I have always thought that the student of global strategy must also be a soccer fan.
Thus, I found it telling that the current US Secretary of State does not follow soccer. From the NY Times:
Soccer is one of the few sports Rice does not follow. Football is her favorite. A Cleveland Browns fan, she can rattle off NFL statistics and details of football games long past.
and
”I learned a long time ago not to hold strong opinions or predictions about something about which I have so little expertise, as soccer, or European football,” Rice said.
For me this explains the rash of US blunders in the world today. Simply put, our Secretary of State MUST be a soccer expert or else they have no business being in the job.
Why do I say this? Because of Henry Kissinger.
From Roger Cohen’s blog we learn:
“Football requires a total commitment to prevail consistently,” Kissinger said. “It’s a continuous battle.” A little like life, not to mention the pursuit of lasting geo-strategic advantage.
How far we have fallen.