Football - change the way things turns

The World Equals Balloon is a Penniless People Of Bulgaria piece from 1994, the year when FIFA World Cup took place in the United States and Brazil won its fourth gold medal after a penalty shootout against Italy in the final. The world also equals football and now some twenty years later Italy was beaten and bitten by Uruguay and Luis Suarez. So there's a minor word war arousing. Football is fun, football is gay, football is one, football is play. But also deep feelings, hard feelings, bollocks and politics.

Football can be big drama, War and Peace. And yes, once again, philosophy and politics. Paul Breitner who scored in the FIFA World Cup final 1974 (Germany versus the Netherlands) was known for his radical thoughts and having Mao's little red book as a mascot and doping device. Johan Cruijff, Willem van Hanegem and Jan van Beveren from the 1974 Dutch line up didn't go almost all the way in FIFA World Cup 1978 in Argentina, because of the political situation. They chose to refuse. Perhaps neither Argentina nor the Junta cried for the trio. And the Dutch flew home with a silver medal for the second time in a row, this time loosing the trophy to Argentina (1-3).

FIFA World Cup in Brazil has so far been a lot of goals, some surprises, a few bad referees and as mentioned, a big bite in the shoulder. But also political tensions. Far from every one in Brazil sees this tournament as just samba carnival, new year and first of may balloons. There are economical difficulties, big ones. There is a penniless people of Brazil.

Ordem e progresso, order and progress. In 2001 Penniless tuned the Brazil flag with some other words, on the Imbecile single cover. The Penniless album from last year, Rows of Houses, is not about favelas, but yes, the piece Imbecile included on the album Anola has perhaps something to say about Brazil and the FIFA World Cup too. Just do it, use your imagination, put your ball in motion.

i'll wait for you
with fireworks
i'll wait
i'll take everything
that you earned
i'll take

i'm an imbecile
i'm an imbecile for you
i'm in brazil for you

i own alone
the universe
i own
i'll change the way
you look at the world
i'll change the way it turns

i'll change

i hate the world
as much as i can
i'll use grenades and bombs and guns
and guns adjõ! adios!
i've got the whole world in my arms

*****

And here's the Imbecile video, directed by Hannu-Pekka Vitikainen. - But that's another story.

Totaal Voetbal - Oranje Revolutie

I still remember the FIFA World Cup in Mexico, for the first time broadcasted around the globe in colour. But we had no colour tv at that moment, so my memory is in black and white. Brazil won and names like Pelé, Carlos Alberto, Jairzinho and Rivelino are still running around on the green grass somewhere in my brains.

Four years later I saw the colours and they where orange, orange and once again orange. It was the summer of 1974 and the FIFA World Cup took place in West Germany. Brazil was beaten in the bronze game by Poland. Grzegorz Lato scored 7 goals in the tournament and went back home with the Golden Shoe. His country mate Władysław Żmuda won the Best Young Player Award.  

But the number 14 in the Flying Dutch crew left the building with the Golden Ball, as player of the tournament. When Johan Cruyff - Hendrik Johannes (Johan) Cruijff - entered the Niedersachsenstadion in Hannover on the 15:th of June forty years ago I finally realised what football can be, what kind of game it is as it's best. That evening Johnny Rep scored twice against Uruguay and Jan Jongbloed kept his goal clean and shiny.

Yes, the Netherlands were a complete team, an artistic, a creative and flexible clockwork orange - not just an impressive star with ten apostles or hang arounds. Cryuff, Rep, Jongbloed, Johan Neeskens, Rob Rensenbrink, Arie Haan, Ruud Krol, Wim Jansen, Wim Suurbier, Willem van Hanegem, Jan van Beveren - those where the names I would like to remember. And last but far from least Rinus Michels - Marinus (Rinus) Jacobus Hendricus Michels - as coach. Spider of the web. The man who invented the major tactic: total football. In 1999 FIFA rewarded him as "coach of the century".

I know what I did that summer. I truly lost my football heart to "Oranje". The above mentioned Poland also played beautifully in the 1974 World Cup. Yugoslavia rings a bell or two, as well as Sweden with Ralf Edström. Yugoslavia crushed Zaire with 9-0 and Sweden succeeded with a draw 0-0 against the Dutch. In the second round West Germany won over Yugoslavia with 2-0 and Poland with 2-1. Sweden-Yugoslavia resulted in 2-1 and in the matches against West Germany and Poland the swedes were defeated with 2-4 and 0-1. The italian goal keeper Dino Zoff is a name I have not forgotten either.

On the 6:th of July the ruling world champion Brazil could not score a single goal. Lato, the man with the Golden Shoe, could score and so Poland became a World Cup medal winner. Next day did not end totally as well as I had hoped and wished. Though the final started as a dream come through: Neeskens put a penalty kick behind the back of West Germanys goal keeper Sepp Maier after only two minutes. But Paul Breitner aswered with a penalty goal some twenty minutes later. Gerhard "Gerd" Müller, the nation's Bomber, finally turned the direction with a goal two minutes before half time. West Germany had won it's second World Cup with 2-1.

But forty years is a pretty long time. If you return to a book or film you liked and loved in the seventies, you might be slightly or jolly disappointed. It can be the same with football teams and games. Check out for yourself, Youtube is an expanding time machine. Here are glimpses from Netherlands - Brazil on the 3:rd of July, with Neeskens and Cryuff scoring one goal each.

Anyway, Oranje, thank you! The victory with 5-1 against Spain yesterday was a new memory to enjoy!

Katoava Katainen Jyrkänteellä Jyrkimmällä

Jyrki Katainen kiittää ja kumartaa. Jari Sarasvuo sanoo suoraan - Katainen epäonnistui pääministerinä (Helsingin Sanomat 14.6.) - mutta toivoo siitä huolimatta, "että historia ei tuomitsisi Kataista liikaa, sillä ulkoiset, Suomen pääministeristä riippumattomat syyt ovat pitkälti ongelmien taustalla".

Toisaalta voidaan todeta, että valtiovarainminististeri Kataisella - kuten myös pääministeri Matti Vanhasella - oli suuria vaikeuksia laskea 1 + 1 nippa nappa kuusi vuotta sitten. Kesäkuun alussa lähetin HS:n Mielipidesivuille pienen muistutuksen tästä. Sitä ei julkaistu, joten tässä:

On erehdyksiä ja erehdyksiä

Nyt kannattaa pitää jalat tukevasti maassa. Ei ole mitään syytä luopua suhteellisuusteoriasta. Kataisen inhimillinen erehdys ilmatilanloukkaus-jupakassa on vain inhimillinen erehdys.

Mutta se että Matti Vanhanen ja Jyrki Katainen syksyllä vuonna 2008 totesivat yhteen ääneen, että globaali lama ei iske meihin kovin voimakkasti koska Suomen talous on tukevalla pohjalla, on huomattavasti vakavampi rajanylitys. Siinä pääministeri ja valtiovarainministeri olivat täysin siivellä muissa maailmoissa, vaikka hornankattilassa poreili ja poksahteli. Osoitti että oli jätetty paljon muuta lukematta, kuin jokunen tekstiviesti.

Tarkkailuyhteiskunnan muotivaatteet

Vaatteet on meidän aatteet - ja kun elää tarkkailuyhteiskunnassa, missä isoveljet sikiävät kuin bitit netissä, niin on etiketin mukaista pukeutua asiallisesti. Lähikauppani Prisma tarjoaa tähän hätään muodikkaat sesonkivaatteet - mulkoilupuserot.