HUP HUP: In recognition of
today's World Cup semifinal match, please say something nice about the Netherlands -- including but not limited to their customs as to who pays on a date, or their egg yolk plus butter plus lemon juice sauces -- or anything, anything you know about Uruguay.
At least according to Anthony Bourdain, Uruguayians eat more meat per capita than anywhere else on the planet (if you recall that one episode where he was confronted with a sports-court sized grill full of meat -- that was Uruguay).
ReplyDeleteI love the Dutch for their toasted cheese sandwiches.
ReplyDeleteThe Netherlands is home to my favorite soccer club team (Ajax), my favorite former soccer player (Bergkamp), my favorite localized airport treat (Stroopwaffeln), one of my favorite idiosyncratic and insane local customs (buying cheap bikes from heroin addicts who will likely steal them back from you in a couple of weeks), my favorite dim sum restaurant, one of my favorite places to see a concert (Melkweg), and, thinking back, close to my favorite 6-month period of a so far pretty excellent life (my junior semester abroad in Amsterdam).
ReplyDeleteEven though this is, to my mind, the least likeable Dutch team in memory, I would badly like them to win the World Cup. I watched them lose a heartbreaking semifinal to Brazil in 1998 from a bar in the Leisdeplein, and would very much like the idea of celebrations there now rather than tears.
Sometimes I like to brag
ReplyDeleteSometimes I'm soft spoken
When I'm in Holland
I eat the pannekoeken.
--Beastie Boys, "Super Disco Breakin"
That was me.
ReplyDeleteOne link between these two teams is that one of the best players on Uruguay (Suarez) plays club football for Ajax in Amsterdam (he led the Dutch League in goals this past season), but will be out of today's match due to a red card suspension for one of the more divisive plays in World Cup history. He handled the ball on his team's goalline stopping a certain Ghana goal in literally the last moments of the quarterfinal. It was certainly a cynical professional foul (i.e., he knowingly broke the rules of the game because the upside to breaking the rules outweighed the downside), but without that play Uruguay would have lost in regular time. His teammates carried him off the field after they won (which display has earned this Uruguay team a lot of enmity worldwide).
--The Aalsmeer Flower Auction--it's a half-day trip from Amsterdam but well worth it.
ReplyDelete--Rijsttafel
--Heineken
--"Coffeeshops"
The song "Amsterdam" in 'Passing Strange'
ReplyDeletedoes that even count?
Why I love the Netherlands:
ReplyDeleteThe beer.
The bikes.
The museums. (Maruithuis, anyone?)
The architecture.
The boats.
The cheese.
And een their corny music. (Search out my name-sake: Sophietje for a taste of how corny it can be.)
Only country I like more than the Netherlands is Belgium!
I happened to be in Amsterdam the day after they won the 1988 European cup (beating the Soviets). That the police were still out in the street when I arrived at 10 a.m., submachine gun in one hand, beer in the other, was charming.
ReplyDeleteThe song "Amsterdam" in Jaques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris.
ReplyDeleteI like the color orange and their queen seems pretty kick ass. I loved this portrait of her so much, I bought a miniature replica to bring back and hang on my wall: http://www.holland-pal.org/pics/QUEEN_BEATRIX_1995_Carla%20Rodenburg.jpg
ReplyDeleteI had a Spanish teach in high school from Uruguay. She seemed legitimately surprised when I'd know something. Plus they cheated Ghana out of this spot. Go Dutch.
ReplyDeleteYes, we were going to be rooting for Netherlands in this match anyway, but much more so given what Suarez did. I didn't know his teammates carried him off the field - GRRRRRR.
ReplyDeleteI was reading something about what kind of rule change could help prevent this in future - my husband proposed that a handball on a certain goal leads to a penalty kick <span>without</span> a goalie. That sounds fair to me.
It's harder to think of things not to like about the Netherlands than it is to think about things to like. The people are smart, mostly quadrilingual, and friendly. You can get good waffles and great rijstaffel. The cities are beautiful, the countryside is beautiful, the people are tall and beautiful, the beer is tasty. Orange is a nice color.
