Dirk Kurbjuweit and Lothar Gorris talk to German philosopher Peter Sloterdijk about his views on football: "The game of football is atavistic and constitutes an anthropologic test arrangement. For thousands of years, human males have been looking for an answer to the question: What do we do with hunters we no longer need? Men have been anthropologically designed to hunt...There is hardly another game that allows us to experience the exhilaration of successful hunting using primitive artillery the way football does... Football allows us to relive the oldest feeling of success known to man: namely that of hitting a target that is desperately trying to protect itself with a ballistic object. I think this is the point where you can use the term 'deep play.' It describes the kind of game that moves all mankind.” (07/06/2006)

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Pascal Boniface, the director of IRIS (Institute of International and Strategic Relations), believes "football is a residual confrontation zone that allows for a controlled expression of animosity, without affecting the most important areas of cooperation between the two countries. France and Germany will soon have a common army but the survival of their national teams provides a channel, within an extremely circumscribed space, for the persistent rivalry between the two countries. ... Football is useful because it allows for symbolic clashes that are limited in nature and virtually free of political risk. It has a large, but superficial, impact on national and international public opinion. ... In football, elimination of an opponent is always temporary. There is always a return match." (07/06/2006)

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"Football does not determine world history, it merely reveals it, like any sociocultural phenomenom," the French historian Stephane Mourlane, co-author of 'Football in our societies, a popular culture, 1914-1998', tells interviewers Samuel Gontier and Gilles Heuré. "With hindsight, the 1934 World Cup now appears to us as a wedding celebration of football and fascism. In reality, Mussolini didn't know a thing about football. He only gradually understood that he could exploit it for his propaganda purposes. ... Let's take the case of the encounter between West and East Germany in 1974. It was the height of the Ostpolitik policy (opening up to the East) initiated by Chancellor Willy Brandt and we get a sense that the Germans were very keen for such a face-off. ... This match is part of the movement which, 15 years later, culminated in the fall of the Wall, but it offered neither the spark nor the blueprint for what followed: it simply reflects the tension of the time." (07/06/2006)

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Journalist Matthew Engel hopes the World Cup - the closest the planet ever comes "to a single shared experience" - will showcase the beauty of the game, rather than patriotic chest-thumping. "In the 32 countries taking part in the tournament, sales of flags will rise too. For a month, the heart-on-sleeve nationalism that bedevilled the planet throughout the 20th century will become fashionable and respectable again. ... Even if TV viewers forget the venues, everyone present will be carrying vast quantities of excess historical baggage. Even 61 years after the war, a tournament that begins in Munich and ends in Berlin is full of potent symbolism to many Europeans, many of whom know nothing else about their history. ... The best hope is that at least enmities are contained, and that we manage to see a lot of attractive, exciting and worthy sport." (07/06/2006)

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Kelen Károly talks to Hungarian author Peter Esterhazy, who has published a book called "Trip to Germany in the Penalty Area” about the way he sees football. "It's seldom that you can observe such a constructive relationship between an individual and his team in this world,” says Esterhazy. He adds, however, that it's difficult to draw conclusions about national character on the basis of football styles. "Players from many different countries play on the same teams, so it's difficult to tell which country has a certain style.” One thing he's sure about though is that English player Wayne Rooney is like the poet Rainer Maria Rilke "when he kicks the ball with such precision, ... an extremely sensitive and gentle player.” (03/06/2006)

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The French writer Erik Orsenna speaks about his latest book, 'Journey to the Land of Cotton', in an interview with Dominique Simonnet. "Cotton gave me a means of tackling globalisation. Cotton-related labour involves several hundred million human beings, on every continent. There are those who plant, those who spin, those who weave, those who distribute, those who trade, and then there's us, who wear it. ... Everything is inter-linked and competing. But everywhere you look, people are trying to escape this competition. There is suffering, but also profit: Overall, thanks to international trade, we live better than before. .... Even the most liberal types realise that some kind of global governance is needed to lay down the rules of the game: child labour, environmental protection, health, etc. The stadium is too big and we are still lacking a referee (the World Trade Organisation aside)." (07/06/2006)

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Anthony Giddens, a British sociologist who is close to Tony Blair, looks at the left's arrival in power in Italy and offers the Romani Prodi government a few leads for breaking out of the slump bequeathed by Berlusconi. "Italy's economic growth is verging on zero. Employment figures are among the worst in Europe... Italians cannot become Scandinavians, but they can take quite a few policy cues from those who remain pioneers. The Scandinavian countries have the highest level of social justice and growth, not only in Europe but the world; and they have demonstrated that growth and social justice are not only compatible, but interdependent." (07/06/2006)

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Petr Fischer complains that since the elections, the main focus in the Czech Republic has been on domestic policy. He points out that the country is scheduled to take over the EU presidency in 2009. "January 1, 2009, is just two and a half years away and the political parties must take this into account if they don't want to risk international disgrace. In view of this situation, it hardly makes sense to form a provisional government, either consisting of politicians or experts, which will govern for just two years until early elections are held. This would be highly irresponsible with the EU presidency looming ahead.” He adds that the new government must adopt a consistent EU policy. "In this respect there are marked differences between the Social Democrats and the Conservatives. While the former advocate full political integration, the latter want to limit relations with the EU to economic cooperation.” (07/06/2006)

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Political scientist Henriette Riegler examines the role of referendums in the countries of former Yugoslavia following Montenegro's referendum on independence. "The outcome of the referendum represents yet another defeat for the carefully devised diplomatic plans for the Balkans in the face of regional obstinacy and political dynamics. This is coupled with the magnetic attraction that the EU still exerts, despite all the moaning about the current European crisis... I'm afraid that it's only once Kosovo achieves independence that we'll know whether the message conveyed by the referendum results – namely that Yugoslavia no longer exists (and hasn't existed since the 1980s), and that for Serbia to move forward it must know where its political borders lie – has finally got through.” (07/06/2006)

