As I love watching the World Cup, the Conseraquacks are already ruining it due to the fear that it is an "Internationalist Plot" where "32 of the Best Nations Meet." I'm shocked that they didn't say it when Bush was in office. The reason they're saying it now is because Barack Obama is a smart and articulate, duly elected, American-born, and a Black Liberal Democrat. These teabaggers are afraid of a Black President, plain and simple.
These conservaloonies are the most closed-minded people in America. I think they've been listening to too much Fox News, AM/FM Hate Talk, and Conservative Bible-Thumping Pastors too much to even really think about themselves. Anyways, Go USA!
GOP's war on soccer
The Right-Wing War Against Soccer
On Friday, the world's biggest sporting event, the World Cup, kicked off in South Africa. The United States, long unfamiliar with the sport, has over the last two decades increasingly taken to the game and is now widely considered a rising power. Yet as soccer has grabbed the spotlight, it has also attracted the scorn of nativists on the right, who see the growing attention being paid to it as a byproduct of some conspiratorial leftist plot or the result of insidious foreign influences. Fox News host Glenn Beck ranted, "I hate it so much, probably because the rest of the world likes it so much." Whether one is a fan of the world's game or not, the notion that soccer's growth is part of some plot is reflective of a conspiratorial nativism all too prevalent among the right wing. Soccer is a growing sport in the United States, across all demographic groups, and as a result, the U.S. national team, as seen by its draw in its first World Cup game against England on Saturday, has rapidly improved and is now capable of competing with the world's best. This has led to unprecedented excitement in the United States and an extraordinary level of exposure for the game. Instead of something threatening, this is a demonstration of the ever evolving nature of American society and our global interconnectedness.
CONSERVATIVE CONSPIRACY: The growth of soccer in the U.S. and the notable expansion of attention and enthusiasm surrounding this World Cup has given rise to numerous conservative conspiracy theories. Matthew Philbin on the conservative site NewsBusters asserted, "The liberal media have always been uncomfortable with 'American exceptionalism' -- the belief that the United States is unique among nations, a leader and a force for good. And they are no happier with America's rejection of soccer than with its rejection of socialism." Media Research Center's Dan Gainor asserted that "the left is pushing it in schools across the country." Guest host Mark Belling on the Rush Limbaugh Show added, "They're force-feeding this down our throats." Beck blustered, "It doesn't matter how you try to sell it to us, it doesn't matter how many celebrities you get, it doesn't matter how many bars open early, it doesn't matter how many beer commercials they run, we don't want the World Cup, we don't like the World Cup, we don't like soccer, we want nothing to do with it. ... They continually try to jam it down our throat." By this logic, one of the major leftist socialists who is pushing soccer is Beck's employer, Rupert Murdoch, whose Fox Soccer Channel and Fox Soccer Plus show more soccer than any other networks. Furthermore, ESPN, which is broadcasting the World Cup, is devoting previously unseen amount of resources to their coverage for an American network. These networks, and big corporations like Budweiser and Coca-Cola, are not investing in soccer because of some leftist motivations, but because doing so is increasingly lucrative.
MORE CONSERVATIVE CANARDS: Another right-wing claim is that soccer can be liked by socialists only. Neoconservative Gary Schmitt wrote, "My suspicion is that the so-called 'beautiful game' is not so beautiful to American sensibilities...in sports, that means excellence should prevail. Of course, the fact that is often not the case when it comes to soccer may be precisely the reason the sport is so popular in the countries of Latin America and Europe." The notion that excellence doesn't prevail in soccer is absurd, as demonstrated by Brazil's continued dominance and the fact that only seven countries have won the World Cup. Gainor said, "the problem here is, soccer is designed as a poor man or poor woman's sport," adding the sport "is being sold" as necessary due to the "browning of America." Claims that soccer is a "foreign" ignores the fact that the game has become a major part of the American cultural landscape. Soccer has now for decades been a mainstay of the suburban middle class. It was so thoroughly embraced that conservative political consultant Alex Castellanos coined the term "soccer moms" to describe the swing voting group of middle class suburban white mothers who spent countless hours in minivans driving their children to and from soccer practice. As conservative Stephen H. Webb lamented, "Conservative suburban families, the backbone of America, have turned to soccer in droves." Conservatives seem immensely uncomfortable with the growing diversity of soccer in the U.S., represented by the fact that so many women and Latin American immigrants have brought that tradition here from their home countries and have helped expand the growth of the sport in the U.S. The American men's national team currently playing in South Africa closely resembles the ethnic melting pot of the country it represents. Perhaps, that is why so many on the right have a hard time rooting for them.
