(10 pm. – promoted by ek hornbeck)

About 500 years ago, Cortez landed in Mexico. He told the people who were already living there that they had to become subjects of the King of Spain. But, they told him, they were already subjects of Montezuma, the Emperor who was in Tenochtitlan. Cortez told them that Montezuma had to become a subject of the King of Spain, too, and he took Montezuma prisoner. As if that weren’t enough, he told the People that they had to give up their Old Gods and accept his God. Cortez’s God, he told them, was far more powerful than their Gods, and if they didn’t accept his God and abandon their own Gods and abandon their practice of having idols and human sacrifices and ceremonies and dances to their Gods, they would be killed. Also, Cortez told them, they had to deliver to Cortez all of their gold and silver. So it was that the Spanish foothold came to what is now Mexico in 1517.

Cortez was deadly serious about obtaining compliance with these demands. To make sure they were carried out he brought to this hemisphere some frightening, never before seen things. He brought the first firearms. And explosives. And the first steel swords. And the first, huge battle horses. And horrible, gigantic war dogs. In the first skirmishes with the people who lived here, he showed that he and his God had entirely different rules in war. The number of deaths would be enormous. No captives would be taken. The dead would be left on the battlefield.

Those who lived here used in combat obsidian swords, which were designed to injure but not to kill. The goal of their war was to capture enemy combatants. Later, these might be sacrificed or eaten. But the idea wasn’t to kill them all on the battlefield. These obsidian swords were no match for Spanish steel. Steel swords shattered them. And foot soldiers were no match for cavalry. Or guns. Or explosives. A few, foul smelling Spanish soldiers were a match for large numbers of warriors.

To this mismatch Cortez added terror. Killing many unarmed non-combatants, including women and children was a tactic to assure compliance with Cortez’s wishes. Apparently, this horror was acceptable to Cortez’s God. To no one’s surprise, it was quite effective in securing compliance with Cortez’s demands.

Chief among what was not acceptable to Cortez’s God were the Original Gods. There were many Gods. Cortez insisted that these Gods all had to be abandoned. No exceptions. These Gods’ requirements, Cortez believed, were simply unacceptable. There could be no idols. There could be no offerings or sacrifices to these Gods. There could be no more singing and dancing. People who insisted on ceremonies for these Gods of any kind, offerings, sacrifices, prayers, songs, festivals, those people had to be converted. And if they resisted conversion, they’d be killed. Period. If their Gods were so powerful, Cortez taunted them, why aren’t they protecting you now? Why are they letting us destroy their temples and their images? Why are they letting us hold Montezuma captive and kill you? Why are they letting us live in this Temple and cover their altar with a picture of the Madonna?

Cortez evidently didn’t understand the Gods. There were obvious reasons why people followed them and made offerings to them. This was not superstition, regardless of how Cortez may have characterized it. The Gods were cared for because they were supporting the people’s lives. They had done so for centuries. It was a gigantic presumption on Cortez’s part to insist that the Gods were no good, or that they were powerless. Who was he to command them to do anything? Wasn’t his arrival evidence of their displeasure?

Chalchiuhtlicue, Goddess of water, she with the “skirt of gems,” companion to the mighty rain God Tlaloc, watched and saw that the people gradually abandoned her. Not all of them left her at once. There was no formal renunciation of her. Over time, over a long time, virtually everyone who had offered to her songs, dances, prayers, sacrifices, offerings, virtually everyone who had remembered her, died or forgot her. There was no more dancing and no more incense. How long had it been since there had been sacred copal smoke? And drumming? And a fiesta? And worse, they didn’t tell their children about her. If they were frightened or terrorized into abandoning her, it did not matter to her. That was no excuse. Wasn’t she an Old God? Had she not served them for millennia? After all, she recalled, there were reasons why for so many millennia the people had praised her, made offerings to her, and remembered her. There were reasons why they built temples to her. It was because she was their God and she cared for them. How dare they think they did not need her?

