Greek Soccer Player Banned for Life for Nazi Salute



Giorgos Katidis Banned from representing Greece in International Futbol Tournaments for LIFE


my third grade son knows the meaning of this gesture
my third grade son knows enough about the history to know that this is not how you wave to a friend in the stands
my third grade son
enough about my third grade son


tough play by a 20 year old
the lesson learned by this will be a life long lesson
this moment in time will dictate the direction of his life
a prosperous futbol career has been derailed
only the future holds the answers for what will happen with Giorgos Katidis after this obscene gesture

from our view... our "freedom of speech view"
how should this have been handled?

is this guy a Nazi version of Tebow?
did his Nazi peers think this was cool?
how about the thugs and hooligans who make up a good percentage of the European futbol fans?
was this something that they supported?

actions have consequences
and well... he is learning this lesson quite well 

*a little side bar
in high school I lacked the talent to make the Varsity soccer team
Bethesda-Chevy Chase (B-CC) was a soccer legacy
my level of play was not B-CC material
that said... I played four years Division III in college

since I did not play soccer for the high school team I somehow landed on a Greek team in Silver Spring
it was coached by this very kind gentle man named Alex
Alex had a few teams; The Pan Olympics and the Pan Helenics or something Greek to that effect

we would show up and play at various fields in what were primarily black leagues
our team was allegedly "white"
but was very multicultural
there were Latinos from various origins
a handful of Egyptian men
a few Iranian guys
then maybe some other
and of course a few white guys... me and my friends as well as some others who floated in and out

for the most part Alex would have to play each line as one nationality
an all Iranian front line
an all English Speaking back line
etc... etc... you get the point

it was really a great experience
low commitment and decent level of play
moderately physical... but I fit in perfectly with my style

when we hit the play offs I would often enlist some of the guys I knew from B-CC