Just don't expect this to be some type of miraculous 1980 U.S. hockey team moment, however. Mainly because while the hockey gold in Lake Placid for the U.S. was a proud achievement for a slightly downtrodden U.S., Americans were in no danger whatsoever of slipping into Civil War. Inflation was high. Car bombs weren't going off. The U.S. was a nation hosting the Olympics, after all, not being occupied.
Instead, look to Irish fighter Barry McGuigan for an apt comparison. In 1985, McGuigan won the Featherweight title, and his inspiring, gutty style of fighting brought Ireland together. For a brief moment, the "Troubles" were forgotten. But only for a brief moment. One boxer was enough to bring the Irish together for a celebration, but the problems were much deeper than one pugilist could punch aside.
So congratulations to the Iraqi soccer team, and here's hope that it could become a catalyst for something better, a small spark for change. But this week, when you assuredly will here U.S. President George W. Bush talk about it as a landmark achievement that shows that Iraqis can come together in peace to create great things, just remember the cold, hard facts - it was but a soccer game. And in Iraq, they need much more than success on the pitch to fix the nightmare that has been stirred up on their land.
--WKW
