FIFA Rules

I have no more pictures of horses to beat to death, let's just call this continued updates on an evolving story, I guess. So I recently advocated an independent, or possibly UN-aided investigation of the human rights abuses perpetrated against Chile's U-20 soccer team in Toronto last month, in the wake of a Toronto PD investigation concluding that the police acted justly.

FIFA now seems to agree with that conclusion as well. They whacked the Nigerian coach for accusations of racism in a separate incident, and a Chilean team member for fucking attacking a cop. That kid, Jaime Grondona, is getting fined US$5,750 and suspended from soccer for 7 months. The Chilean soccer association was fined US$12,300.

I have no idea what kinda structured settlement plan might be in place for paying off these fines, or if they can be appealed or whatever, but to give some scale six g's is at least half a year's salary for a middle class Chilean, a university professor. The team's homecoming after the Canada debacle/bronze-medal was accompanied by thousands of cheering fans, an audience with the President of the Republic at La Moneda and then the TV crews followed select players to...their homes. The one I saw was damn rustic, from the sheer looks of it we're talking "lower-middle class" (similar economic level to what a humane society would call, er, "poor").

On the other hand I've no doubt in my mind that 12k is a drop in the bucket for the soccer association, and who knows, they might help the kid out. Regardless of the money, it's also a question of responsibility. The kids were violent, and sub-20 doesn't necessarily mean "minor". Grondona is 20 years old, according to wikipedia, whose standard is verifiability, not truth (are my lies then verifiable by citing wikipedia?). Anyway, I guess 20 is old enough to be "responsible", technically. But why just him? He certainly wasn't acting alone. And anyway, 20 or not, they're young. And the person guiding them, coach Nichols, should have kept a better handle on them. Okay, okay. If they're gonna brawl, they're gonna brawl. But his pathetic denials and near boastfulness in no way indicates that he is someone who is imparting the values of wisdom and fair play to the youngsters in his charge.

Does he really care about them, as human beings? Doesn't he know that defending them blindly will only serve to corrupt their young egos, and make them monsters later on in life? Do farmers weigh these questions when raising livestock?

So in a certain sense the soccer federation damn well better pick up the tab for that kid's fine. Or Nichols should. Or split it with him. Wikipedia would kill me because what I'm about to say seems truer than it is verifiable (i just can't find the article where I read it), but to my memory, Nichols was quoted as saying that his team seemed "calm" in the locker room, before the fight broke out. Perhaps I dreamed that up, but supposing it's true, even then it doesn't prove anything, but it makes me suspect that with Nichols we've got a major case of CYA (cover your ass) along with all the passive-aggressive disingenuousness he's demonstrated. If they were calm, then what had Nichols to do with it?

So it's entirely the kids fault. Then I hope their families would pitch in and help Grondona out with the 6 grand. That's a lot of money. Maybe put it on ice until the UN weighs in. Has anyone called them yet?