Sports gives us metaphors for politics. We're watching the real World Cup in the Middle East.
Follow this. We celebrate our loss to Germany as a win, saved by Portugal's defeat of Ghana, which enabled them to come in last, propelling us into second place. That should help you understand this:
USA sends arms to Sunni rebels to defeat Assad in Syria, who helps us defeat the same Sunni rebels on the border of Iraq. Meanwhile we send drones to defend Malaki, whom we actually want to overthrow because he is supported by Iran, who helps us defeat the army of ISIS, whom we funded and armed as 'Sons of Iraq' during the surge.
If you don't get this, wait till the Knockout Round, where it becomes very simple: Sudden Death. Maybe we're already in overtime and don't know it. Here's my prediction: the victory goes to the arms manufacturers, who don't care which team wins.
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Picture: ecstatic American fans celebrating their loss.
1 comment:
You make a very good point. I have always found it a little ironic how our sports reflect our primal warring mentality, how easily we divide everything into us vs them. But we are appalled by that same mentality (some of us anyway) when it gets "played out" - literally - across the globe in *actual* war. We *say* we want peace, but we keep going to war and perpetuating war in the name of defending our country's freedom. But there is no "freedom" in a divisive, warring mentality that always sees the world as us vs them - whether in sports or real life...
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