THE UNITED STATES IS EMBRACING SOCCER: In the U.S. today, more kids under 12 play soccer than baseball, basketball, and football combined. According to FIFA, the United States has 18 million registered soccer players, more than any other country in the world. American youth have been playing soccer in the millions since the 1980s, and as this initial soccer-playing generation enters their 20s and 30s, there is a growing market in the U.S. that is interested in soccer. Furthermore, the increasing interconnectedness brought about by globalization has removed barriers to follow the sport, with access to soccer expanding with the growth of cable and satellite channels and the internet. As a result, each successive World Cup has attracted more attention in the States. The U.S.-England match drew 17 million viewers -- more than the current NBA finals. The U.S. professional league, Major League Soccer, has recently expanded into new cities despite the recession and has seen league-wide attendance grow to more than 16,000 on average -- quite strong for a league only 14 years old. Soccer is also immensely popular amongst women, and the U.S. women's national team is one of the top teams in the world. The U.S. men's team has also made immense strides in the last two decades after not even qualifying for the World Cup between 1950 and 1990. In 2002, the U.S. reached the quarterfinals. Last year, they beat the world's top ranked team, Spain, and narrowly lost to Brazil in the finals of the Confederations Cup. The U.S. also finished first in its World Cup qualifying group for the second time, coming in above Mexico.
-- credits to Media Matters for America.
My Blogpost on this: GOP's war on Soccer, via JGibsonBlog
From the 06.17.2010 edition of The Rachel Maddow Show:
As the World Cup starts, conservative media declare war on soccer
June 11, 2010 4:06 pm ET
As the 2010 World Cup begins in South Africa, conservative media figures have seized the opportunity to attack the tournament and the sport of soccer. They have also used soccer as a proxy to attack President Obama and progressives.
Conservatives: "Obama's policies are the World Cup," soccer is "a poor man or poor woman's sport"
Glenn Beck: "Barack Obama's policies are the World Cup." In an extensive rant on the June 11 Glenn Beck Program, Beck purported to explain how President Obama's policies "are the World Cup" of "political thought." Beck stated, "It doesn't matter how you try to sell it to us, it doesn't matter how many celebrities you get, it doesn't matter how many bars open early, it doesn't matter how many beer commercials they run, we don't want the World Cup, we don't like the World Cup, we don't like soccer, we want nothing to do with it." Beck stated that likewise, "the rest of the world likes Barack Obama's policies, we do not."
Beck added "those who like the World Cup ... they're the most likely to riot," commenting that by contrast, "I haven't seen the baseball riots." He later said of soccer, "I hate it so much, probably because the rest of the world likes it so much, and they riot over it, and they continually try to jam it down our throat."
G. Gordon Liddy: "Whatever happened to American exceptionalism?" Discussing soccer's popularity in the U.S. on his June 10 program, G. Gordon Liddy asked, "Whatever happened to American exceptionalism?" Liddy noted that "this game ... originated with the South American Indians and instead of a ball, they used to use the head, the decapitated head, of an enemy warrior."
MRC's Dan Gainor: "Soccer is designed as a poor man or poor woman's sport," "the left is pushing [soccer] in schools across the country." Also on the June 10 G. Gordon Liddy Show, Media Research Center's Dan Gainor said, "the problem here is, soccer is designed as a poor man or poor woman's sport" and that "the left is pushing it in schools across the country." He added: "generally football games in this country don't devolve into riots or wars." He later added that the sport of soccer "is being sold" as necessary due to the "browning of America."
