God Bless America

Eirebear

You couldnt make this **** up, an American religious "teacher" is given a soapbox at The Wall Street Journal - one of the worlds biggest publications - to preach his narrow minded, xenephobic view of America using "Soccer" as his means of attack.
(I know it's a couple of years old - but it's still pretty terrifying that people like this exist)

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123680101041299201.html

*** Sorry, you'll need to click on the link - Sherlocked ****

amacachi

Meh, it was 3 years ago, I assume now he'd right the same article but generally replace "soccer" with "Obama".

EDIT: I said "right" instead of "write", I assume his intelligence is rubbing off on me.

Eirebear

amacachi wrote: »

Meh, it was 3 years ago, I assume now he'd right the same article but generally replace "soccer" with "Obama".

lol, you're entirely right - just checked out his blog and that's exactly what he's saying!

WoollyRedHat

Mr. Webb is a professor of religion and philosophy at Wabash College. His recent books include "American Providence" and "Taking Religion to School."

Quoth the raven, "Nevermore".

retalivity

Any sport that limits you to using your feet, with the occasional bang of the head, has something very wrong with it.

Indeed.
Much better to play armoured wankball.

IvySlayer

OK we have a religious person criticising soccer.....

When his children kick a football does he know that the bible forbids touching the dead skin of a pig and it's punishable by death :P

Football brings people together in a, mostly, positive fashion. Football encourages team work, organisation, competitiveness, athleticism. Religion does not.

He complains football is a 'foreign invasion'. Suppose he doesn't complain when his own organisation sets up churches abroad.

''Forces kids to run and run, and everyone can play their role, no matter how minor or irrelevant to the game'' Ahh yes as if he's not pushing his own beliefs in other peoples faces :pac:

Anyway I'm done.

mayordenis

retalivity wrote: »

Indeed.
Much better to play armoured wankball.

It doesn't even come into it, don't drop to his level

amacachi

IvySlayer wrote: »

He complains football is a 'foreign invasion'. Suppose he doesn't complain when his own organisation sets up churches abroad.

Wonder what he calls the European colonisation of the Americas.

eire4

Wow that is quite an article. Even though it is 3 years old it really does fit in with the very scary lurch to the extreme right the US has taken over the last decade or so.

Seaneh

Holy feck he knows absolutely nothing about football.

Fr Tod Umptious

eire4 wrote: »

Wow that is quite an article. Even though it is 3 years old it really does fit in with the very scary lurch to the extreme right the US has taken over the last decade or so.

I would not worry too much, this guy is hardly mainstream or even close to it.

I doubt Mitt Romney will be making similar speeches on the campaign trail.

However soccer in America has always suffered from being seen a 'foreign' and in some way un-American

And it's mainly it's own fault, through the early part of the last century the game was run and played by immigrants, Scots mainly, and it never reached out the the rest of America.

Jelle1880

They still think they can improve everything, you know... 'MURRICAAAAA and all that.

http://aol.sportingnews.com/soccer/story/2012-04-12/mls-vs-the-world-league-takes-unprecedented-stand-against-flopping-vicious-tackl

gosplan

Jelle1880 wrote: »

They still think they can improve everything, you know... 'MURRICAAAAA and all that.

http://aol.sportingnews.com/soccer/story/2012-04-12/mls-vs-the-world-league-takes-unprecedented-stand-against-flopping-vicious-tackl

"In addition, MLS has given up on relying on the better angels of players’ nature to stop the diving and simulation American audiences so abhor. If a player tumbles to the ground without contact or feigns injury without being touched, he’ll have to write a check. If that action results in a goal or card that shows up in the box score, a suspension is likely as well."

In fairness, that's awesome. If we're throwing a few national sterotypes out there anyway, one thing I'd expect Americans to do well is ref and organise sports.