Chalchiuhtlicue was the Goddess of the waters, of the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. She and Tlaloc together brought the rains. They watered the crops. If they didn’t bring rain, the People would starve. The mais would not germinate. They also protected the life of the seas and the lakes around Teotihuacan. They were responsible for fish. And frogs. Shellfish and crabs. Yes, sometimes they brought fierce storms, hurricanes, mud slides, terrible winds, but even these they moderated. They cared for the People. They made the wheel of life turn. They made the cycle of the weather. They brought sacred water. And in response to the offerings and prayers, Chalchiuhtlicue did what she could to be of help them. When she saw that she was almost completely forgotten, she became angry. And vengeful. And she decided she would no longer moderate the Sea and protect the people. Because they had forgotten her. And abandoned her. They had lived by her Grace, but they betrayed her. She seized her obsidian knife, and she stabbed herself in her stomach.

Perhaps you can understand that just as a dog’s year is 7 human years, a God’s year is about 500 human years. Chalchiutlicue waited for us to come back her. She waited a full God year. She waited long enough. And now she knows we are not coming back. As we have abandoned her, so she has now abandoned us.

Chalchiuhtlicue has now fully withdrawn her help. She has given up on us. And she has sacrificed herself.

You can see this in the Gulf. You can see her blood and guts emptying into the Gulf. You can see that she has cut herself deeply with her obsidian knife and is bleeding to death.

Who were we to leave her? Who were we to believe that she was powerless? Who were we to believe the calumnies Cortez brought? Didn’t we understand the Gods? Didn’t we realize that there were good reasons why we made offerings and ceremonies to them for so very long?

———————

simulposted at The Dream Antilles and dailykos and docuDharma

What did I tell you about these ‘Sprint’ finishes?

After what are basically 5 of 7 no results, Armstrong and Team Radio Shack are 2:30 out of the race lead and :50 behind his main rival, Alberto Contador of Team Astana (Schleck and Cancellara the race leader of Saxo are also considered contenders to watch).

Justin Davis of AFP thinks Armstrong is looking at week 3 to make his move but I don’t know, age and guile may suggest otherwise.

It’s not that today’s stage is particularly hard climbing, but tomorrow is and then there is a day off Monday and more mountains Tuesday.

And goodbye Alps.

That recovery day sure looks tempting and if I were a team boss I’d have a plan for it I’d have to reveal today- am I going to bring it or keep up and hope for the best?

Today’s special extended coverage (wtf?) is 103 miles of Tournus to Station des Rousses with 6 climbing sections, most of them 2s and 3s.

Armstrong- “I think there’ll be some guys attacking on Sunday, and Tuesday could be a complicated day, difficult and right after a rest day which is sometimes deceiving for guys.

But this race is so weighted towards the last week that my impression and my opinion would be to wait (to attack)”

I wouldn’t wait too long.  It’s not that Tiger is such a good player, but he’s bringing his A game on Thursday not playing for the cut.

The official commentary–

An initial cull

This medium-altitude mountain terrain will be more difficult than Liège-Bastogne-Liège, because the climbs last for between 6 and 12 kilometres, starting at the 40 km mark. Thereafter, there is not even a single centimetre of flat road; it will be up, down, up, down and so on and so forth. At the finishing line, there may still be around thirty riders together. The slopes are not massively difficult, so it is not necessarily a stage for a major climber, more so for a rider like Cadel Evans or David Moncoutié. However, an initial cull will take place and those who are not on form, who will not reach the front of the race, may already be looking at a Tour that is lost.

Monkey Trial Begins

In Dayton, Tennessee, the so-called “Monkey Trial” begins with John Thomas Scopes, a young high school science teacher, accused of teaching evolution in violation of a Tennessee state law.

The law, which had been passed in March, made it a misdemeanor punishable by fine to “teach any theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible, and to teach instead that man has descended from a lower order of animals.” With local businessman George Rappalyea, Scopes had conspired to get charged with this violation, and after his arrest the pair enlisted the aid of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to organize a defense. Hearing of this coordinated attack on Christian fundamentalism, William Jennings Bryan, the three-time Democratic presidential candidate and a fundamentalist hero, volunteered to assist the prosecution. Soon after, the great attorney Clarence Darrow agreed to join the ACLU in the defense, and the stage was set for one of the most famous trials in U.S. history.

