A one minute applause is for fans that are incapable of showing respect.



I think for RL fans a one minute silence is more than acheivable.

Definately not. Its merely a different way of showing respect. As mentioned above it happens all the time in affirming and celebrating the long life of an old-timer.



I accept in the context of Leon's tragic death that silence was the appropriate way to manifest our collective loss and sadness.

Agreed. The applause thing doesn't feel right to me.

Its second rate, chavvy, common and lame.



You want to show respect, use a minutes silence, anything else is nothing short of abuse.

I can understand why you make such reasoned, calm and reflective posts but it wouldn't harm to break that robotic stance and emote once in a while.

Surely this is true?



In my opinion, a minute's silence is a far more fitting and touching tribute to someone than applause.

People at a sporting event will spend the next 80+ minutes applauding and making noise. So to me there is nothing special, celebratory, or respectful about doing it for one minute more. It just lacks any emotion for me.



But a large group of people remaining silent, though, is out of the ordinary and has much more of a resonance.



I find it a shame that some people seem to think silence cannot also be a way of celebrating someone.



Michael.

Actually I think this thread has two camps.



1. Those who think silence and applause are both methods of celebrating a life depending on the context; and



2. Those who think ONLY silence is appropriate.



I'm very firmly in No1.

Well I was not referring to this thread or anyone on it, it was a general observation directed towards a particular attitude that often comes up on this debate, usually used alongside George Best's name.



As for your two camps though, they are not mutually exclusive. You can think applause is a way of celebrating someone life but never find it appropriate at a sporting event.



In something like a church you could very easily use the exact opposite argument to the one I made where applause would be out of the ordinary and carry far more emotion.



Michael.

Sometimes families request it, and at the end of the day there opinion is the only one which should count.

i'd never heard of a minutes applause as a mark of respect until west ham fans spontaneously applauded when goerge best appeared on the big screen after his death.since then it seems to have become the latest fashion



i also feel uncomfortable applauding someone's passing i dont know about anyone else

It's very common on the continent, that's where the FA got the idea from. It was probably taken up by the FA to cover disrespectful football fans, but that was not it's original purpose, it's just from a different culture.



I don't see the problem with it myself, it's a mark of celebrating someones life. As has been said, it's possibly more in tune with someone who has died in old age rather than suddenly though.