The 20th Century of the United States was largely dominated by an industrial economy. The US rode the wave of the industrial revolution into prominence on the world stage. Factories flourished thanks to interchangeable parts and largely interchangeable people. Most workers in the 20th Century were able to earn a substantial living by doing simple repetitive tasks under the orders of their bosses.
In this system, it is no wonder that the sport of the century was Football. In so many ways, football was representative of the American way. It was progressive. Moving forward was success and moving backward was failure. It mirrored our historical land acquisition with its own “land acquisition”. The decisions were made by a few bosses and executed by largely interchangeable people. The sport was the perfect corollary for the industrial age and both served the country well in their time.
Now that the industrial age has passed and we have moved into what many are calling the “Connection Economy”. The people who create value in the market place are not interchangeable cogs in a vast machinery. Cogs can be replaced, automated or outsourced to other countries. True value in the modern economy is created by an individual whose contributions are irreplaceable and unique.
This change begs for a different representation in sport. The football model of “run the play” holds little value when the rules of the game change so quickly. Soccer’s flexibility and subjectivity require that players deal with complex problems and must make individual decisions for the betterment of the collective. Since each player is a decision maker, principles rather than directives are the dictating forces. No one person is in control. Therefore players must learn to control themselves and direct themselves in an uncertain environment.
The beautiful game will become “America’s Game”. It is just a matter of time.
Pete
In kindergarten (at least according to my recollection), I was the fastest kid in Mrs. Palma’s class. The reason that I know this is that we often had races across the blacktop outside of the classroom. I won everyone that I ran in. Although my memory is extremely fuzzy about that time period, I can make this statement for a few reasons with little fear of repercussion. First, it’s possible that it is true. I definitely wasn’t the slowest in the class. Second, everyone else’s memory is probably as fuzzy if not fuzzier than mine. Finally and most important, IT DOESN’T MATTER! While this may have been extremely relevant over thirty years ago, it’s importance has taken a nose dive down to zero.
I’m fully willing to admit that I’m a relatively passive driver. It’s almost to a fault. Most of the driving routes that I take for local trips are based on their lack of difficult left turns. It’s not that I’m incapable of making the turns nor do I lack the patience to wait for openings. My overarching thought process is that I don’t engage with unknown chaos if I don’t need to. Overall I’m happy with the strategy. However recently I’ve been forcing myself to do more left turn heavy routes. Just to demonstrate to myself that my passivity is a strategy that I want and not character flaw born out of fear.
Sometimes the hardest things to see are those that are right in front of you. Your nose is always front and center but most of us don’t pay it any mind. The reason why we tend to forget about it is because it is always there. Our brains tend to discard or ignore those things that can be taken for granted. Air, light, food, water, friends, opportunity, etc. are just a beginning to the list of things that we take for granted each day. This is not to say that we should be spending major amounts of time contemplating air in a recreational effort. It is simply to point out that your brain is working at all times to determine what is worth your attention and what is not. This ability to ignore the inconsequential is wonderful until it isn’t. As they say, the dose makes the poison.
Growing up in the 80’s, the desire to be a “rock star” seemed almost ubiquitous. Not everyone was in a band at one point but the numbers were high enough to take notice. The proliferation of MTV allowed for widespread exposure to a life that many people assumed that they wanted. In the end most of those dreams faded because the path was too difficult for most to bear. Constant practicing, trying to get signed, playing small gigs for no money and myriad of other obstacles were enough to teach “would be” rock stars to look for another direction. Another key obstacle was parental approval. Most parents saw the dream as unlikely and allowed their kids to pursue it but not overly invest themselves.
I remember it all too plainly. Sitting in a cramped seat on an airplane flying back from Europe after almost a month of traveling with my best friend. We had attended five games of the World Cup and visited a slew of sites and cities. It was truly one of the greatest times of my life! However on the plane ride back I repeatedly listened to the song “The God of Wine” by Third Eye Blind. Despite the amazing experiences that I’d just had, I was heading back into a world that I could feel was going to hurt me. For some reason this premonition got stuck within this song and I can return to any time that I hear the song.
About a year ago, I took my daughter to a Devils game. To be honest, she didn’t seem overly interested in the game. It appeared that she was more excited by the cotton candy and Devil horns. I was extremely surprised when she said at the end of the game “I want to play hockey.” At that point we had only taken her ice skating a handful of times. I told her that I fully supported the idea of her playing hockey but that there were some steps she needed to go through first. She needed to spend this winter improving her skating and starting to learn how to play the game. This past weekend she had her first hockey tournament.
So as you go out into the world today and do whatever it is that makes you feel alive, do it with the joy of a 9 year old girl. One who had such a big smile on her face most of the weekend that no one would have ever known her team lost by large margins. I do not believe that you should want to fail. I just believe that you should be willing to RISK IT!
To my toilet, I’m either a dick or asshole. To my shower, I’m varying degrees of dirty. To my mirror, I’m vain or self-obsessed. And you can just imagine what the toilet paper thinks of me. All of these perspectives are completely accurate but taken from a narrow view
Huryk Unlimited 