On July 10, the Monkey Trial got underway, and within a few days hordes of spectators and reporters had descended on Dayton as preachers set up revival tents along the city’s main street to keep the faithful stirred up. Inside the Rhea County Courthouse, the defense suffered early setbacks when Judge John Raulston ruled against their attempt to prove the law unconstitutional and then refused to end his practice of opening each day’s proceeding with prayer.

snip

In front of several thousand spectators in the open air, Darrow changed his tactics and as his sole witness called Bryan in an attempt to discredit his literal interpretation of the Bible. In a searching examination, Bryan was subjected to severe ridicule and forced to make ignorant and contradictory statements to the amusement of the crowd. On July 21, in his closing speech, Darrow asked the jury to return a verdict of guilty in order that the case might be appealed. Under Tennessee law, Bryan was thereby denied the opportunity to deliver the closing speech he had been preparing for weeks. After eight minutes of deliberation, the jury returned with a guilty verdict, and Raulston ordered Scopes to pay a fine of $100, the minimum the law allowed. Although Bryan had won the case, he had been publicly humiliated and his fundamentalist beliefs had been disgraced. Five days later, on July 26, he lay down for a Sunday afternoon nap and never woke up.

 48 BC  – Battle of Dyrrhachium: Julius Caesar barely avoids a catastrophic defeat to Pompey in Macedonia.

988 – The city of Dublin is founded on the banks of the river Liffey.

1212 – The most severe of several early fires of London burns most of the city to the ground.

1460 – Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick defeats the king’s Lancastrian forces and takes King Henry VI prisoner in the Battle of Northampton.

1499 – Portuguese explorer Nicolau Coelho returns to Lisbon, after discovering the sea route to India as a companion of Vasco da Gama.

1553 – Lady Jane Grey takes the throne of England.

1584 – William I of Orange is assassinated in his home in Delft, Holland by Balthasar Gérard.

1645 – English Civil War: The Battle of Langport takes place.

1778 – American Revolution: Louis XVI of France declares war on the Kingdom of Great Britain.

1789 – Alexander Mackenzie reaches the Mackenzie River delta.

1806 – The Vellore Mutiny is the first instance of a mutiny by Indian sepoys against the British East India Company.

1821 – The United States takes possession of its newly bought territory of Florida from Spain.

1832 – U.S.President Andrew Jackson vetoes a bill that would re-charter the Second Bank of the United States.

1850 – Millard Fillmore is inaugurated as the 13th President of the United States upon the death of President Zachary Taylor, 16 months into his term.

1859 – Big Ben rings for the first time.

1890 – Wyoming is admitted as the 44th U.S. state.

1913 – Death Valley, California hits 134 °F (~56.7 °C), the highest temperature recorded in the United States.

1921 – Belfast’s Bloody Sunday: 16 people are killed and 161 houses destroyed during rioting and gun battles in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

1925 – Scopes Trial: In Dayton, Tennessee, the so-called “Monkey Trial” begins with John T. Scopes, a young high school science teacher accused of teaching evolution in violation of the Butler Act.

1938 – Howard Hughes sets a new record by completing a 91 hour airplane flight around the world.

1940 – World War II: the Vichy government is established in France.

1940 – World War II: Battle of Britain – The German Luftwaffe begins attacking British convoys in the English Channel thus starting the battle (this start date is contested, though).

1941 – Jedwabne Pogrom: the massacre of Jewish people living in and near the village of Jedwabne in Poland.

1942 – Diplomatic relations between the Netherlands and the Soviet Union are established.

1943 – World War II: The launching of Operation Husky begins the Italian Campaign.

1947 – Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah is recommended as the first Governor General of Pakistan by then Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Clement Attlee.

1951 – Korean War: Armistice negotiations begin at Kaesong.

1962 – Telstar, the world’s first communications satellite, is launched into orbit.

1966 – The Chicago Freedom Movement, lead by Martin Luther King, holds a rally at Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois. As many as 60,000 people came to hear Dr. King as well as Mahalia Jackson, Stevie Wonder, and Peter Paul and Mary.

1973 – The Bahamas gain full independence within the Commonwealth of Nations.

1973 – National Assembly of Pakistan passes a resolution on the recognition of Bangladesh.

1971 – King Hassan II of Morocco survives an attempted coup d’etat, which lasts until June 11.

1978 – World News Tonight premieres on ABC.

1985 – Greenpeace vessel Rainbow Warrior is bombed and sunk in Auckland, New Zealand harbor by French DGSE agents.

