Running and Diving at The World Cup

Running and passing. Avoiding a tackle. Heading a forty meter flighted ball in an intended direction. Catching that pass with your foot dead on the spot. These are the skills we marvel at this month. But that also brings up the dreaded diving.
There is no question but that it is a real and pernicious part of the game. Strikers writhing in pain only to pop up and sprint full speed twenty seconds later. I'm here to argue that the running that world-class soccer players do is knife edge physiology.
I once heard a former college champion tennis player talk about his experience as the 'hitting partner' for a pro at a tournament in California. All the really top guys have their own entourages etc. and don't need to recruit locals for this job. But this pro was ranked around 110 in the world and had to find a local. This former champ was it. This local said to the effect that the difference in skill and power between himself and the pro was so vast that he scarcely regarded the game he was playing and the pro was playing as the same! That is the thing to remember. A professional is different. Evolution has separated the species.
When you see Robben charging down the field he is doing an extremely complex task. He is running full bore, extending every stride to cover the most ground. He is precariously balanced in this motion. One misstep and he is down and that is what happens when that opposing boot just clips his instep. Imagine walking a tightrope with someone hacking at your ankles. There are dives and then there are those little clips.

FIFA

FIFA is an organisation of Sepp and by his underlings and for unlimited junkets. When you understand that FIFA has more members that the United Nations, you can see how this happened. It is nothing but a kleptocracy that exists for itself. 
FIFA lives off the fees that are generated by the 'events' that are granted it's imprimatur. 
So they have to maximize the return with many teams and many events.
The first clue is to look at the United Kingdom. FIFA divides this Nation into four separate entities for membership purposes thus increasing the revenues by 400 %.
Scotland (Act of Union 1707), Wales (Laws in Wales Acts 1536-1543) and Northern Ireland (1800 Act of Union) are for every other purpose known to man or nations one. But not to FIFA. And they play into the old grievances in the bargain. In Scotland, come World Cup time it's "..anyone but England..".
There's no land too small or obscure that isn't a FIFA member or a Confederation member or a wannabe being talked up in Geneva. Purely for sport mind you. Never mind the 'fees'.
Martinique, Yap, Zanzibar, Sardinia. The list is impressive to any geography crank!
The events that are official FIFA tournaments is truly impressive. On FIFA's site they list 14 tournaments and these are just finals. Think of the thousands and thousands of qualifiers that have to be played just to get to Worlds. Then all the Confederations have their own internal competitions. The number of games that carry the FIFA label is immense. And remember every game sends money to Geneva!

France is Too French

Now that Sarkozy has entered the fray over the debacle in South Africa by Les Blues and making it a question of national pride he has been smacked by FIFA. One of the few areas that FIFA has done good work is the total resistance to any political meddling.
But this is not the French way. Honneur! Fiertie! Nation! As if France held such an exalted position on the World stage that any scuffing of its shoes is letting down the side as everyone looks to France for moral guidance. Typical Gallic hubris. 

Anosognosia

The reason that morons don't know they're morons is because, well.. they're morons. 
I have used this explanation for years and today I discovered it has a formal name in the field of psychology. 
NYT has the full article.

Vaccinations

Kevin Drum has a good article on a pertussis outbreak in California and the usual suspects response.
Did the Anti-Vaccine Movement Help Create a Whooping Cough Epidemic?
Read the article and my comments.

McChrystal and Trust

In twenty five words or less, Obama went to the mat to back McChrystals strategy when all around him were saying less, not more. And this is the way he pays him back? 
Bloviate all you want, simply put, McChrystal overestimated his value as the indispensable man. Hubris is a m.....f.....r! 

USA!!!!!

Whew!!! From the outhouse to the penthouse in 15 seconds!! 
The offside call on Dempsey was pathetic. If the touchline judge can't see him, then he has to be even with the last defender. Hence, not offsides!