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June 11, 2006 [LINK]
World Cup 2006 begins
If baseball is our "National Pastime," then soccer (i.e., "football") is clearly the International Pastime. English hooligans do their best to advertise the decline of Western Civilization. In the Outlook section of the Washington Post last Sunday, political science blogger Daniel Drezner explored the hypothesis that the World Cup promotes world peace, as U2 singer Bono has claimed. It is an old debate. Drezner cited a 1973 article by anthropologist Richard Sipes, who concluded that athletic competition has a slightly greater tendency to incite latent aggression than to sublimate aggression. Drezner mentioned the soccer match played between German and British soldiers during the Christmas truce of 1914, but there is no reason to think that soccer was what caused that truce. Another case was the 1969 "Soccer War" between Honduras and El Salvador, but the soccer match that was alleged to have precipitated hostilities was not the underlying cause of tensions. Drezner concludes, rightly, that soccer brings out the best and the worst features of nationalistic sentiment.
I have always thought that baseball brings out more friendly rivalry than bitter enmity, but there are obvious exceptions -- Red Sox vs. Yankees being at the top of the list.
Posted (or last updated or commented upon): 11 Jun 2006, 11: 59 PM
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January 7, 2006 ~ DeLay gives up majority leader post
January 12, 2006 ~ Alito withstands Dems' "torture"
January 16, 2006 ~ Michelle Bachelet wins in Chile
January 19, 2006 ~ Views on Iran's nuclear ambitions
January 24, 2006 ~ Fallout from Canada's election
January 31, 2006 ~ Second (& third) thoughts on Iran
February 1, 2006 ~ The State of the Union, 2006
February 8, 2006 ~ D.C. Council votes "yes," but...
February 18, 2006 ~ Checks and balances in wartime
February 22, 2006 ~
Neocons & Neolibs: chastened alike
February 28, 2006 ~
The Dubai Ports World uproar
March 14, 2006 ~ New D.C. baseball stadium unveiled
March 24, 2006 ~ In the footsteps of France?
April 7, 2006 ~ Immigration compromise fails
May 16, 2006 ~ Bush militarizes Mexican border
June 6, 2006 ~ Alan Garcia triumphs, once again
June 9, 2006 ~
Zarqawi: The death of a terrorist
July 3, 2006 ~
Election in Mexico: too close to call
July 5, 2006 ~ North Korea goes ballistic
July 28, 2006 ~ Garcia prepares to lead Peru, again
August 4, 2006 ~ Israel invades Hezbolland
September 6, 2006 ~ "Crunchy conservatives": for real?
September 25, 2006 ~ Nationalists thwart conservation
October 3, 2006 ~ Nationals: Year in review
October 29, 2006 ~ Virginia's marriage amendment
November 7, 2006 ~ The people render their verdict
November 8, 2006 ~ Republicans lose big time
November 9, 2006 ~ Allen concedes / Election post-mortem
November 13, 2006 ~ Toward consensus on Iraq?
December 1, 2006 ~ Realism and our goals in Iraq
December 6, 2006 ~ Latin America & U.S. trade policy
December 8, 2006 ~ Iraq Study Group reports
December 22, 2006 ~ Yuletide political roundup
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