Monday, December 12, 2022

The propensity for human happiness because of others' misery

For many years I have become more and more disillusioned by the World Cup. Not just the greed and lack of quality football (the fear of losing being superior to the desire for winning), but most of all the nationalism and hate that comes out during a sport which is about 11 guys who share your passport kicking a ball around.

Football says nothing, absolutely nothing, about any country, and if anyone thinks that, they are (sorry to say so) fucking idiotic morons.

In the end the World Cup sadly serves to confirm stereotypes and justifies saying xenophobic things about other people and countries. It is ok to hate someone for the shirt they wear for a match, while the same fucking morons will talk about world peace, love, and other hypocritical bullshit. 

It is probably a human condition; We are not wired to be happy about other people's joy. Quite on the contrary: most football fans will be happier seeing another team lose than they will by seeing their own team win! That is why Ronaldo's or Neymar's tears at elimination were much more widely transmitted than the actual celebrations of Morocco and Croatia respectively. 

Tribalism is what defines us. Hate is what moves us. And the football World Cup is built up around tribalism and hate to make money and make us forget the real problems of the world.

Opium for the people.

It is sad and one can only grow more and more disillusioned, not just by the World Cup, but the world in general...

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