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| Muslim Football Tournament Under Fire |
| 2003-12-29 |
| IRVINE, Calif. Dec. 29 — The idea was innocent enough: A group of young men organize a holiday football tournament and give their teams such innocuous names as "4th and Goal" and "Playmakerz." It was some of the other team names that raised eyebrows: Intifada, Soldiers of Allah and Mujahideen The furor that followed has forced some teams to change their names and a handful of players to quit. It also sparked a debate that threatens to overshadow the tournament, which was planned primarily for young Muslims and scheduled for Jan. 4. "This was really just supposed to be about the youth playing football. Now it’s become so political that a part of me thinks we shouldn’t even play," said Tarek Shawky, 29, one of the tournament’s organizers. Those involved in the league said they never set out to upset or offend anyone. But critics say such names as Intifada and Mujahideen glorify terrorism..... |
| Posted by:Nick |
| #11 So which team gets to run with the Goat carcuss first. |
| Posted by: Rick 2003-12-29 8:20:54 PM |
| #10 Steve - yeah but "Statue of Liberty" and "Flying Wedge" plays would take on a whole new meaning. . . |
| Posted by: Doc8404 2003-12-29 4:15:40 PM |
| #9 I guess you can rule out any "Hail Mary" plays. |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-12-29 4:05:16 PM |
| #8 Aw, hell, them goobers'd prob'ly get upset if somebody named their team the "Zionist Entities", too... |
| Posted by: mojo 2003-12-29 4:05:03 PM |
| #7 Given all the running we saw from the Iraqi army I suspect their ground games will do formidable. ;) |
| Posted by: Laurence of the Rats 2003-12-29 3:10:40 PM |
| #6 well, the way Arabs, and Muslims in general, throw, they better have good running games |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-12-29 2:17:16 PM |
| #5 Yeap,pretty stupid. |
| Posted by: raptor 2003-12-29 1:46:37 PM |
| #4 I still think the Stern Gang is an excellent name for a team. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2003-12-29 1:45:18 PM |
| #3 I can't get outraged over it. It's too tiresomely stoopid. |
| Posted by: Fred 2003-12-29 12:50:29 PM |
| #2 Yes, you did Raj. And this stills baffles me why more people aren't outraged about this. |
| Posted by: Charles 2003-12-29 12:39:07 PM |
| #1 Didn't I see this one a few weeks ago? |
| Posted by: Raj 2003-12-29 12:36:14 PM |