like what I say. It's nice when they do, but equally, I'm rather used to my opinions being appreciably different to others and therefore I don't particularly mind if people feel differently. We're all at different stages in life, with different life experiences, etc and if nothing else, different opinions allows the potential for me to learn something new. If everyone thought the same way about everything, nothing in life would ever change and we'd never see / experience new things.

Opinions are the same Just because mine might differ from yours does not make them wrong, just as you having different opinions to me does not make you wrong. They're just two different perspectives of the same thing. Perhaps you don't like mine, and perhaps I don't like yours. But unless I try yours (and vice versa) we'll never know whether either of us might be missing something. I never used to like olives. Other people did. Finally someone persuaded me to try one. Now I love olives and can't believe I ever missed out! But if someone else didn't have different tastes / experiences and didn't take the trouble to make me expand my horizons, I might have gone my entire life without olives and how sad would that have been? In that case, I tried something different and changed my views for the better. Sometimes I try something new and I don't like it and that's fine too. I don't like baked beans. My husband does. That doesn't mean we need a divorce. It just means that he gets the whole can and I have cheese on toast instead.

No two people can view / experience the same object or situation the same way because our experiences are coloured and informed by our own personal histories, experiences, prejudices, etc. And no 2 people are going to 100% agree with one another on everything. It's just not possible. The point of collecting different points of view is to inform and perhaps help you see things that your own experiences or perspectives perhaps do not allow. So don't throw the baby out with the bathwater! It took me a long time to learn that no matter whether I like or dislike someone, think they are clever or stupid, or whatever, I can never match their knowledge or life experiences, which means that everyone single person out there knows or has experienced something I haven't. I think that's quite exciting, because it means everyone out there has something to teach.

If you don't get any value out of my opinions, so what? Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I don't write my column to please you, I write it to please me and to talk about things that I feel are interesting, or important or to talk to other people who I think are interesting or important. If you don't like it , that's fine and good for you. There are plenty of other people out there and plenty of other opinions. Someone else might like what I write! Better still, hopefully I can interpret things in a way they've not considered or somehow tell them something they did not know before. I'll keep trying and perhaps some day I'll say something you do like

The majority of the discussion around the Kings Pact debacle was surrounding the betting and the interpretation of the rules. My opinions / perceptions are based on my horse experience and what I think are good or bad decisions in terms of what is good for the horse. So in my opinion, arguing about the rules was somewhat secondary to the fact that there were other, rather more fundamental blunders that day.

I thought so then and I think so now. But as I said, I can only interpret what I saw on screen based on my personal experience and according to my own judgment. I am by no means a finished product and am always willing to consider a different point of view in case there is something that I missed, so I would be glad to hear your version of events.



optimist Wrote:

---

> zsuzsanna04 Wrote:
>

---

>

---

> > Aaaaaw you guys !! You're enough to get a girl
> > all choked up !
> >
> > Just trying to do my job, but thanks so much
> for
> > all the positive comments - it really means a
> lot
> >
>
>
> Robyn why do you always have a dig at the
> operators? they are trying to do their jobs. You
> have never had a good thing to say in your column
> but yet you are happy to be wined and dined at
> their expense. Why not put some positive comments
> in your articles, maybe it will change the
> perception you are creating

Robyn, Please carry on writing ( speaking up ) the way you do . The horse has NO say in any of these matters and unless somebody speaks up nothing will change .

Black olives from Gold Crest - try it they're my favourites

"It were not best that we should all think alike; it is difference of opinion that makes horse races."

Robyn keep them coming!

I like white grapes better than black, but so what? Maybe you prefer black. Shall we have a fight over it in the supermarket checkout queue?

Opinions, opinions ... just don't get personal, like starting in that I am a racist and anti-black because I prefer the white ones.

If you think a certain horse should have won, fine, but don't slang the trainer or jockey because it didn't. They are probably just as upset as you, or more so because they are the ones that now have to scratch around for a solution.