1991 – Boris Yeltsin begins his 5-year term as the first elected President of Russia.

1992 – In Miami, Florida, former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega is sentenced to 40 years in prison for drug and racketeering violations.

1997 – In London scientists report the findings of the DNA analysis of a Neanderthal skeleton which support the “out of Africa theory” of human evolution placing an “African Eve” at 100,000 to 200,000 years ago.

1998 – Roman Catholic sex abuse cases: The Diocese of Dallas agrees to pay $23.4 million to nine former altar boys who claimed they were sexually abused by former priest Rudolph Kos.

2002 – At a Sotheby’s auction, Peter Paul Rubens’ painting The Massacre of the Innocents is sold for £49.5million (US$76.2 million) to Lord Thomson.

2005 – Hurricane Dennis slams into the Florida Panhandle, causing billions of dollars in damage.

2008 – Former Macedonian Interior Minister Ljube Boškoski is acquitted of all charges by a United Nations Tribunal accusing him of war crimes.

(10 pm. – promoted by ek hornbeck)

Oh my goodness.  On August 7, 2010, my little blog, the Dream Antilles will be five years old.  Time flies on the web.  Blogging is probably passe now.  There are probably millions upon millions of abandoned blogs strewn across the Internet like beer cans on an Alabama roadside.  Today’s was the 794th post.

I have no idea how many people may have seen my blog.  Or who read it.  I admit that I’m defensive about all of that..  I disconnected all the counters (they didn’t work anyway) and took the position that it didn’t matter how many readers there were.  Also, that small was good.  That the writing is an exercise you do, like breathing, because it’s what you do.  If you stop, you’re dead.

Join me below.

I write the blog because I have something I want to say.  I’m happy when people read it.  I’m happy when people comment (that doesn’t happen often).  And I feel a rare sense of pride at the upcoming Blogaversary.  I mean: that is a helluva lot of writing over a long time.

I have no ads.  I get no $$ for blogging.  The donation box has received a grand total of $25 or less since it’s been up.  The blog is just a labor of love.  It continues as long as I continue.  Until I change my mind, or shuffle down the road.  If I have a keyboard and a cup of coffee, I can continue.  I will until it’s time to stop.  And then, no GBCW, I’ll just stop.  If you miss me, count the days, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.  

Maybe the blogging is why my second book isn’t written yet.  Or why my nonfiction book has been sitting in a drawer for years now.  Why the screen door isn’t patched.  It’s more addictive than pool.  Maybe that’s why it looks like the Music Man is visiting town.  That’s just how it is, I guess.  I sit at the keyboard and hammer away.  Reminds me of the professor character in Treme: you just rant and rant and rant.  And you’re probably right.  But you know what? If you’re waiting for the applause, you’re gonna wait a very long time.  But I digress.

So, I need a suggestion for an appropriate celebration of this Blogaversary.  Got any ideas?

——————–

simulposted at docuDharma and dailyKos

Your only crack at Keith and Rachel tonight.  Dateline extended maximum exposure lockup trapped until Monday stalker.

• AMC– The Cowboys
• Bravo– Legends of the Fall
• CNBC– The Rainmaker
• ESPN– The Dollar General 300
• ABC Family– Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
• FX– Miracle
• Oxygen– While You Were Sleeping
• SciFi– Eureka 3rd season finale and 4th season opener.
• Turner Classic– Abe Lincoln in Illinois and Young Mr. Lincoln
• TNT– Titanic
• USA– Ocean’s Thirteen

Disney has a fair sampling of Phineas and Ferb (premier of “Hawaiian Vacation” @ 9) so I’ll probably watch that instead of anything good.

Later-

Fresh Leno (but why?).  Good Eats– Dutch Ovens.  SciFi repeating Eureka premier, Haven (new to me) and Warehouse 13 (new this week).  Look Around You, Computers.  

