Readers should know already that the WPS suspended the league for this upcoming season. (Some
reports on the decision: Sports Illustrated/Associated Press; All White Kit; The Guardian.)
To say that the league has struggled would be an understatement. It's been plagued by the usual
headaches of a nascent sports league - mismanagement, outsized ambition, financial troubles,
finicky owners, fickle fans, crap media.
An Open Letter to UC Riverside Chancellor Timothy White On Thursday, January 19 I spent a good part
of the afternoon as a member of thecrowd protesting outside the UC Regents meeting. I stood with
students I'dtaught, students I knew from their work with campus organizations, and studentsI've
seen at other demonstrations.
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Slava Mogutin, from "Brosephines" for
Vice (October 2011)
I might as well just say it: I've been busy with work. I've been avoiding watching soccer matches
on TV and following sports media - because these things provoke me. Plus - and this the biggie -
I'm injured and alienated from the local scene which is my muse.
Depressingly, few of us who work at the University of California were surprised by the fact
thatdemonstrating students would be treated with such violence. A squad ofcolleagues affirmed that
it was business as usual when they stood passive whileOfficer Pike calmly went about his task. UC
Davis's Chancellor and its PoliceChief both reacted as if this were an unpleasant routine, until it
became anews item.
I'm in denial. Hope Solo was voted off Dancing with the Stars. She and Maksim were ROBBED by
the judges. The Argentine Tango is a perfect framework for the two strong and combative
personalities. Their performance was interesting, ambitious and fun to watch. Nevertheless, Solo
and Maksim were given quite low scores.
The other week, my university's Chancellor sent out a message encouraging people to respect each
other's differences - be they cultural,political, religious, academic, etc. It's the kind of thing
administrators generate to look likethey are doing the right thing. It's also the kind of thing
that makes 'doing theright thing' look easy.
College campuses are obliged to have policies regarding sexual harassment/sex discrimination. These
very broad overlapping categories include sexual assault and the systemic cover-up of abusive
behavior within a department. These kinds of a matters are handled by Penn State's Affirmative
Action Office.
As we read one editorial after another expressing outrage at Penn State's failure to respond to
complaints regarding Sandusky, and try to wrap our minds around the consequences of this "scandal,"
we should step back and remember that U.S. universities have a long history of failing victims of
sexual assault.
Hope Solo survived her fifth week on
Dancing with the Stars. I'm glad: she is a smart,
outspoken athlete and the challenge of that program requires that she confront the different ways
by which her image, as a woman, is regulated. I, for one, am glad she's willing to do so
publicly.
As I've mentioned in previous posts, some USWNT fans hate the way
DWTS treats Solo: Judges
complained for weeks about how unfeminine her movements are, and every week they cite her physical
strength as a weakness.
Riyas Komu, from exhibit "Safe to Fight" (Azad Art Gallery, Tehran, 2010)Fear of ACL injury has
replaced fear of intimacy as my number one issue. Plenty of people come back from an ACL tear and
still play in leagues and pick-up games. But plenty also leave the sport forever.
If I turn a cold eye on my fear, I see that I am less afraid of never playing soccer than I am of
the rehabilitation that it would take to go from a torn ACL to playing again.
I would love to know how often
DWTS women are allowed to wear flats.
Solo was much lighter on her feet. In fact, she seemed to enjoy the performance - she was playful.
The team is moving up the ranks even as the competition gets tougher.
Note that rehearsal footage shows Solo in heels.
Yrsa Roca Fannberg,
The Death of a Former Giant (watercolor on paper, 2009)
For most of my life, I've had very specific flying dreams. Mysleeping self unlocks gravity with a
perfect physical coordination. I'll berunning, or dancing, and then somehow both at once - suddenly
I feel weightless.
There is no getting around the subject of Hope Solo's song choice. This week the contestants were
supposed to dance to a song that meant something to them personally. She chose Enrique Iglesias's
"Tonight," which she described the "team's song."
Really? Because, if true, that is AWESOME.
