"Will Play Footsie For Food"
WARNING!! Harsh Language Alert (It's been a while, hasn't it?)
File this one in the "You Gotta Be Shittin' Me" drawer. Here's some of the article from The Washington Times; (Emphasis and comments mine)
U.S. team spots open
Shortly after noon on a broiling Friday, Lawrence Cann stood in the middle of a new soccer pitch inside a new tennis stadium located in the middle of downtown and boomed into a microphone, "Welcome to the 2008 Homeless USA Cup!" (Between the concession stand, the ticket sellers, whoever's responsible for cleaning up the human feces and crack vials on the sidelines... no one could find a job?)
Sometimes, it's good just to have a place to go and feel welcomed, especially when a friendly destination is not always a given in life. (No shit, ain't life a bitch? Does that mean I can bug the crap outta everyone instead of working for a living?)
It's a given here, where about 95 players and coaches are fed, clothed and housed, and playing a lot of street soccer. The trials will produce the eight-man U.S. team, plus alternates, that will play in the Homeless World Cup in Melbourne, Australia, in December. (And all the money that could go to creating meaningful and dignified work.)
Ray Isaac from Charlotte, N.C., prepares to compete in the Homeless USA Cup. At the end of the weekend tournament, an all-star team will be named to represent the United States in the Homeless World Cup competition.
"We weren't there just to try to win," said Ray Isaac, a veteran of that team. "We came to serve the cause. The reason we got that trophy, we inspirated. Not just our team, but everybody." (And Ray also stated "I inspirated like a Mo' Fo'! The sweatification was unmabelievable! IT'S HOT OUT HERE!!)
Winning the tournament is an obvious goal. So is a trip to Melbourne. The players will be picked according to how well they play, their personality and how they interact. But most seem happy simply to play soccer, serve the cause and, yes, "inspirate." (And an all expense paid trip to Australia. I re-iterate; you gotta be shittin' me.)
I have worked in social relief/services as a volunteer. I figured that about half the folks we helped needed it. The other half were just parasites.
ReplyDeleteI also noticed something-of those who needed it, about half would work their way up and out of the problems they were in, the other half were usually just plain nuts, in various ways.
The problem was--it's very difficult to tell theose who are legitamatley in need, from those who are just parasites. Especially without getting sued.
Good old DC knows how to waste the tax dollars of hard working people.
ReplyDeleteSomehow the thought of sending a team of the "homeless" abroad does not seem to honor our nation. What idiot thought of this project?
An idiotic concept deserves idiotic questions, so here we go:
Anyway, where do they sleep during the season? On the streets? In a sheltar? It seems if they have a permanent place to stay they are no longer homeless and then logically would have to be kicked off the team.
Will the "homeless" players sleep on the streets or in a sheltar in Melbourne?
How are they going to get passports?
Will the plane tickets be one way?
I agree with IR....but on that note, they should be working and i at the same time find something demeaning about "Homeless cup" but that's just me.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it's just a one way ticket and they'll leave these homeless soccer players in Australia??
ReplyDeleteno tax dollars went to this project. private individuals and corporations fund it. doesn't even measure up to 1/10 of 1 percent of public funds spent on homeless and still the problem is getting larger, costing more money. what is more, street soccer has success in returning players to the work force. maybe a more reasonable response to the homeless cup would be to demand more tax payer dollars go to programs like this that produce results and or focused on moving people forward
ReplyDeleteYeah, throw more tax money at it... that's the ticket.
ReplyDeleteBut I coundn't help but notice that you had no comment on the hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on this farce, and that money could have been used to actually initiate dignified and meaningful work.
But as long as everyone has fun chasing around a soccer ball, that's the important thing.