ReplyDeleteThe Netherlands was generally my preferred starting country for "Sid Meier's Colonization"--the free Merchantman at the start was a big help.
ReplyDeleteThat is a fabulous portrait!
ReplyDeleteI can see that, or just automatically awarding the goal (though that would bother purists).
ReplyDeleteI am, though, a little worried that what happened with Suarez is one of those "bad facts make bad law" situations. The penalty for an intentional handball in a goal-scoring situation is a penalty kick + red card, which some people feel is actually too harsh if the handball takes place early in the game (b/c pens are scored at a very high rate and the extra-man advantage is huge). Here, it took place at the last possible moment, so the red card portion of the penalty was irrelevant to the outcome. Given that (a) it's difficult to tell whether a handball is intentional in most cases, and (b) soccer refs aren't often feted for how well they make tough, subjective decisions, making the penalty harsher may end up causing more problems than it solves.
I see Joe Posnanski just wrote a long article about exactly this: http://joeposnanski.com/JoeBlog/2010/07/06/the-return-of-the-hand/
ReplyDeleteReally, the tulips are enough for me to have warm fuzzies for the Netherlands.
ReplyDeleteCome on, we can't really be 20 comments in before someone mentions one of the most infamous things about Uruguay. (At least, I don't think that's what TPE was getting at in the first comment above.)
ReplyDeleteGreat article, CH, thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteIs it a plus or a minus for Uruaguay that the water goes the other way down the drain?
ReplyDeleteThere's a song called "Amsterdam" by Guster.
ReplyDeleteAnd, since we're talking about Holland:
Austin Powers' Dad: "There are only two types of people I hate in this world: Those who are intolerant of other people's cultures.... and the Dutch."
I always thought that was the Paraguayan rugby team. Who knew? And no, that was not the thing to which I was referring. And, honestly, the idea that cannibalism in a survival situation is so awful doesn't ring true to me. Of course, when in Lake Tahoe, we like to make reservations under "Donner" -- so we get to hear them say "Donner, Party of Four"
ReplyDeleteAnd when you leave, it's party of three?
ReplyDeleteI also thought it was Paraguay.
Suarez is out for today's match, having received a red card for his troubles, but will play in the finals if Uruguay makes it.
ReplyDeleteI support this -- it's a "professional foul." Ghana converts the PK, which they should do, they're playing this afternoon. Suarez simply gave his keeper a chance to use his hands, and took the amount of personal punishment the rules of the sport provide.
But they ate Vincent Spano first, right?
ReplyDeleteLove that song!
ReplyDeleteThe Uruguayan embassy in DC is in a storefront down the street from my office, nowhere near the other embassies. There's a Baja Fresh two doors down. The embassy has a hideous wooden sculpture outside.
ReplyDeleteI was a bit intimidated because the people were giants. But that's not a dislike.
ReplyDeleteSome of the cyclists can get a bit shirty towards pedestrians.
I absolutely agree. Everyone's talking like Suarez debased the game through his actions. I've seen a lot of things (i.e. diving) that in my opinion are a lot worse. Besides, what's the likelihood it results in a missed PK? 1% .5%? Given the outcome, it was a brilliant move. If I'm Uruguay, I take him missing the next match for that result.
ReplyDeleteIf you're ever in Utrecht, I highly recommend Nationaal Museum van Speelklok tot Pierement (the National Museum from Musical Clock to Street Organ). Advertised as "The Most CHEERFUL museum in the Netherlands" it is filled with mechanical musical wonders and is delightful.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.museumspeelklok.nl/?Language=en
Diving doesn't stop a certain goal.
ReplyDeleteThe Tour de France started in the Netherlands two days ago. As you can imagine, the Dutch were out of their mind with all of the sports going on. Or maybe it was the brownies.
ReplyDeleteAnd if you're not watching the Tour, you're missing some pretty amazing crashes.
I'm not sure how exactly diving is worse than preventing a clear goal, unless the idea is that trying to trick the refs into ruling incorrectly is the worst sort of gamesmanship, different from taking a professional foul and acknowledging fault and accepting punishment (ala Ballack at the end of the 2002 semifinal). If that's the argument, I can sort of get behind that view, but it wouldn't apply here because Suarez did the classic "look, Ma, no hands/I didn't do anything" move after the handball.