If you look at the tote board you'll see EVERY horse, even the most hopeless, has it's supporters, otherwise the amounts against it's name for win and place would be the entire pool. But they never are. So everyone has some reason to think that this 100-1 shot can win ...

zsuzsanna04 Wrote:

---

> Optimist, thanks for your comment, which I
> appreciate. We are all entitled to our own
> opinions and yours are as valid to you as mine are
> to me.
>
> I can only interpret things the way I see them -
> what I saw was that a nervous stressed horse went
> mad in the stalls, hurt itself, fell over,
> potentially endangering its jockey, itself and its
> neighbouring horses. The starting stalls did not
> function correctly. There was a dog on the
> track.
>
> I didn't make any of those things up - they are
> there in the replay for the world to see.
>
> I would be interested to hear if you saw something
> different to what I did, but as I said, I can only
> base my opinion on what I saw and my
> interpretation of events. However, I am entirely
> open to hearing your opinion and if necessary,
> revising my own if I got it wrong and would be
> glad to hear your interpretation of the incident
> and how you think it should be viewed.
>
> I'm not sure where you get the idea of my being
> wined and dined by the operators, but again,
> perhaps you and I view my life differently.
>
> i'm also not sure why you say I never have a good
> thing to say in my columns? I don't know whether
> you mean that broadly or specifically, but "never"
> seems to imply that you are speaking broadly, so
> I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree on that
> point.
>
> Also, could you elaborate on the perception you
> refer to? I'm not sure I know what you mean. I
> have opinions on things and I put them in writing.
> I don't ask people to agree with or like what I
> say. It's nice when they do, but equally, I'm
> rather used to my opinions being appreciably
> different to others and therefore I don't
> particularly mind if people feel differently.
> We're all at different stages in life, with
> different life experiences, etc and if nothing
> else, different opinions allows the potential for
> me to learn something new. If everyone thought
> the same way about everything, nothing in life
> would ever change and we'd never see / experience
> new things.
>
> Opinions are the same Just because mine might
> differ from yours does not make them wrong, just
> as you having different opinions to me does not
> make you wrong. They're just two different
> perspectives of the same thing. Perhaps you don't
> like mine, and perhaps I don't like yours. But
> unless I try yours (and vice versa) we'll never
> know whether either of us might be missing
> something. I never used to like olives. Other
> people did. Finally someone persuaded me to try
> one. Now I love olives and can't believe I ever
> missed out! But if someone else didn't have
> different tastes / experiences and didn't take the
> trouble to make me expand my horizons, I might
> have gone my entire life without olives and how
> sad would that have been? In that case, I tried
> something different and changed my views for the
> better. Sometimes I try something new and I don't
> like it and that's fine too. I don't like baked
> beans. My husband does. That doesn't mean we
> need a divorce. It just means that he gets the
> whole can and I have cheese on toast instead.
>
> No two people can view / experience the same
> object or situation the same way because our
> experiences are coloured and informed by our own
> personal histories, experiences, prejudices, etc.
> And no 2 people are going to 100% agree with one
> another on everything. It's just not possible.
> The point of collecting different points of view
> is to inform and perhaps help you see things that
> your own experiences or perspectives perhaps do
> not allow. So don't throw the baby out with the
> bathwater! It took me a long time to learn that
> no matter whether I like or dislike someone, think
> they are clever or stupid, or whatever, I can
> never match their knowledge or life experiences,
> which means that everyone single person out there
> knows or has experienced something I haven't. I
> think that's quite exciting, because it means
> everyone out there has something to teach.
>
> If you don't get any value out of my opinions, so
> what? Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I
> don't write my column to please you, I write it to
> please me and to talk about things that I feel are
> interesting, or important or to talk to other
> people who I think are interesting or important.
> If you don't like it , that's fine and good for
> you. There are plenty of other people out there
> and plenty of other opinions. Someone else might
> like what I write! Better still, hopefully I can
> interpret things in a way they've not considered
> or somehow tell them something they did not know
> before. I'll keep trying and perhaps some day
> I'll say something you do like
>
> The majority of the discussion around the Kings
> Pact debacle was surrounding the betting and the
> interpretation of the rules. My opinions /
> perceptions are based on my horse experience and
> what I think are good or bad decisions in terms of
> what is good for the horse. So in my opinion,
> arguing about the rules was somewhat secondary to
> the fact that there were other, rather more
> fundamental blunders that day.
>
> I thought so then and I think so now. But as I
> said, I can only interpret what I saw on screen
> based on my personal experience and according to
> my own judgment. I am by no means a finished
> product and am always willing to consider a
> different point of view in case there is something
> that I missed, so I would be glad to hear your
> version of events.
>
>
>
> optimist Wrote:
>

