So I did join my friends in watching the opening game of the FIFA WORLD CUP 2010 South Africa between Mexico and South Africa. I justified it by waking up an hour earlier than normal and studying before going. I paid attention to other people driving and almost everyone was wearing their green or black, some in white! If they weren't it was because they were in buisness attire heading to their work place where without fail I'm sure there would be a TV on. Honestly, you'd have a better chance of getting service on Christmas day than you would have today.
I realize that this whole past week I've talked a lot about the World Cup. While doing so I understand that everyone who actually reads my blog couldn't be less interested in it. THIS IS A PROBLEM. because I know that it isn't just people in Illinois, but the vast majority of the citizens of the United States when asked about the World Cup respond with....What's that? Granted the US has baseball, Canada has hockey, India has cricket,...we should stick to what we do best? No! Soccer is the only globally celebrated sport. It is embedded in thousands of cultures spread over the world. It's a global language! I can go to Italy, Korea, Algeria, Denmark, Brazil and spend hours interacting with the people there not because I'm speaking Korean, Italian, or Portugese but because I can get on a futbol field and know what to do when a ball is kicked at me. We all speak the same on the futbol field.
I read this article, "Why America Needs to Watch the World Cup, Just a Little": http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2010/06/11/martin-sieff-world-cup-super-bowl-obama-south-africa-soccer-bp/
Though there were a few things I didn't quite agree with, one point the auther made that I liked was this. "But since we do maintain the Number One military presence around the world and since we are caught up in a bewildering number of global commitments from North Korea to the Persian Gulf, it really does behoove us to try and catch an occasional sense of what matters to all these peoples and cultures around the world who actually aren't like us at all, however Politically Incorrect it is to say so."
At the beginning of the game today both the president of South Africa, Jacob Zuma, and the president of Mexico, Felipe Calderon greeted the players. Yea, sure Obama said he'd go if the US made the final, phssssh! US ain't gonna be goin to no finals. Granted miracles happen and I'd love to eat my words, but Mexico most likely won't go to the finals either but the President was there for their very first game!
Today amongst the masses of yellow there could be seen spots of green here and there. Someone made a comment that "hey! there's actually Mexicans there!" to which the reply was "There's Mexicans everywhere! There's Mexicans in Antartica selling tacos to penguins!"
Interesting tidbit: Behind South Africa the country with the highest number of World Cup ticket sales is actually the US... because most Mexicans with enough money to get to South Africa all live in the US.
Ok, I've had my spill about the World Cup! You shouldn't hear about it from me again........that definitely wasn't a promise.
Hasta!
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