The USA’s defeat in the match-up with Ghana on Saturday may have crashed the dream of millions of Americans who’d hoped it would finally enter the quarterfinals of the World Cup. Now, off it goes, out of Africa! It’s even more discouraging to think, in retrospect, that this was actually a rematch for both teams in the 2006 World Cup in Germany that the American team lost. Ironically it may sound, four years later the US team was beaten all over again by the same “Warrior King”, a tiny country nestled on the edge of African continent.
Though psychologically sided with the US team while watching the event unfolding on TV, I have to say that the Ghanaian performed much better, either with the team’s collective tactics or with their individual player’s skill, speed, and stamina. Appearing languish and unorganized, the USA team apparently struggled, in both offense and defense, throughout the first half and couldn‘t get a good shot past the Ghana team in spite they had several chances toward the end of the second half. The imparity between these two teams, if not out of league, was clearly demonstrated by the facts that the Ghanaian scored the first goal in less than ten minutes after the game started, and that the only goal the US team scored was by a penalty kick in the second half, which was a huge swing of the game for the US team at the moment yet it was quickly caught up by its rivalry when Ghana scored another goal in the extra time and finally sealed the fate.
As the camera panned through the stadium and stopped from time to time in the area where the dignitaries were seated, Bill Clinton was seen in the audiences reacting accordingly to the ebb and flow in the field, just like a regular fellow who loves soccer so much. Although he can't be too emotional in case it would cost his statesmanship，he looked more heavy-laden toward the end of the second half when there was little hope left for the USA team to catch up and take the lead. Clinton must be a big soccer aficionado as he was reportedly seen in the locker room extending his ardor and support for the American team when they won against Algeria.
Oh, the vuvuzela! It would be impossible to watch the World Cup games this year without noticing that ear-splitting humming sound in the stadium. Wonder what it would feel like sitting inside the stadium and how those players could concentrate on the game when they’re drowned in the ocean of that intensive monotone sound. Even on TV, the noise feels like there are millions of bees buzzing around an inch away from your eardrums, so uproarious it almost causes visceral discomfort, literally an auditory havoc. Small wonder the French now offer vuvuzela-free broadcasts for the World Cup by introducing a frequency-separating technology that can block out the vuvuzela drone while allowing other sound come through. Good move, French!
That was just a week ago Roger Cohen talked about vuvuzela in his article entitled “Freedom’s Blaring Horn”, saying vuvuzela in this particular case carries powerful symbolism, a celebration for the freedom from slavery. I don't disagree in general but wonder if he would still consider it the same way when he sits for a few days in the stadium where thousands and thousand of vuvuzelas are making a deafening political proclamation, crescendo after crescendo, while everything else is drowned out.
