SOCCER WORLD CUP: Argentina-England

As usual today, Friday, at 4:30 a.m. I was sitting at my desk when I saw a long announcement that the Argentina-England soccer match would begin at 4:30 Pacific time, and that a lounge at the Graduate School of Business would be open at 4 a.m. for Argentines to watch the game on TV. I turned on the TV, and sure enough the game was on. Add to the beneficent effects of soccer that it makes people early risers. At the same time, TV disproves the Spanish proverb "No por mucho madrugar amanece más temprano" which translates to "Getting up early doesn't make it dawn any earlier". It was broad daylight in Sapporo, Japan. Incidentally, Carlos Lòpez was right when he made a nasty remark about the commercial interests which infect this sport. There is a long article about it, "Time for a cleanup" in The Economist (6/1-7/02). I must consult the Oxford English Dictionary to find the history of the expression "filthy lucre".

Ronald Hilton - 6/7/02