Evening Edition is an Open Thread

1 Suicide attack kills 65 in Pakistan tribal belt

by Lehaz Ali, AFP

1 hr 50 mins ago

2 Google says China has renewed its operating licence

by Robert Saiget, AFP

Fri Jul 9, 11:58 am ET

3 Cavendish equals Tour sprint greats with 12th win

by Justin Davis, AFP

1 hr 52 mins ago

4 Spanish party pooper plots Sneijder downfall

by David Legge, AFP

Fri Jul 9, 12:40 pm ET

5 New York lights fire under city’s smokers

by Sebastian Smith, AFP

Fri Jul 9, 9:55 am ET

6 Mattis named overall US commander of Iraq, Afghan wars

AFP

Thu Jul 8, 3:23 pm ET

7 Boeing joins rival in race for US military mega project

by Andrew Beatty, AFP

Fri Jul 9, 12:14 pm ET

8 NBA giant James to join stars at Miami Heat

AFP

Fri Jul 9, 4:26 am ET

9 China’s AgBank on track for record IPO

by Peter Brieger, AFP

Fri Jul 9, 6:46 am ET

10 U.S. will announce new drilling moratorium soon

By Dan Whitcomb, Reuters

28 mins ago

11 Russia, U.S. swap 14 in Cold War-style spy exchange

By Guy Faulconbridge and Heinz-Peter Bader, Reuters

27 mins ago

12 Google gets nod from China to keep search page

By Melanie Lee, Reuters

1 hr 56 mins ago

13 Amid gunfire, U.S. troops try to bring governance to Kandahar

By Jonathon Burch, Reuters

Fri Jul 9, 12:17 pm ET

14 California transit cop verdict sparks looting

By Steve Gorman and Peter Henderson, Reuters

Fri Jul 9, 2:32 am ET

15 Judge rules U.S. gay marriage ban unconstitutional

By Ros Krasny, Reuters

Thu Jul 8, 8:10 pm ET

16 Joblessness and housing add risks to U.S. recovery: IMF

By David Lawder, Reuters

Thu Jul 8, 6:53 pm ET

17 New cap, ships could contain Gulf leak by Monday

By TOM BREEN, Associated Press Writer

33 mins ago

18 Twin suicide bombs kill 62 in Pakistan tribal area

By RIAZ KHAN and NAHAL TOOSI, Associated Press Writers

41 mins ago

19 Feds opening investigation into transit killing

By PAUL ELIAS and GREG RISLING, Associated Press Writers

1 hr 33 mins ago

20 China renews Google license despite censorship row

By JOE MCDONALD, AP Business Writer

1 hr 13 mins ago

21 Cavendish takes 6th stage for 2nd straight TDF win

By JAMEY KEATEN, Associated Press Writer

1 hr 39 mins ago

22 Seer sucker: Octopus oracle picks Spain to win

By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER, Associated Press Writer

1 hr 32 mins ago

23 Into the cold: Swapped spies face uncertain lives

By JIM HEINTZ, Associated Press Writers

1 hr 23 mins ago

24 China renews Google license despite censorship row

By JOE MCDONALD, AP Business Writer

1 hr 28 mins ago

25 Wholesale inventories rise in May, sales fall

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER, AP Economics Writer

Fri Jul 9, 1:20 pm ET

26 White House silent on Mass. gay marriage ruling

By DENISE LAVOIE, AP Legal Affairs Writer

12 mins ago

27 Pope names official to run Legionaries

By VICTOR L. SIMPSON, Associated Press Writer

58 mins ago

28 GOP leaders let demagogues set tone, lawmaker says

By BEN EVANS, Associated Press Writer

Fri Jul 9, 8:59 am ET

29 Presbyterians continue to be divided over gays

By PATRICK CONDON, Associated Press Writer

Fri Jul 9, 12:03 pm ET

30 APNewsBreak: BLM says survey confirms horse claims

By SCOTT SONNER, Associated Press Writer

8 mins ago

31 Black political leaders to recapture ’08 momentum

By HEATHER HOLLINGSWORTH, Associated Press Writer

2 hrs 20 mins ago

32 Sea turtle egg evacuations begin along oiled Gulf

By BRIAN SKOLOFF, Associated Press Writer

Fri Jul 9, 1:42 pm ET

33 Kids might not follow deported Russian spy parents

By DAVID B. CARUSO, Associated Press Writer

Fri Jul 9, 4:54 am ET

Pour a cup of coffee or brew some tea and contemplate the day.