ReplyDeleteIsn't what Suarez did the same as a CB pulling down a WR in the end zone? I've seen guys get burned, and shove the receiver down to take their chances on a first and goal rather then give up a TD. Of course, I don't recall that strategy ever paying off, or the guy being carried off the field if it did, but I have seen it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jeff and Benner and disagree with Carmichael who called it a "cynical professional foul." No, just a professional foul, just like pulling down a breakaway player or in football taking a pass interference call to save a touchdown. It's literally the last seconds of the game, you stop the ball from crossing the line anyway you can and accept the penalty. Most likely you've delayed the inevitable...unless the other team effs up the penalty kick. Which Ghana did.
ReplyDeleteIn baseball, if a fan (or someone else) interferes with the baseball, there is an attempt to decide if the ball would have been a homer but for the interference. It's bizarre to me that the penalty is, in many ways, less harsh for a soccer team whose player deliberately interfered with the ball and prevented a goal. [Just my don't-really-know-that-much-about-soccer perspective. Feel free to ignore.]
ReplyDeleteOn the Suarez handball, considering the ref isn't required to explain his call, he could have easily said "looks good to me, count it."
ReplyDeleteThe strategy for beating the Netherlands is extremely well known: pass the Dutch on the left-hand side.
ReplyDeleteAlso, are we going to ban the flagrant near end of game fouling in the NBA because of this? It may not be a lovely and cute and charming part of the game, but the rules do allow it and even in soccer I am pretty sure that you are actually supposed to try to win.
ReplyDeleteMy mother is Dutch (she even lives there now), so I have plenty of good things to say!
ReplyDelete- They have poffertjes, these brilliant little pancakey puffs that, when topped with butter, powdered sugar, and grand marnier, make any day better.
- Their dive bars have Belgian trappist ales on DRAUGHT. I spent a few nights indulging in Westmalle Dubbel at the watering hole near my mom's house. So good.
- Their junk food is, bar none, the best I've ever had. Have you ever had a Ramenblok? TRUST. Also, the kaasouflee, a sort of giant ravioli filled with cheddar cheese and deep-fried. SO GOOD!
- If you don't go for pot and hookers, you can avoid them really easily. They don't make you walk around in wooden shoes when you're visiting, either.
- Their sense of irony is AWESOME. Every single conversation I have had in the Netherlands has dripped with the stuff. I think one of the roadblocks to learning Dutch is probably getting the hang of when people are employing sarcasm, because they do it an awful lot over there. I've always done it, because my mother does it, probably because it's a very Dutch thing.
- Have we talked about the canals yet? Because the canals are gorgeous! Boat tours manage to be minimally touristy, while treating you to some really great sights.
- Amstel. Heineken. Grolsch. If that doesn't sell you on the Netherlands, I just don't know what to do for you.
Damn Sid Meier; Civilization IV is available through Steam and I spent far too much time playing it yesterday. "One more turn...one more turn."
ReplyDeleteJeez, what's all this about Suarez? It's not like he was
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/v/jxw1-Id91lQ" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="170" height="140
.
A big difference with intentional fouls in basketball, though, is that the foul often occurs at a time when the foulee is not trying to take a shot, and also where there is less certainty that a shot that is being taken will go in. At that point, the penalty shot that the foulee gets to take might actually increase the chances of the foulee's team scoring. So, I would argue that the penalty for intentional fouls in basketball is actually pretty reasonable---it certainly seems more reasonable to me than what you see with this handball rule, at least where the ball (but for the cheating) would have entered the net and been counted as a goal.
ReplyDeleteA big difference with intentional fouls in basketball, though, is that the foul often occurs at a time when the foulee is not trying to take a shot, and also where there is less certainty that a shot that is being taken will go in. At that point, the penalty shot that the foulee gets to take might actually increase the chances of the foulee's team scoring. So, I would argue that the penalty for intentional fouls in basketball is actually pretty reasonable---it certainly seems more reasonable to me than what you see with this handball rule, at least where the ball (but for the cheating) would have entered the net and been counted as a goal.
