Play yields to politics
As The Nation reported, the war in Gaza spilled onto the basketball courts as Turkey and Israel were preparing to play a game. It’s sad when sports, one of the great human endeavors, capable of crossing all boundaries and uniting people in the shared enjoyment of excellence, challenge, and play, finds itself subsumed by politics, and worse still, when the young players are accused of collusion with the actions of their nations military. These Israeli players came in a spirit of goodwill and a sincere desire to participate in the sports community. They are not responsible for the murder of Palestinians, and can certainly not stop the Israeli war machine. If we blame the citizens for all the crimes of their governments, then no people is safe from blame, then we are all killers. Atheletic competition can be a form of peacebuilding dialogue and it is a shame that the rage at Israel is so great, that it can destroy these few fleeting steps toward peace.
It’s also sad how foolish some people are to turn this war in Gaza into entertainment: Joe The Plumber as a Mid-East correspondent. That is just silly, in a place and at a time, that does not need that kind of silly condescension. Perhaps he’ll be a good journalist…I doubt it, but who knows?
