I went out to see Eddie Izzard last night in Los Angeles. It amused me to hear him preach his common sense atheist perspective while most of the audience roared but some obviously pious faces in the crowd grimaced.
I agree with Eddie on most political and religious issues, but there was one point in the show where I wished I could argue with him; he turned serious and pleaded with his adoring American audience to be interested in the World Cup and to love soccer, because if everyone in the world would love soccer, we’d have a chance at world peace. I think I was the only person laughing at that.
I had to laugh; I don’t think Eddie has ever noticed how the English behave at soccer games.
In terms of American football, I’m fortunate to live in Santa Barbara/Los Angeles, where there is no pro football team and the local university, UCSB, has no football team. Â I live in atheist football heaven!
America’s disinterest in soccer is an excellent measure of our healthy state of mind.