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The conservative daily comments on a perceived paradox in post-devolution Scotland. "The predominant feeling in England is that Scotland has chosen to go its own way (albeit with a handsome subsidy from the English taxpayer) since voting to have a devolved assembly in 1997. The English have become used to having no say in domestic Scottish affairs, accepting the democratic will of the Scots that this should be so. They are, however, increasingly resentful of the drain on their finances that Scotland now represents, and of the fact they have no say in how their largesse - about £10 billion [14.5 billion euros] a year - is spent. They resent even more that, having surrendered their right to influence Scottish politics, Scottish politicians continue to vote and rule on matters at Westminster that affect the English, but not their own constituents." (07/06/2006)

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The Spanish prime minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero will be hard-pressed to defend his peace plan with the Basque separatist organisation ETA before parliament. Opposition leader Mariano Rajoy withdrew his support for the government on Tuesday, June 6 because he does not approve of the Basque socialists' willingness to negotiate with Batasuna, ETA's outlawed political wing. The Basque daily finds Rajoy's reaction to be "excessive and inappropriate for such a delicate subject". For all that, "a mature society cannot remain complacent or helpless when faced with the attempt by ETA and the Basque left to publicly evade the issue by absolving themselves of their responsibility for the irreparable damage they have caused in return for an end to terrorism. The government, while obligated to put an end to this violence, also has a responsibility to defend the values of democracy." (07/06/2006)

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"Hans Glaubitz, the Dutch ambassador to Estonia, has quit his post prematurely because his partner, a black Cuban, could no longer put up with the homophobia and racism of Estonian society," the economic daily reports. "The difficulties for Glaubitz's partner began a year ago when a Tallinn-based weekly wrote that the appointment of a homosexual ambassador with a black partner should be considered a provocation by the Netherlands. As a result, the partner was forced to put up with verbal insults and threats in the street. ... 'If something transpired in the street, this is very regrettable. Unfortunately, we can't do anything about peoples' bad behaviour. I nonetheless remain convinced that most Estonians are very polite and obliging', said the Estonian foreign ministry spokesperson." (07/06/2006)

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Kinga Göncz, daughter of former Hungarian President Arpad Göncz, has been appointed Hungary's new foreign minister. From 2002 she was Secretary of State at the Ministry of Health, Social and Family Affairs, and from 2004 she was Minister of Youth, Family, Social Affairs, and Equal Opportunities. Zsolt Ivan Nagy points out that she lacks experience in foreign policy. "The prime minister explained his decision to appoint her saying that Hungary's EU policy was partly domestic policy and partly social policy… Either the prime minister has no idea how important foreign policy is for a country like Hungary or he's avoiding the issue... If there is a strategy behind this move, it's that the prime minister wants to keep foreign policy for himself.” (07/06/2006)

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Denmark, unlike Norway, has given a private company, the Maersk Group, a license for its national oil production. The State's share in the business is limited to the massive taxes it imposes on the company's profits. The conservative government extended the company's contract by 40 years in 2003. Now, soaring oil prices have triggered renewed debate over the issue. "Maersk's costs arising for mining the oil have remained practically unchanged, so Denmark's largest and richest company is raking in money from which Danish society as a whole should profit… Other oil producing countries are considering imposing a new tax on these additional profits, but not the Danish government…Regardless of the fact that the 2003 contract can no longer be terminated, the politicians responsible for such matters should go through it with a toothcomb and look for loopholes which would give the state a greater share in the profits.” (06/06/2006)

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Christian Thomas enthuses about the exhibition "Architecture and Sport: from the Ancient Stadium to the Modern Arena" at Munich's Pinakothek der Moderne, saying it portrays the stadium as a "magic place, because as soon as the sacred dedication of the cult is allowed to reveal itself in the game, the good old stadium becomes a place where all links to the rest of the world are broken off." He explains, however, that the history of the arena shows it wasn't just used for sport. It "offers both sides - Elysium and hell." (07/06/2006)

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Cyprus has cancelled the European Biennale of Contemporary Art Manifesta 6 after Nicosia's mayor refused to sign off on curators' plans to base an art school in both parts of the capital, divided between Greeks in the south and Turks in the north. The daily says the government's "heavy-handed tactics" resulted in "the cancellation of the biggest and most prestigious art project Cyprus would ever have staged and the prospect of costly legal battles with the organisers. Then there is the negative publicity we will receive, because outside Cyprus the cancellation will be seen, rightly or wrongly, as yet another example of government's insistence on keeping the Turkish Cypriots isolated at all costs. The conclusion all outsiders will arrive at will be that the government was prepared to sacrifice Manifesta 6 rather than allow the Turkish Cypriot side to play an active part in it." (07/06/2006)

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Olafur Eliasson, one of Denmark's most renowned artists who has been living and working in Berlin since 1994, says that contemporary art has a very low standing in Denmark and that the Danish capital, Copenhagen, should follow Berlin's example. "The interesting thing about living in Berlin is that creating a work of art has consequences here. When you do it in Denmark, on the other hand, you get the feeling that no one is interested. You may as well not have done anything. Contemporary art has a very lowly status back in Denmark. If a society basically shows no interest then it shouldn't find it strange that all the artists are leaving.” Around a third of all Danish artists, writes the paper, currently live in the German capital. (07/06/2006)

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All available articles from » Rasmus Bo Sørensen