Damn proxy isn't working for me today.

And that player charged with assault and "terroristic threats"...

Thankless job, being a ref...

Funny video with great shots inside the world's greatest football ground... Loftus Road! UUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRs!

great video! don't show that guy ESPN.

I hope Turkey goes through.

To steal a British phrase for the Mitchell video: BRILLIANT!

Turkey will be barely be able to field a team -- it would be a major, major upset.

Mitchell piece is absolutely brilliant. Germany/Turkey will be interesting as long as Turkish players can hold it together. Altentop could have played for the German team but chose Turkey.

Seems to me that the ref was diving. Since when does having your chin removed by human teeth cause you to go to your knees?

You need to watch this video about the stadium in Vienna, especially if Germany makes the final. It really gave me pause...

http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/videopage?videoId=3457493

WOW! Those pictures of the ref getting bit is CRAZY! That player should be barred for life!

Goff,

"*Player bites referee! Local TV news pounces!"

This made me laugh hard when reading amongst the other content in this post. Good stuff.

D__________N! Why did he have to be black!?

Certainly loved the reference of savage and terrorist.

GRRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEAAAAAAATTTTT!

Watch the Football....

It goes this way and that....

Biting the ref, now that's a new one. Just when you think you've lived long enough to see it all... What an idiot!

The Mitchell piece? Now that was funny. I loved it.

Mannschaft v. Turkey: Zee Mannschaft will win it handily (of course I have been wrong in my last few predictions, especially those involving Turkey. But, now way I'm wrong on this one...right?)

Biting the ref DOES show bad sportsmanship...

All I can say is it's about time. For years now, referees have been running around in their fancy yellow shirts, interfering in games, blowing their whistles and calling out players with their bright yellow cards and their lethal red ones. It's about time players started fighting back against this yellow peril.

All I can say is it's about time. For years now, referees have been running around in their fancy yellow shirts, interfering in games, blowing their whistles and calling out players with their bright yellow cards and their lethal red ones. It's about time players started fighting back against this yellow peril.

Posted by: Joe McCarthy | June 25, 2008 11:47 AM

LOL
[in french accent] "Power to zhe players!!"

watch it.

WATCH THE FOOTBALL!!!

priceless

So T. Henry will be appearing for DC Homeless cup this weekend.

Martinez's goal has made it to the fox soccer channel's goal of the week list 8th.

"Manchester United will be playing Aston Villa to decide who wins that one, for this year anyway."

Awesome stuff!

td -- what do you mean? Henry will be at Homeless Cup USA? Where does this tidbit come from?

D__________N! Why did he have to be black!?

Certainly loved the reference of savage and terrorist.

GRRRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEAAAAAAATTTTT!

Posted by: ND | June 25, 2008 11:39 AM

ND, I mulled over touching your post, as it has the tendancy to become a thread killer, but the uneasiness of allowing it to go untouched was getting the better of me. So do forgive me, but I could use some clarification here.

As a black man, I don't get the intention of your post. The behavior was disgustingly inappropriate for any human being. Thus begins my confusion.

For me a 28-year old HUMAN BITING another HUMAN, IN THE FACE, is in its most base sense in fact an act of pure SAVAGERY. There are other words for it as you move up the wrungs of the ladder of civil behavior, but why bother go any higher to describe a person who can stoop so low?

I may have my own political biases about the use of the word TERRORISM these days, but I have no problem with using the reference to describe the act of a person threatening the life of another's.

Perhaps I am reading too far into your post, I very well could be. If that is the case then forgive the ramblings of this fool. However, you left a lot open to translation, something I thought needed clarification - for me, if not others.

Now back to our regularly scheduled soccer/football talk.

The U.S. Open Cup massively matters to someone, presumably.

Kosh, I had no idea what that post was supposed to mean, either.

Fish Fry: I heard it on the fox soccer report but couldn't find any transcripts. Didn't say anything here either.
http://www.homelessworldcup.org/zine/news/usa-trials

Kosh -- As a Jew, I get what ND is saying, perfectly. It's an old sentiment, often expressed. I know many blacks feel sick when they learn that the perpetrator of some atrocity was black: because it raises fears that it just plays into prejudices held by others; because it raises concern that there will be "blowback" that hurts the entire group. Getting back to my introduction, Jews in NY issued a collective groan when Son of Sam was caught, and it turned out to be a crazy Jewish guy. What we call a "shonda fer de goyim" -- an embarrassment or shaming of the entire group in front of the whole Gentile world.

It might be an excessive reaction to feel personal embarrassment of fear that there will be racial blowback for this biting incident, but I definitely understand the reaction. With prior incidents like Mike Tyson, etc., I can definitely understand why a black person would react the way ND did. No explanation necessary.

Clarification: My bad, it's actuelly for New York and not DC.
http://blogs.nypost.com/sports/soccer/archives/2008/06/thierry_henry_c.html

If Henry is in town, the Red and Black supporters definitely should turn out. Maybe we can make a good first impression.... I wonder if he'll show up at RFK for Sunday's match?

I just checked ticket master for DC v LA game tickets. They are going for $40, 50, 75..wow. (i already have it).

Fisch Fry:

I understand, identify with and appreciate the sentiment of your post. You are right and we do live in a "blowback" world. Sad but true. However, in this case I see a shameful act being perpetrated against all humanity. For that I do feel shame. But you gotta give credit where it's due, and at the end of the day a decent number of the masses saw a disgusting act where one man attack another man. At least that's how I saw it.

In any case what I needed to clarify was the highlights of the words "savage" and "terrorist" and their proper association with the act rather than the race of the man commiting the act. I thought it would be shameful to not make that clear.

I am a huge fan of Mitchell and Webb and the show that that clip was taken from "That Mitchell and Webb Look" (series 2 I think) so I was very happy to see that up there.

If you liked that one, here is the other football related video they made.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=OOfJjHozCEc

Liveblogging going on at Booked For Dissent.