Pretty ridiculous thought
Kicking ass instead of taking away life

January 3, 2003
The Iranian

I just saw one of the best games in the history of sports. I'm sitting here with tears running down my face.

The Ohio State Buckeyes defeated the Miami Hurricanes in a game that could not have been more thrilling. Two college football teams battling it out.

I was looking forward to this game. I had not seen a complete TV show for I don't know how long. That's not true. I've seen several episodes of The Sopranos. And if it's around 4:30 and I'm paying attention, everything (work on iranian.com) stops and I sit and watch Judge Judy.

This was a special game. Both the Buckeyes and the Hurricanes had perfect records at the end of the season. But the Hurricanes were the sure favorites. They have won far many more championships and had not lost in their previous 34 matches. On the other hand, the Buckeyes had not won a championship in 34 years.

So naturally, I wanted the Buckeyes to kick ass.

(I'm usually on the side of the underdog. I get tired of teams that win ALL the time. I'm tired of Brazil winning the World Cup almost all the time. I was tired of the Chicago Bulls winning what seemed like every damn basketball championship. Or when the San Francisco 49rs won the Super Bowl again and again. I live across the bay from San Francisco, and I love it here. But I still don't like the 49rs the way they deserve, even though it's been several years since they've won a Super Bowl. I hate teams that are too strong. I want teams to come out of nowhere and surprise us all. I want to see dreams come true, despite the odds. No one is the best. Certainly not always and forever. Or else, what would be the point of trying to become the best? There's no fun in seeing the best proving their "superiority". The stronger they are, the more I want them humbled.)

The Buckeyes looked like they were a pretty good team. But throughout the game, it was obvious the Hurricanes were everything everybody knew or feared they were: As good a football team as you could get. A well-oiled killing machine. Smooth and ruthless.

The score was in favor of the Buckeyes for most of the match. They carried out several brilliant defensive plays that stopped the Hurricanes from getting well ahead. But still the Buckeyes looked vulnerable. In fact they weren't able to hold on to their lead in the last quarter. With only three seconds left, the Hurricanes kicked a field goal to tie, forcing the match into overtime, for the first time in the history of national college football championship matches.

Now both sides had a chance at having the ball. The Hurricanes scored first, then the Buckeyes tied. The match went into second overtime. This time, the Buckeyes had the ball first and they scored. The Hurricanes got the ball. They were only a few yards away from the goal line. But on the last play, they failed to cross the line. The Buckeyes won. THE BUCKEYES WON!!! WOOHOOOO...

I had my hands raised in the air: Yes! An Abadani sitting in front of his TV in Albany, California, cheering for the Ohio State Buckeyes.

***

Rooting for the underdog is romantic. Fine. But what do you think about this?

As I was watching the Buckeyes celebrate victory after a colossal battle, I thought why couldn't battles between nations and cultures be conducted in the same way? I mean arguing and wrestling and fighting over issues and principles without actually physically eliminating -- killing, bombing, nuking -- each other?

I know. It's a pretty ridiculous thought. I can't stop smiling at how terribly naive (mildly put) that is. But does that mean that the prevailing mentality is okay? Is death and destruction in the name of god, oil, land, national interest, power, or even liberty, desirable or acceptable? Maybe it's unavoidable or inevitable. I don't know.

But think about this: When was the last time you killed someone?

***

Maybe I should start eating meat again.