---

>

---

> > zsuzsanna04 Wrote:
> >
>

---

>
> >

---

> > > Aaaaaw you guys !! You're enough to get a
> girl
> > > all choked up !
> > >
> > > Just trying to do my job, but thanks so much
> > for
> > > all the positive comments - it really means a
> > lot
> > >
> >
> >
> > Robyn why do you always have a dig at the
> > operators? they are trying to do their jobs.
> You
> > have never had a good thing to say in your
> column
> > but yet you are happy to be wined and dined at
> > their expense. Why not put some positive
> comments
> > in your articles, maybe it will change the
> > perception you are creating


Robyn i agree fully with you in terms of the safety of the horse however why would you mention in your colmn about the events namely the "prawn festival"? Surely you of all people that work in the industry know that by putting on events such as this will bring people back to racing that is all the operator is trying to achieve and IMHO i really believe that they are doing a great job. As for the Sunday debacle i am the 1st one to agree with you that the "horse" comes 1st .

optimist Wrote:

---

> zsuzsanna04 Wrote:
>

---

>

---

> > Optimist, thanks for your comment, which I
> > appreciate. We are all entitled to our own
> > opinions and yours are as valid to you as mine
> are
> > to me.
> >
> > I can only interpret things the way I see them
> -
> > what I saw was that a nervous stressed horse
> went
> > mad in the stalls, hurt itself, fell over,
> > potentially endangering its jockey, itself and
> its
> > neighbouring horses. The starting stalls did
> not
> > function correctly. There was a dog on the
> > track.
> >
> > I didn't make any of those things up - they are
> > there in the replay for the world to see.
> >
> > I would be interested to hear if you saw
> something
> > different to what I did, but as I said, I can
> only
> > base my opinion on what I saw and my
> > interpretation of events. However, I am
> entirely
> > open to hearing your opinion and if necessary,
> > revising my own if I got it wrong and would be
> > glad to hear your interpretation of the
> incident
> > and how you think it should be viewed.
> >
> > I'm not sure where you get the idea of my being
> > wined and dined by the operators, but again,
> > perhaps you and I view my life differently.
> >
> > i'm also not sure why you say I never have a
> good
> > thing to say in my columns? I don't know
> whether
> > you mean that broadly or specifically, but
> "never"
> > seems to imply that you are speaking broadly,
> so
> > I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree on
> that
> > point.
> >
> > Also, could you elaborate on the perception you
> > refer to? I'm not sure I know what you mean.
> I
> > have opinions on things and I put them in
> writing.
> > I don't ask people to agree with or like what
> I
> > say. It's nice when they do, but equally, I'm
> > rather used to my opinions being appreciably
> > different to others and therefore I don't
> > particularly mind if people feel differently.
> > We're all at different stages in life, with
> > different life experiences, etc and if nothing
> > else, different opinions allows the potential
> for
> > me to learn something new. If everyone thought
> > the same way about everything, nothing in life
> > would ever change and we'd never see /
> experience
> > new things.
> >
> > Opinions are the same Just because mine might
> > differ from yours does not make them wrong,
> just
> > as you having different opinions to me does not
> > make you wrong. They're just two different
> > perspectives of the same thing. Perhaps you
> don't
> > like mine, and perhaps I don't like yours. But
> > unless I try yours (and vice versa) we'll never
> > know whether either of us might be missing
> > something. I never used to like olives. Other
> > people did. Finally someone persuaded me to
> try
> > one. Now I love olives and can't believe I
> ever
> > missed out! But if someone else didn't have
> > different tastes / experiences and didn't take
> the
> > trouble to make me expand my horizons, I might
> > have gone my entire life without olives and how
> > sad would that have been? In that case, I
> tried
> > something different and changed my views for
> the
> > better. Sometimes I try something new and I
> don't
> > like it and that's fine too. I don't like
> baked
> > beans. My husband does. That doesn't mean we
> > need a divorce. It just means that he gets the
> > whole can and I have cheese on toast instead.
>
> >
> > No two people can view / experience the same
> > object or situation the same way because our
> > experiences are coloured and informed by our
> own
> > personal histories, experiences, prejudices,
> etc.
> > And no 2 people are going to 100% agree with
> one
> > another on everything. It's just not possible.
>
> > The point of collecting different points of
> view
> > is to inform and perhaps help you see things
> that
> > your own experiences or perspectives perhaps do
> > not allow. So don't throw the baby out with
> the
> > bathwater! It took me a long time to learn
> that
> > no matter whether I like or dislike someone,
> think
> > they are clever or stupid, or whatever, I can
> > never match their knowledge or life
> experiences,
> > which means that everyone single person out
> there
> > knows or has experienced something I haven't.
> I
> > think that's quite exciting, because it means
> > everyone out there has something to teach.
> >
> > If you don't get any value out of my opinions,
> so
> > what? Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but
> I
> > don't write my column to please you, I write it
> to
> > please me and to talk about things that I feel
> are
> > interesting, or important or to talk to other
> > people who I think are interesting or important.
>
> > If you don't like it , that's fine and good for
> > you. There are plenty of other people out
> there
> > and plenty of other opinions. Someone else
> might
> > like what I write! Better still, hopefully I
> can
> > interpret things in a way they've not
> considered
> > or somehow tell them something they did not
> know
> > before. I'll keep trying and perhaps some day
> > I'll say something you do like
> >
> > The majority of the discussion around the Kings
> > Pact debacle was surrounding the betting and
> the
> > interpretation of the rules. My opinions /
> > perceptions are based on my horse experience
> and
> > what I think are good or bad decisions in terms
> of
> > what is good for the horse. So in my opinion,
> > arguing about the rules was somewhat secondary
> to
> > the fact that there were other, rather more
> > fundamental blunders that day.
> >
> > I thought so then and I think so now. But as I
> > said, I can only interpret what I saw on screen
> > based on my personal experience and according
> to
> > my own judgment. I am by no means a finished
> > product and am always willing to consider a
> > different point of view in case there is
> something
> > that I missed, so I would be glad to hear your
> > version of events.
> >
> >
> >
> > optimist Wrote:
> >
>

