Soccer and commentaries

Soccer and commentaries

On Aug. 31, 1995, Mr. Piero Ronci wrote to say foreigners
should have to view their televised soccer programs with
commentaries in Bahasa Indonesia rather than in English. I have
no argument with that. But because Mr. Ronci advocates the
increased use of Indonesian I just wonder why he chose to write
his letter in English, to an English language newspaper.

I wonder why, as a promoter of the national language, Mr.
Ronci does not write to the Bahasa Indonesia newspapers in
Indonesian. Why should an Italian use English to communicate with
Indonesians, why not communicate in their own language? Or in his
own language? As a matter of fact, since he is advocating
changing the language of television commentaries, why does he not
write to the TV stations directly? Why does he communicate via
the newspapers?

The people who run the television stations show English soccer
with English commentaries. They even show Italian soccer with
English commentaries. If I was Italian it may make me see red.
Maybe I'd be jealous as hell. I would wish they'd stop having
commentaries with sporting events. As Mr. Ronci says: "After all,
when watching at a stadium we don't have someone behind us
telling us what is going on, do we?"

I have never been inside a soccer stadium. I have this dreaded
feeling, that If I ever showed up at a match, I would get someone
behind me, giving loud mouthed, self opinionated, befuddled
opinions about every aspect of the game; the ineptitude of the
players, the unfairness of the umpires, the skinniness of the
linesman's legs, the patchiness of the English grass, the
hardness of the English seats, the soggy English weather, the
French pseudo players, the reason why mackerel follow sea gulls
to the trawler grounds etc. Ad nauseam. (Pardon my French, I'm an
Indian).

PETER E.R. CROSS

Jakarta