Glen Greenwald again starts at the top with his continued skewering of the MSM hypocrisy, asking us to consider who has been forced out of the so-called “Liberal Media”

Octavia Nasr’s firing and what The Liberal Media allows

CNN yesterday ended the 20-year career of Octavia Nasr, its Atlanta-based Senior Middle East News Editor, because of a now-deleted tweet she wrote on Sunday upon learning of the death of one of the Shiite world’s most beloved religious figures: “Sad to hear of the passing of Sayyed Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah  . . . . One of Hezbollah’s giants I respect a lot.”  That message spawned an intense fit of protest from Far Right outlets, Thought Crime enforcers, and other neocon precincts, and CNN quickly (and characteristically) capitulated to that pressure by firing her.  The network — which has employed a former AIPAC official, Wolf Blitzer, as its primary news anchor for the last 15 years — justified its actions by claiming that Nasr’s “credibility” had been “compromised.”  Within this episode lies several important lessons about media “objectivity” and how the scope of permissible views is enforced.

In an up date to his column, Glen addresses some  of his harshest critics on his views on Israel. Glen concludes

I view the increasingly unhinged attacks by the worst neocon elements to be a vindication of what I’m doing.  I see them as pernicious and destructive, and genuinely welcome their contempt.

That applies to just about any of the unreasonable, unhinged responses  from the “neocon elements”.

Ezra Klein addresses raising of the retirement age for Social Security and the fact that it isn’t exactly “equitable”

Larry Mishel writes in with another argument for why raising the Social Security age makes much more sense for affluent individuals who work in knowledge-oriented industries than for lower-income people whose jobs require more physical labor. If the argument is that life expectancy is rocketing upwards, and that retirement shouldn’t grow along with it, it’s important to point out that the increases in life expectancy aren’t being shared equally

Author George Lakoff talks about Disaster Messaging and how Democrats can counter the Republican “outmessaging” them.

Democrats are constantly resorting to disaster messaging. Here’s a description the typical situation.

   * The Republicans outmessage the Democrats. The Democrats, having no effective response, face disaster: They lose politically, either in electoral support or failure on crucial legislation.

   * The Democrats then take polls and do focus groups. The pollsters discover that extremist Republicans control the most common (“mainstream”) way of thinking and talking about the given issue.

   * The pollsters recommend that Democrats move to the right: adopt conservative Republican language and a less extreme version of conservative policy, along with weakened versions of some Democratic ideas.

   * The Democrats believe that, if they follow this advice, they can gain enough independent and Republican support to pass legislation that, at least, will be some improvement on the extreme Republican position.

   * Otherwise, the pollsters warn, Democrats will lose popular support — and elections — to the Republicans, because “mainstream” thought and language resides with the Republicans.

   * Believing the pollsters, the Democrats change their policy and their messaging, and move to the right.

   * The Republicans demand even more and refuse to support the Democrats.

We have seen this on issues like health care, immigration, global warming, finance reform, and so on. We are seeing it again on the Death Gusher in the Gulf. It happens even with a Democratic president and a Democratic majority in both houses of Congress.

Just for laughs with all the critically important things happening in the world, Maureen Dowd of the NYT devoted her op-ed to Levi Johnson. You remember him, the almost son-in-law and father of Sarah Palin’s grandson. Really, Maureen, so yesterday.

Let’s consider the latest developments in the Levi Johnston saga.

Good Grief! Why?

You may think I’m sports obsessed, but I look at it as a cultural metaphor.

We should never forget the Blues v. Greens.  Losing Theodora was the real end of the Roman Empire.

This guy can command an hour of primetime.

The thing about professional athletes is that they get eyeballs and eyeballs are money.  And as rich as you think these communistic unionists are, they don’t overcharge quite as much as the banksters.

My anarcho-syndicalist side says the players should own the teams and collectively self organize and what else are you going to call the Heat next year under guru Pat Riley?

The best team money can buy?  They have salary caps, why do you think the Knicks suck (other than they just do)?

Drew Carey says goodbye to Cleveland for a chance to do really good improv with his buddies?  What could be a more all-American success story?  You might even say goal directed- a ring for the thing (do you have Prince Albert in a can?)

Last day before the fireworks begin.

I’m not actually convinced Lance can pull this one out.  I’ve done comeback tours and inertia and entropy are not to be despised.  That said he goes out on top as a contender because nobody since Ullrich has put in the scare that he has.

He broke his collar bone last year you know.