Mark Belling: "When you insult soccer you get the same reaction from soccer fans that you get when you insult an aging Democratic senator's hair." On the June 11 edition of the Rush Limbaugh Show, guest host Mark Belling said, "What I really want to do is make fun of the World Cup, but I'm not going to make fun of the World Cup because when you insult soccer you get the same reaction from soccer fans that you get when you insult an aging Democratic senator's hair, they go nuts and blow it up all out of proportion." Later in the program, Belling said "I haven't talked about the World Cup, I haven't talked about how they're force-feeding this down our throats."
As the World Cup starts, conservative media declare war on soccer
Beck disses World Cup, Europeans, who have brought "two world wars," "bubonic plague" -- "Thank you, but no thanks"
June 18, 2010 10:52 am ET
From the June 18 broadcast of Premiere Radio Networks' The Glenn Beck Program:
The Nation: Why the Far Right Hates Soccer [via NPR]
Every World Cup, it arrives like clockwork. As sure as the ultimate soccer spectacle brings guaranteed adrenaline and agony to fans across the United States, it also drives the right-wing noise machine utterly insane.
"It doesn't matter how you try to sell it to us," yipped the Prom King of new right, Glenn Beck. "It doesn't matter how many celebrities you get, it doesn't matter how many bars open early, it doesn't matter how many beer commercials they run, we don't want the World Cup, we don't like the World Cup, we don't like soccer, we want nothing to do with it."
Beck's wingnut godfather, G. Gordon Liddy also said on his radio program,
'Whatever happened to American exceptionalism? This game ... originated with the South American Indians and instead of a ball, they used to use the head, the decapitated head, of an enemy warrior."
Dear Lord, where do we begin? First of all, I always find it amusing when folks like Beck say, "We don't like soccer" when it is by far the most popular youth sport in the United States. It's like saying, "You know what else American kids hate? Ice cream!" Young people love soccer not because of some kind of commie-nazi plot conjured by Saul Alinsky to sap us of our precious juices, but because it's – heaven forefend - fun.
Among adults, the sport is also growing because people from Latin America, Africa, and the West Indies have brought their love of the beautiful game to an increasingly multicultural United States. As sports journalist Simon Kuper wrote very adroitly in his book Soccer Against the Enemy, "When we say Americans don't play soccer we are thinking of the big white people who live in the suburbs. Tens of millions of Hispanic Americans [and other nationalities] do play, and watch and read about soccer." In other words, Beck rejects soccer because his idealized "real America" - in all its monochromatic glory – rejects it as well. To be clear, I know a lot of folks who can't stand soccer. It's simply a matter of taste. But for Beck it's a lot more than, "Gee. It's kind of boring." Instead it's, "Look out whitey! Felipe Melo's gonna get your mama!"
As for Liddy, let's be clear. There is not in fact hard anthropological evidence that early soccer games were played with a human head. Interestingly, though, there is an oft-told legend that the sport took root in England in the 8th century because the King's army playfully kicked around the detached cranium of the conquered Prince of Denmark. Notice that this tall-tale is about Europe not "South American Indians". I think we're seeing a theme here.
But maybe this isn't just sports as avatar for their racism and imperial arrogance. Maybe their hysteria lies in something far more shallow. Maybe the real reason they lose their collective minds is simply because the USA tends to get their asses handed to them each and every World Cup. After all, as G. Gordon asked, "Whatever happened to American exceptionalism?" When it comes to the World Cup, the exceptional is found elsewhere. Could Beck, Liddy, and company just have soccer-envy? Is it possible that if the USA was favored to win the World Cup, Beck himself would be in the streets with his own solid gold vuvuzela? I feel that to ask the question is to answer it. In fact, this is as good a reason as any to hope for a mighty run by the US team. It would be high comedy to see Beck and Friends caught in a vice between their patriotic fervor and their nativist fear.
The Never-Ending Neoconservative War on Soccer
Long-time readers may recall that one of this blog's minor amusements is chronicling the ridiculous extent to which some Americans - mainly, it must be said, on the right - go in their efforts to decry the baleful influence of soccer upon the American ideals of manly sporting excellence. There was, for instance, this example in March, complaining about the insidious impact soccer was having on the culture of suburban America.
