I play a golf game online that is free to anyone who wants to play. It's called Shot Online (http://www.shot-online.com). It's a lot of fun to play there because the users of the game come from all over the world. One time, I played golf with a guy from Venezuela. I had to use the Spanish that I knew from middle school to talk with him, but we managed to communicate well enough.He's a huge fan of their leader, Chavez, because the people in that nation believes that he supports the common man. I was surprised to find that he thought George Bush was a not a bad guy. Chaves and Bush have been arguing a lot, but as I have found with most people I talk with on this game, the political uproar that occurs amongst national leaders of different countries often does not carry over to the citizens of those countries. People in other parts of the world are just like you and I.
Last night, I played in a group consisting of a player from the UK, a player from Germany (who didn't know much English), and a female player from France. I immediately asked the French woman if she was one of the kids who had been rioting in the streets over the new job laws. She said she was college age, but that she lived in a country area where those things weren't prevalent. I tried to strike up a conversation with the German guy, but I could tell right away that he wasn't able to speak much English, so I didn't press it.
I asked the English guy (who was from Manchester) which soccer team he liked. He said that he was mainly a national team fan. We started discussing the upcoming World Cup a bit and I brought up the world rankings that were just released.
I said, "Isn't the U.S. currently ranked higher than England in the world rankings that were just released?"
My British friend responded, "Don't be silly."
"Let me check to make sure. I'm not a fanatic when it comes to soccer", I replied.
So I went out and checked the world rankings on the web in between golf shots and came back with my research results.
I said, "I went out and checked the world rankings and the USA is ranked 4th in the world right now. It appears that England is currently ranked 10th in the world."
Mr. England replied, "Oh, well that must have changed recently."
I told him that must be what it was while allowing my comment to drip with sarcasm.
My German friend suddenly came out of nowhere and typed, "Deutchland!"
I replied to my German friend that the the German national team was currently ranked 19th in the world. He responded, "Oh".
I respect my European friend for their team spirit, but they appear to let that spirit blind them to the fact that the USA is actually getting quite good at soccer now. Of course, if the USA goes to the World Cup in June and falls flat on their face, who am I to tell my European friends that they are wrong for doubting the abilities of the US squad?
