England wins on "Auto-gol", 1-0 over Paraguay

Ahh, jolly old England! The Magna Charta set this place apart. And so did Mr. Shakespeare, it would seem...Was it only a 194 years ago that our own country solidified our independence from this Old World colonial power? Do we owe it to their attempt at military reaction for Francis Scott Key's seminal anthem? I say we do.

Great Britain, the United Kingdom, minus the appendages of empire, has been a close and stolid friend since those original disputes of a few generations ago. And their history with the sport of football (soccer) is as long and rich as anyone else's...

We owe much or most of American culture to this powerful and rich nation of royalty and tradition. Our language and shared history should go without saying...

And yet we are very different, evidenced by the enthusiasm for the world sport in question.

Hooligans. Have you heard the stories? I have heard some bone chilling, soul scarring ones...

And they travel! Good luck Germans! And you thought the Battle of the Bulge was something!

England is thankful that the Paraguayan player commited a costly faux pas...Ouch! Self goal, first half. The same mistake to Escobar for Colombia in 1994 when they lost to the US was an "excuse" for a drunken "fan" to shoot him to death. Here's hoping Paraguayans are more forgiving and handle inebriation better...

Ahh, Paraguay ! This is is one of only two landlocked countries of South America. They said during the telecast that it is the size of California! It never looks that big on the map.

A country with a little more than six million inhabitants takes its soccer seriously, as all Latin American countries do...The thing that I find the most odd about this nation (having lived in southern Chile a combined 3 years from 1990 to last year,2005) is that they speak the native language of Guarani more than Spanish. I find that very bizarre (I am supposed to be a semi-expert: I have a Masters in Latin American studies from UCLA). Chile, for instance,speaks its own version of Spanish, like Ireland to Scotland, but a native American tongue rules this people! Amazing.

Check out The Mission , 1988, with Robert DeNiro, Jeremy Irons and Liam Neeson. The Ennio Morricone music is classic.

This might give you a little old school flavor for the country...

I made an acquaintance in Angol, Chile, last year (he was from the neighbor town of Renaico, Malleco province, Region IX), a young man who served a two year LDS mission in Paraguay; he proudly wore a country lapel on his suit jacket. I asked him how to say a few basic phrases in Guarani, which he had to learn in order to survive there.

?Como se dice "como esta?"? (How do you say,"How are you?"?)

"Watchu pata" I seem to recall---Or some such thing...

Everything I ever heard him say sounded like typical Chilean jokes making fun of other languages but have a meaning in the local Chilean culture/context! That Guarani is one odd tongue if I say so myself!

Anyway, they don't have their scoring goalie (was it Echeverria?) anymore and their international hype appeal has gone down because of that...

The own goal may only expedite the inevitable... 

Hasta su pata, Paraguay... (we'll see your hoof later, like four years from now, maybe)...

 

Sweden and Trinidad ...still watching Update: 0-0 tie, both get one point

I'm pressed for time, so some non-prose points...

Sweden: Population of 9 million

 *Has done well in WC, notably 1994 (if memory serves)

 *Advanced economy and open immigrant         policy attracted so many foreigners they have decided to clamp down as of late (2006)

 *They speak a Germanic tongue almost compatible (or understandable with neighbor Norwegian)

 *Famous for two film people named Bergman; Ingmar and Ingrid. One was a director auteur and the other was hot--I mean a cool actress! No family relation.

Trinidad and Tobago: population of 1.3 million

* Famously the smallest populated nation ever to qualify for the WC

* The fifth biggest island in the Caribbean, after Cuba, Hispaniola (DR and Haiti combined), Puerto Rico and Jamaica

* Approximately half South Asian Indian (Hindu majority) and half Black African descent (Catholic, Anglican and other)

* Some American friends of mine lived in Couva, the fifth biggest town of Trinidad, from 1996 to 1997. They enjoyed it.

Congratulations SOCA warriors for getting a huge point in the first game!

 

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Later...Coite d'Ivoire versus Argentina?

Winner:2-1 The South Americans over the West Africans

Ivory Coast (Costa de Marfil): 17.3 million

* French speaking former colony, has 63 native ethnic groups with different indigenous languages

*notable differences between the northern and southern tribes (ethnic groups), have caused a tangible political rift in the last 5 years or so

* I became acquainted with Jean, a political scientist doctoral candidate at UCLA, and took a class with him in 2002. He is a smart guy. I wish I could find his last name and read his dissertation...

* My parents lived in nearby West African nations in the 1960s, with the Peace Corps; French-speaking Togo (ach, their coach!) and English speaking Sierra Leone, all former colonies...

La Argentina: Population of 39 plus million

* One of the proudest cultures on earth (trust me on this)they have changed spoken Spanish more than anyone else (in my opinion). Think of English pronounced with heavy Italian accents and certain words changing a lot! Capiche my bambini?

Bene, bien...

* One of the top ten biggest countries in the world landwise, it looks small because of Brazil

* Famous for beef, the tango, coups and politicos like the Peron pair, (Evita--see Madonna, 1996), and a host of other autoctonous anomolies, I could go on, but suffice it to say:

Argentines win a lot in soccer  and most Latinos from California down consider Diego Maradonna the best player who ever lived, even better than Brazilian Pele. I am unsure of this whole "greatest" thing... 

Buena suerte mis che queridos, pero a veces hay que perder...

Y si no: felicitaciones...Les concedo el macanudazo.

Peace...and on to day 3 on "edclinchsaint"!

 

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