Argentina Survives and Heads to World Cup Final Match

Argentina will head to the title match of the World Cup for the fifth time in team history after outlasting the Netherlands in a semifinal duel.

A penalty kick shootout was needed in order to break a scoreless deadlock between two teams that had been undefeated throughout the tournament.  Los Albicelstes converted all four of their spot kicks while goalkeeper Sergio "El Chiquito" Romero emerged as man of the match by blocking attempts by Ron Vlaar and Wesley Snejder.

Prior to the penalties both sides had few offensive chances during the 120 minutes of play amid rainy conditions in Sao Paulo. Lionel Messi was largely quiet throughout the semifinal aside from a free kick bullet straight into the arms of Oranje goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen.  The Argentine defense smothered what few opportunities the Netherlands could conjure up especially Javier Mascherano who ruined a pair of dangerous runs in the penalty area by Arjen Robben.      

The two-time champions generated very little on the attack but could’ve won the match in the second extra time period when Cillessen blocked Rodrigo Palacio’s close range header and a weak volley from Maxi Rodriguez. Unlike their quarterfinal match against the overachieving Costa Ricans, the Dutch faltered in the penalty shootout much to the delight of the scores of Argentine fans at the Arena Corinthians.   

Argentina will face Germany in the final match for the third time in World Cup history. (Los Albicelstes captured the crown in 1986 though Germany gained revenge four years later).

The Weekender – The Not-So-Beautiful Game

“The Weekender” is our new feature where every weekend we hope to highlight a short film, movie or documentary pertaining to the Americas. 
Four countries remain in the hunt to become champions at the World Cup currently being held in Brazil.  Among the four elite teams looking to win at soccer’s premier tournament is Argentina, which eliminated Belgium in their quarterfinal match on Saturday.  Next up for los albicelestes is a semifinal duel with the Netherlands, a rival who Argentina beat to win its first World Cup in June 1978.

That tournament thirty-six-years ago was hosted by Argentina in the middle of the Dirty War era where an estimated 30,000 people where killed or “disappeared” at the hands of a ruthless, authoritarian government.  Then-strongman Jorge Videla used the World Cup as propaganda to convince skeptical Argentines and critics around the world that all was fair and well in the South American country.  Yet amid the festivities of the tournament, individuals deemed as “subversive” by the state where kidnapped, tortured and killed.

One of the most infamous “torture centers” was the ESMA naval school located blocks away from the River Plate stadium where the final was played.  ESMA prisoners were forced by guards to celebrate during the match with them or run the risk of additional beatings and possibly being murdered. For Miriam Lewin and Graciela Daleo, their captors had a sadistic plan for them following Argentina’s 3-1 win in the final against the Dutch: 

The guards forced prisoners into a convoy of waiting cars. The gate slid up and they drove into the madness. Fans packed the avenue, waving blue-and-white flags, chanting, "Argen-tina! Argen-tina!" The guards demanded the prisoners look out the windows.

"Who remembers you?" one of them taunted.

Daleo asked permission to stand up through the car's sunroof. The cold wind hit her gaunt face and shivered her thin frame. The people looked right through her. Nobody knew she was disappeared, the single most important detail of her life, which meant that she didn't exist to them. The guards demanded that Daleo and Lewin celebrate. Miriam felt the stares. "If you weren't happy," she'd say decades later, "you were heading straight to the death flight."

She sat in the middle of the back seat, trying to look happy. The cars parked at a local restaurant, and the guards took the prisoners inside. Waiters pushed tables together. The torturers ordered beer and pizza and shared them with young women they'd raped with a cattle prod. Lewin looked around, feeling pale and skinny, like an alien, as the place exploded with joy and noise. People danced next to her, right in her face.

Today's Video: Burst "Oranje" (Updated)

The World Cup quarterfinals start today with the distinct possibility that four South American teams (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay) could meet one another in the semifinals. First thing's first, however, as five-time champs Brazil currently play against Holland while later today versatile Uruguay face the speedy Ghanians.

Kaka, Robinho, and co. will be looking to emulate the feat done by their contemporaries twelve years ago in France. Brazil would beat the Netherlands via penalties in an exciting semifinal that had ended 1-1 in regular time. Ronaldo's goal moments into the second half was cancelled out by Patrick Kluivert in the waning seconds of the contest. Both goalkeepers were exceptional yet it was Claudio Taffarel who would become man of the match after making two key saves in the penalty shootout that was won by Brazil:

Update: Today the Netherlands avenged their 1998 and 1994 World Cup eliminations at the hands of Brazil. A Felipe Melo own-goal and a header from close range by Wesley Sneijder were enough for the Dutch to win 2-1 and knock Brazil out of the tournament. (More details including video coming up later).

Online Sources - Christian Science Monitor, MSNBC, YouTube

Weekend World Watch: Troubles in Thailand

* Thailand: Thailand could soon enter a civil war as violence between the army and anti-government protesters has sharply escalated since Thursday’s murder of “renegade army general Seh Daeng.”

* U.S.: For the 31st-consecutive year there will be no horse racing Triple Crown champion after Lookin At Lucky won the Preakness Stakes.

* Netherlands: The lone survivor of a deadly airline crash in Libya- young Ruben van Assouw- returned to his native Holland earlier today.

* Europe: Worries over Europe’s worsening financial situation led to the euro falling to an eighteen-month low on Friday.

Image – MSNBC (“A "Red Shirt" protester carries the Thai flag as tires burn and the violence in central Bangkok escalates on Saturday.”)
Online Sources- Reuters, AP, Bloomberg, The Guardian

First U.S., now Dutch cut aid to Nicaragua

In the aftermath of Nicaragua’s recent local elections, U.S. officials decided to withhold aid from the Central American country. Up to $175 million in aid could be lost due to concerns over alleged fraud, violence, and political intimidation by the Nicaraguan government.

Last week the Dutch government joined the U.S. in not giving aid to Nicaragua. “I find it irresponsible to give direct aid to the Sandinista government which has sabotaged the free and fair elections in all possible ways,” the Dutch Minister of Development Aid said on Thursday after his government decided to withhold over $17 million in assistance.

Naturally, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega was not too pleased with either government’s decision. Earlier this month, he ordered the U.S. to pay Nicaragua reparations owed to them via a 1986 International Court of Justice decision. Ortega also spoke out during last week’s Rio Group summit:

"A Latin American nation is under attack ... (by) the decision of the Yankee (US) government and the Europeans to suspend financing for Nicaragua," Ortega told a summit of regional leaders in Costa do Sauipe, Brazil.

Ortega said Nicaragua has been singled out because it does not accept orders from the "capitalist tyranny."

"Since when are we slaves of the Europeans? We broke off our chains some time ago," he said.

Image- AFP (Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega during his visit to Russia this week.)
Sources- The Latin Americanist, Radio Netherlands Worldwide, AFP, Bloomberg