The Cost of Strife

Where do you think all these appalling wars and quarrels

come from?  Do you think they just happen?  Think again.

They come about because you want your own way,

and fight for it deep inside yourselves.

James 4:1 [The Message]

Why do folks attend soccer games?  Wow, you say, that's kind of a dumb question!  You go to a soccer game because you love soccer; you want to watch a local team, or perhaps your favorite team play; you go to cheer on your favorite player(s).  I'm quite sure, however, that most people do not go to a soccer game to die.

On Wednesday, a soccer match in Egypt turned deadly when the home team of Al-Masry beat the Cairo team of Al-Ahly.  Tension had been building throughout the game with fans throwing bottles and rocks at the players.  When the game was over, however, they turned on each other.  Fans from both sides attacked each other with rocks, chairs, wooden sticks, glass bottles, knives, and swords.  Some fans died in falls from the bleachers, while other suffocated to death.  The death toll today stands at 79, while hundreds more are injured.  Authorities are unsure whether team rivalry or political strife fueled the fight.  Fans claimed that police opened some gates that allowed access between the two groups of fans, while not opening other gates that would have allowed people to flee the violence.  The government countered that there were organized groups in the crowds that purposely escalated the fighting. There is finger-pointing and he-said-she-said all the way around today.

In many of the areas of this world, the value of human life is slim to none.  That is such a difficult concept for me to wrap my head around, for I love life.  I wake every morning so grateful for another day in which to love my family and friends, practice and teach my art, and simply enjoy life and its beauty.  Seventy-nine people left home yesterday to relax and watch a soccer game; when the dust cleared, they were dead - never able to return to their homes and the families they loved.  The tragedy of that is a sobering thought on this Thursday morning.