---

>
> >

---

> > > zsuzsanna04 Wrote:
> > >
> >
>

---

>
> >
> > >

---

> > > > Aaaaaw you guys !! You're enough to get a
> > girl
> > > > all choked up !
> > > >
> > > > Just trying to do my job, but thanks so
> much
> > > for
> > > > all the positive comments - it really means
> a
> > > lot
> > > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Robyn why do you always have a dig at the
> > > operators? they are trying to do their jobs.
> > You
> > > have never had a good thing to say in your
> > column
> > > but yet you are happy to be wined and dined
> at
> > > their expense. Why not put some positive
> > comments
> > > in your articles, maybe it will change the
> > > perception you are creating
>
>
> Robyn i agree fully with you in terms of the
> safety of the horse however why would you mention
> in your colmn about the events namely the "prawn
> festival"? Surely you of all people that work in
> the industry know that by putting on events such
> as this will bring people back to racing that is
> all the operator is trying to achieve and IMHO i
> really believe that they are doing a great job. As
> for the Sunday debacle i am the 1st one to agree
> with you that the "horse" comes 1st .

Sorry ,but I am one of those cynics that believe that fun functions ,that happen to be at the races,do nothing for the turnover of racing........if they did Cape Town would, by now be enjoying the largest turnovers in the country..........yet they are still the smallest..........perceptions need to be tested by facts!
People partying at the races need to be introduced to the punting aspect in a way that leaves them wanting to continue to participate going forward..............that would then be a win!

Rob, agree 100% with you...(tu)

When last did you see a ''advert'' promoting racing/events in a publication other than computaform or even on the web?? ... Phums marketing strategy does not make sense to me, you cannot grow your produced (SA racing) by focusing ONLY on an already captured audience, SO yes these prawn festivals, steak-ranch nights, etc, are fantastic events for existing patrons but you need to find new markets to embrace your brand with which included the betting side of the product...