The big picture hasn’t changed- another Sprinter’s finish signifying nothing yesterday and the same to look forward to today.  Tomorrow we begin climbing which should tell us a lot.

We will definitely have to start learning other cyclists’ names to prove that we’re real fans and not merely moved by the Islanders’ remarkable streak in the ’70s (better than rooting for the Rangers).

Today’s 142 mile stage between Montargis and Gueugnon has 4 four rated climbs and climbs from start to finish.  It might be possible to make a team time trial break away statement going into the Alps but it’s unlikely any one is going to take a gamble like that given how beat up they were on Tuesday and Wednesday.

(2 pm.  Consolation Game (Germany v. Uruguay) @ 2:30. – promoted by ek hornbeck)

How painful.  After Sunday’s final final final of the world cup finals in South Africa, life will probably return to normal on the planet.  After a month of almost daily futbol bliss, the workaday world returns: work (not between games), family, relationship, maintenance, vacations, etc etc.  Coming Monday looks to be particularly bleak.  There’s no futbol on the horizon, virtual or live, until the Fall of 2010, when to my utter relief European and South American futbol will resume.  Until then, there’s only off season trade rumors, contracts, transfers, the business of futbol meeting the twin engines of hype and business.

But put aside all of my drama, my foreboding.  This weekend has two televised gems for your delectation.  And this essay also has a poll.

In the World Cup, there is a game for third place.  That means that Uruguay will meet Germany on Saturday at 2:30 pm EDT.  Winner is third; loser, fourth.  If Germany’s heart has not been completely crushed by its meeting with Spain, if Germany can return to the form they had before their loss, this could be an exciting game.  Uruguay has played great defense throughout the tournament, and Diego Forlan is always exciting.  Always a threat to score. Always thinking.  I thought Uruguay would beat Netherlands.  That didn’t happen, so ever in the market for a real upset,  I pick Uruguay 1 – 0 Germany.

I guess I just don’t like the German team.  On Wednesday, I was in NYC.  The first bar I went to to escape the 100 degree heat had lots of German fans wearing German jerseys, applauding the German defense.  This is something I don’t like: to me it felt like they would have cheered the Maginot line.  OK.  I have some issues.  So at half time, I left that pub, walked up the block, and found one in which Spanish and Spanish speaking fans had located themselves.  Perdon.  But this was far more conducive to my futbol enjoyment.  They applauded and yelled, blew whistles (this is not Germanic behavior), yelled at the screen, and generally comported themselves in a fashion I can relate to.  That it was 100 degrees outside seemed made them more simpatico.  So, I have to hope in my heart that Uruguay and its excitement and passion can beat this very well playing  machine.

Which brings me to Sunday, 2:30 pm EDT.  The final, final, final winner takes home the World Cup and casts the futbol fan into a world of darkness until June, 2014, when we do this again.

I know. I know.  Beginning in the Fall, there’s English Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, the Bundesliga.  There’s the Mexican league, Argentina, Brazil.  It all begins again.  The four year cycle begins all over again. It’s tremendous futbol.  It’s constant from early Fall until May.  I love it.  It’s even on satellite TV in the US.  But, folks, it just isn’t the same thing as the world cup.  In some way, I feel like I’m being offered a third beer.  Yeah I’ll take it, because I always do, but I really don’t want it badly.  Not badly at all. And the consequences are usually not that great.

I think Spain has been the best team of this tournament.  I think the Spanish midfield, especially Xavi, has been simply wonderful.  He may be the greatest player at this time.  I think David Vila and Iniesta and yes, Fernando Torres and a host of other stars deserve to win this tournament.  I think the Spanish defense has been wonderful.  I liked that goal on Wednesday.  I liked it a lot.   It will be their first ever world cup triumph.  I know there are a lot of fans of Netherlands/Holland/the Dutch, but there is no way that the Dutch team even with Van Persie, van Bommel, and Kuyt, and Robben is as powerful in the midfield and on the flanks and up the middle and in the back as Spain.  No way.  Yes, they’ve had a wonderful run.  But gnat, meet sledgehammer.  Spain 2 – 0 Netherlands.

Think I’m wrong?  Think I’ve overlooked something?  I know I didn’t overlook my own impending despair, I’m talking about missing something in the games.  That’s why they make comments and that’s why I made the poll.  Enjoy.    

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