ReplyDeletebill, I think it was a cynical foul because the justification requires a balancing of the plusses and minuses of violating the rules of the game and ignores the the spirit of the rules themselves. In fact, such a foul is basically a statement that there is no "spirit" of the rules, just a set of defined boundaries and related punishments. Treating the rules of a sport as existing without an animating spirit (hell, bill, I ain't afraid to use the word. . .I'm talking about ethics), is, to my mind, almost definitionally cynical. Now, I'm a corporate lawyer, and so not exactly a stranger to the cynical approach to rules.
ReplyDeleteI don't judge Suarez that badly for the foul, although the effusiveness of his celebration afterwards was a little tacky (then again, it might be nice if tax lawyers got carried off on shoulders have finding a new hole in the code).
I would say it also often occurs when someone is taking a shot (getting straight up slapped out of someone's hand as they draw up to shoot). It is simply less clear while the ball is in a players hand whether or not the shot would go in without interruption.
ReplyDeleteI would also argue that it is more accepted in basketball because it is a much more regular occurence. Intentional handball are much less likely to occur (in part due to the auto redcard putting your team shorthanded for the rest of the game) which would suggest that the punishment does fit the crime if it mostly deters its happening. A situation like this one with it being last moments, leaving your team shorthanded for negligible time, and stopping a game changing score would be one of the few situations where the handball reward would be worth the penalty.
Although, I play most games in a fashion that will gladly use any weird loophole that allows a situation where the penalty makes the reward worth it.
It probably happens less often in soccer because there are fewer opportunities for it. The number of real shots on goal in soccer is pretty slim, and then you need to have a non-goalie in position for a handball. The number probably goes down from there, because of those limited number of handball opportunities, how many seem beneficial, ie, the goalie is not in position to do anything about, you could not just as easily stop the ball legally, etc.
ReplyDeleteSo, the question isn't what is the pure number of detected handballs, but what percentage of those handball opportunities result in a handball?
At that point, the penalty shot that the foulee gets to take might actually increase the chances of the foulee's team scoring.
ReplyDeleteUnless I'm mis-understanding you, it is generally accepted that a penalty kick in soccer is going to go in. Therefore in soccer, as it is in basketball, it is a calculated risk.
There was a good chance he was simply delaying the inevitable, but in this case it paid off.
I thought "Uruguayan keeps you full for 70 days" was almost too tasteless to post.
ReplyDeleteIn comments on that article that CH linked above, it indicated a 22% failure rate for penalty kicks. [Granted, not sure what the commenter's cite was.] So, you go from 100% chance of a goal to 78%---if that stat is right. Not sure if the stat is right, or if it takes into account end of the game pressure. It makes sense to me that a handball like this one decreases the chances of the fouled team scoring.
ReplyDeleteMany intentional fouls at the end of basketball games occur before the foulee is even within range for anything other than a straight-up Hail Mary.
Some stats: http://www.soccer-training-info.com/penalty_kicks.asp
ReplyDelete<span>U.S. Postal Service cycling team sold extra bikes for doping funds? http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703964104575334812419976690.html</span>
ReplyDeleteVincent van Gogh - prints do NOT do his work justice. SO glad I got to see some originals (although I think I had to go to Paris to see them)
ReplyDeleteOlliebollen
Ginever (sp?)
Stroopwaffels, which I try not to buy too often
spiced Gouda
the fact that when I went there, it was the most "at home" I'd ever felt outside of Canada
the fact that it's so CLEAN
windmills
the canals
the Sex Museum in Amsterdam ;)
But I'd have to say my favourite imports from Nederland are my father in law, my mother in law and my dad
Oh, and HUP HOLLAND!!
ReplyDeleteVan Gogh and Vermeer! Can't believe I forgot Vermeer.
ReplyDeleteYes, we all believe Floyd Landis.
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping that if I send my son to soccer camp, he will be able to be one of these stars making millions. Then he won't put me in a home when I grow old. Or have to go to Uruguay. I can dream, right? http://www.gftskills.com
ReplyDelete