Now, in the aftermath of the United States' surprising victory* against Spain this week, Gary Schmitt, once of the Project for a New American Century and now residing at the American Enterprise Institute, complains that:
As someone who didn’t play soccer growing up, but had a dad who did and whose own kids played as well, I can say unquestionably that it is the sport in which the team that dominates loses more often than any other major sport I know of. Or, to put it more bluntly, the team that deserves to win doesn’t. For some soccer-loving friends, this is perfectly okay. Indeed, they will argue that it’s a healthy, conservative reminder of how justice does not always prevail in life.
Well, hooey on that. And, thankfully, Americans are not buying it. In spite of the fact that one can drive by an open field on Saturdays and usually see it filled with young boys and girls playing soccer, the game’s popularity has not moved anywhere toward being a major sport here in the United States. It’s grown for sure but not close to where folks once expected it to be given the number of youth that have played the game over the past two decades.
For sure, there may be a number of reasons that is the case but my suspicion is that the so-called "beautiful game" is not so beautiful to American sensibilities. We like, as good small "d" democrats, our underdogs for sure but we also still expect folks in the end to get their just desert. And, in sports, that means excellence should prevail. Of course, the fact that is often not the case when it comes to soccer may be precisely the reason the sport is so popular in the countries of Latin America and Europe.
Well, sure, soccer isn't threatening the NFL's supremacy but it's worth remembering that the 2006 World Cup final drew a bigger television audience in the United States than did baseball's World Series that year.
Neocons against Soccer [via The Spectator.co.uk]
Beck on why curling is better than soccer: "You could have girls come out and curl against the pros in Canada"
June 18, 2010 9:23 pm ET
From the June 18 edition of Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor:
NewsBusters wins the World Cup... of stupid
'm having trouble coming up with the proper adjectives to adequately convey how phenomenally idiotic this NewsBusters post from Mark Finkelstein is, so I'll just reproduce it below:
World Cup Ball On Time Cover Looks Lot Like Obama Logo
He is, after all, the man who informed the world that his ascendancy would be seen as the moment that "the planet began to heal." So I suppose it's fitting that his logo appear on the World Cup soccer ball, the event that will be watched by more people than any other event in human history.
At least, Time magazine appears to think so.
Check out the image of the ball on the cover of this week's Time, and compare it to the Obama logo, seen after the jump. Compare the Time ball, too, with an image of the actual ball, to which it bears absolutely no relation.
Time editor Rick Stengel revealed the cover, and the image, during his regular Morning Joe appearance today.
Now it's true that a bit of green makes it's [sic] way onto the side of the Time ball. But the central image seems strikingly like that of the Obama logo. Coincidence?
If you click through, you'll see that the similarities between the Obama logo and the ball on the Time cover are as follows -- they're round; they both have red, white, and blue in them.
That's it.
Observations such as these, however, are enough to earn you some digital ink on the right's premier online source for media criticism.
While you try to figure out how many concussions you'd have to suffer before this would make any sense, know that Finkelstein has an undistinguished record of sniffing out secret, nefarious symbols in otherwise innocent-looking scenarios. Recall that it was Finkelstein who revealed that Matt Lauer's houndstooth scarf was actually a secret message of support to Palestinian terrorists, who would recognize the garment as being "similar to the little number Arafat liked to sport."
NewsBusters wins the World Cup... of stupid
Bonus: The Rise Of The New Right special:
This special aired this past Wednesday on MSNBC.
Part 1: The Emergence of the Teabaggers
Part 2: Deep anti-Obama hatred
Part 3: The Tea Party as a political contender
Scott Brown (R/TP) upsets Martha Coakley (D); now, some of them accuse Brown of being a RINO.
A Brazilian-born woman starts the group called "Kitchen Table Patriots"
Part 4: The Rising Nutjob Stars (Rand Paul, Sarah Palin, Sharron Angle, Glenn Beck, etc...)
Part 5: The Neocons back in the Day to now (Joseph McCarty, Barry Goldwater, Fr. Coughlin, Michelle Bachmann, etc...)
Part 6: Conclusion, Alex Jones, Internet, and the New World Order
For More clips, see: Bonus Scene: The Michigan Militia
Verdict: an accurate documentary on the history of the Tea Party Movement and the Christian Right-Wing's hijacking of the old-line GOP.