Why, in America, immigrants don't cheer for the U.S. soccer team

SF Chronicle ^ | 6-4-02 | Gustavo Arellano

[FreedominJesusChrist]

"But Arellano conveniently left that information out of his puff piece."

Leaving out pertinent facts has become a bonafide artform for American journalists.

[hole_n_one]

Now that you've explained it, it's hysterically funny.....

I have no problem attributing the dismal failure of your joke to my being too thick as opposed to your being too subtle.

[ctonious]

The best example of American vs Foreign views of the game was Kent Brockman's play by play vs his Latin American counterpart's:

"Center passes to wing...who holds it...holds it (sigh)...holds it....aaaand passes it back to Center."
VERSUS
"Center passes to wing..he holds it..Holds It...HOLDS IT!!..AND PASSES BACK TO CENTER!!!"

[henderson field]

That's really the problem -- the fact that rooting for a foreign sports team is part of a package and a mere part of owing one's allegiance to a foreign land. There's only one United States of America. And so these others are socialist and communist places and they carry their beliefs with them: Cultural Pollution. Unfortunately these are the people who want to unravel our Constitution. They don't have free speech where they're from, so why is it needed here? They don't have the mental capacity to understand why.

[eddie willers]

What's soccer?

"Bobby, soccer was invented to give European ladies something to do while their men prepared meals." - Hank Hill

[Sabertooth]

There's more BS from Arellano, where he's fielding e-mails on this article:

e-mailer (to Arellano):

You are a liar.

I was at that world cup match in Pasadena, the Illegal Aliens who comprise the majority of Mexicans in the Southwest did much more than cheer for the Tricolores,
they threw cans, bottles, and trash at the US team and spat upon those close enough to reach.

The some 13 Million criminals who have invaded this country don't seek some outlet for frustration or connection to their "home country" they have no
intention of assimilating into US culture, they seek only to use the United States as an ATM with free education and health care for themselves and their
children, while the US citizens and legal immigrants pick up the tab. They don't cheer for the US because first and foremost
they are Mexicans, not Americans and have no desire to be otherwise.

Try a little truth instead of just spewing multi-cultural crap...Amigo.

Arellano's response...

Buddy boy,

Two points:

1. Wasn't a World Cup match; it was a Gold Cup match
2. The match was played in the LA Coliseum, not Pasadena

Get your "truths" right before you accuse me of anything. Makes you seem like the crap-spewer instead of me.
LINK

Not only does he never address the substance of the letter, the abysmal behavior of the Mexican soccer fans, if you'll look at Arellan's article above, you'll see he places the match in Pasadena. But in his e-mail reply he gets snide and uppity and says the match was at the L.A. Coliseum. What a chump.

e-mailer (to Arellano):

I read your article on the Internet about why Latino soccer fans boo the United States during soccer contests with Latin American teams, and concluded that you need to see more of these athletic contests. If you'd do this, you'd see this goes far deeper than athletic favoritism.

What I saw in 1998 at the L.A. Coliseum when I attended a US Mexico soccer match (Mexico 1-0), convinced me that the U.S. needs to rethink its immigration policies. I saw the overwhelmingly predominant group of Latino fans hurl plastic bottles filled with water at the U.S. soccer team, splashing and bouncing at their feet. This was followed by avalanches of water and beer-filled cups, lemons, giant empty boxes, more water, more plastic and a few glass bottles, plus mountains of garbage that covered the U.S. team like an ugly blanket. I saw fathers instruct their sons how to urinate into plastic cups and hurl them at the Gringo athletes. All this was accompanied by choruses of words screamed in Spanish. All this infantilism & disloyalty followed loud booing by Mexican fans, presumably future citizens, when the American National Anthem was played, while hundreds more of these "fans" displayed American Flags, - -upside-down.

These disgraceful anti-American outbursts went far beyond a soccer game and convinced me that fool-proof ways must be found to determine one's allegiance to this country before they're ever allowed to become U.S. citizens.

Arellano's response...

Thank you for your comments,

I agree with you that the soccer matches go much farther than athletic favoritism; in fact, that was the crux of my argument. Saying that does not mean that I endorse the sometimes-ugly displays of it (as you accurately noted in the 1998 match) but that said, I would not go as far as to take the measures you would take to ensure that things like this do not happen again. After all, the fans do keep this anti-Americanism in expressions like sporting events (and it even happens with "Americans" as fan hatred towards wrestling star Kurt Angle attests) and that's much better than having these immigrants marauding around constantly spouting these anti-American sentiments. And while I do agree with you that we must make sure that future immigrants become good Americans, we must also allow Americans (whether current or future) in general to express distrust towards this country once in a while. Thank you once again.
LINK

Once again, this little apologist for Illegals and the bad behavior of Mexicans at that soccer game glosses over the point.

Anyone who wants to Freep Gustavo Arellano can do so here:

arell102@chapman.edu

[eddie willers]

Agassi's dating a transvestite?

[SR71A]

A bunch of 5'6", 125 lb guys run up and down the field for 3 hours. At the end of the game, the score is 0 to 0, and the fans tear down the stadium. That's not anything that excites me.

You all forgot to mention the biggest factors in the death of soccer in the U.S.:

no timeouts, therefore no commercials, therefore NO TV!

But it is the most boring sport imaginable...even curling has more pizazz...

[Revolting cat!]

Only seven more weeks until NFL training camp...

Yeah, great! I heard they have there 7 seconds of play and 3 minutes of rest watching television commercials to simulate real, live football! And what about those endzone jive dancing lessons they attend at the camp, not to mention the Faggy Butt Slapping Techniques 101! Yeah, only 7 weeks!

[DrDavid]

I wonder how this works. I was born in the US and lived in England for over 6 years. When I watch the World Cup I cheer for both the US and England. However, when they play I would still have to cheer for the US. I would have when I was in England too!

[eddie willers]

Soccer players also have to learn good strategy skills

I played soccer.
It's mindless.
Not an ounce of strategy.
If all I wanted was to be bored to tears watching men in great physical shape.....
I'd go to the Ballet.

[Carry_Okie]

It'd be nice for a Latin American country to beat the United States. It would be like payback."

"Just because I want the United States to lose doesn't mean I want the country itself to suffer," Sagastizado says. "I just want the soccer team to be beat."

Liar. "Payback" for what?

[Valin]

I've watch soccer any number of times and find it wonderful...for taking a nap.

[janette]

That was a joke right? They ( A.Agassi and Steffi Graf) are married and have a little son. They are well known for loving each other very much!

[luvbach1]

Yes, after giving voice to their anti-Americanism they will return to bettering this nation. BARF!

[luvbach1]

Illegal-immigrant shattering BUMP!

[al-andalus]

If I had a choice between watching soccer and watching something else, I'd rather watch my cat hack up a furball.

4 posted on 6/4/02 6:30 PM Pacific by hole_n_one

There you go with that cat of yours again. I hear P.J.'s putting him on Jason Kidd instead of Derek Fisher.

[luvbach1]

This is the essential difference between many of today's immigrants and those of yesteryear. Early immigrants (including my father and mother) came to become Americans, embracing all that signifies. It would have been unthinkable for them to root against our national team, although as a wise poster pointed out, we can withstand a defeat in soccer. How many immigrants of questionable loyalty we can absorb is a more troubling question.

[luvbach1]

Look at the biceps on that gal!