Mexico 3 Iran 1:
NUREMBERG, Germany, June 11--Symbolism rarely trumps soccer at the World Cup, but it came close today, as Iran played its first game of the tournament in this northern Bavarian city--a politically isolated country playing in a place that echoes darkly with history.
The score, a 3-1 defeat by a masterly Mexico, did little to relieve Iran's fraught role at this World Cup.
After a scrappy first half, the Iranians seemed to lose their composure, allowing Mexico to score back-to-back goals late in the second half. For the tens of thousands of sombrero-waving Mexico fans who outnumbered Iran's cheering section, it was an afternoon to yell Bravo--as in Omar Bravo, the forward who scored two of Mexico's three goals.
I have to admit that I took no small pleasure in watching the Red, White, and Green clean up on Iran today. Viva Mexico!
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reports on the struggles of a group on the fringes of American society:
Adam Chilenski has endured the put-downs for more than a decade. The 26-year-old health-care attendant in Columbus, Ohio, says friends still chide him about his favorite pastime. His dad thinks it's "a little peculiar." This week, Mr. Chilenski even made up a fake doctor's appointment so he could leave work early and join others who share his passion. "I told my boss I had to get my foot checked for an ingrown toenail," he says.
Mr. Chilenski is not a Trekkie, or a comic-book geek. He's an American soccer fan.
And he probably gets less respect than either of the aforementioned bizarre subcultures.
Obviously Mr. Chilenski made his research about the ingrown toenail. It is very painful and one cannot go through work with it especially when inflammation sets in. A good podiatrist in NYC would most probably advise a minor surgery for an infected one.
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