Reddit reviews Red Matters - 50 Years Of Supporting Manchester United

> You're copy/pasting the bit that isn't paywalled

My apologies for not copy/pasting an entire book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Red-Matters-Supporting-Manchester-ebook/dp/B00BFYFOZ6/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1360963849&sr=1-1

> you unbelievable fucking prick

Final warning. Stop being insufferable - or find another subreddit.

If you click on the link in my post it explains where the nickname comes from and most of the other questions you're asking here are addressed.

The point is that 'Man U' and 'Manchester U' were shorthand ways of referring to the club in an age where brevity was important both on Pathe news reels and in newspaper print. The post I referred to claimed they were invented as a reference to Munich and have only ever been used in that context, but it isn't true. They both predate those songs and the term was used precisely because it was already a way to refer to the club.

To stop using the term 'Man U' because people sung offensive songs using that nickname is a silly reason. The issue is the songs themselves not that they referred to the club using an established and accepted nickname for the club at the time. Would we stop calling the club Manchester United if rival fans started singing an offensive song using the full name tomorrow? Of course we wouldn't, and whilst we're at it why would the 'Man' which is still commonly used be any less offensive than the 'U' if they both originated from the same songs?

And yes, my main contention is Man 'U' has fallen out of favour because it just sounds odd nowadays with simply 'United' or 'Man United' becoming a preferred way of referring to the club. But the idea that the nickname was invented as a way to refer to the Munich air disaster (which is the claim that I am disputing and the one made in the post above) and that it has only ever been used in that context is just sheer nonsense. It's an internet myth, and – to borrow an unfortunate modern invention into the mix – it is fake news.

I get why people like to spread this rumour, and I appreciate it is done from the point of view of trying to do the right thing, but it is still utterly baseless.

Here's another article (written by Giles Oakley) making this very same point.

http://therepublikofmancunia.com/why-saying-man-u-isnt-so-bad/

You can also check out his book if you want more info on this:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00BFYFOZ6/ref=cm_cr_mts_prod_img