>>>>>>As I predicted, Germany easily beat Brazil! :rolleyes
>>>>>
>>>>>I hope Argentina will save face of South American soccer :)
>>>>
>>>>I am so scared now... I hope that at least we do show up...
>>>>
>>>>Anyways, Argentina winning the WC is kind of moot now, we are going to be happy anyways! :)
>>>
>>>What if Argentina plays Brazil for the bronze and loses? :))
>>
>>I really hate third place games. Take two teams who didn't quite do what they wanted to and make them play each other. The NFL had one for a long time, the Runner Up Bowl, and finally did away with it. Why risk players getting injured in a game that is essentially meaningless?
>
>I often think there should be a Toilet Bowl sponsored by Sani-Flush where you take the two worst teams in the NFL and let them play for the toilet trophy which get assigned to the loser.

They have one of those -- the NFL draft. Every season you see bad teams racing to the bottom for a better pick in the draft. The NBA, same thing. Bad but not terrible teams suddenly go on 20 game losing streaks at the end.

Back to soccer, I just watched the Letterman show with Clint Dempsey as the featured guest. When he came out he received a very long standing ovation from the audience. It is an old joke that that soccer is the sport of the future in the U.S. and always will be. Somehow this team seems to have made it happen. And Dempsey is certainly a good representative. He was a great guest -- interesting, smart, not full of himself, loves his kids, but not a suck-up or phony. He is from east Texas, near the Louisiana line, and exudes the easy charm of that part of the country. You sense that he has great things ahead of him when his playing career ends. He is 31 and thinks he has 5 more playing years if he is lucky (he plays for the Seattle Sounders in the MLS).

Dave was really on his game tonight. He probably isn't your favorite due to his left of center politics (which he doesn't push like some folks like Bill Maher and Rachel Maddow; he's from Indiana, after all). Even at the age of 67 and with retirement right around the corner he is still very quick on his feet and capable of making even media-savvy guests laugh out loud. Sometimes he is at his best when a joke bombs. He introduces musical guests ranging from the very well known, like Willie Nelson, to the little known like Sleeper Agent, tonight's musical act. I am definitely going to miss him when he's gone.