Why can't we all just play soccer?

What does America have against football?

And by football, of course, I mean soccer — the one that actually involves a foot and a ball.

In 2002, more than 62 million people tuned in to watch Brazil beat Germany, 2-0, in the FIFA World Cup. Overall, an estimated 1.5 billion people watched the month-long tournament with South Korea leading the pack in enthusiasm with a measured 16 percent of the population watching the games.

The United States, however, could boast only a measly 1 percent — falling in toward the bottom in terms of enthusiasm. And now in 2006, with the World Cup being held in Germany, we really seem only marginally more excited.

Clearly this doesn’t stem from a lack of interest in sports — virtually every major city in this country has a professional sports team.

The truth is, as Americans, we tend to focus on ourselves. We have a habit of distancing ourselves and dehumanizing other cultures and societies that we might not entirely understand.

As the war in Iraq continues, it’s not unusual to turn on the evening news and hear a story about some Marines killed in a skirmish with insurgents or at the hands of an Improvised Explosive Devic. But, outside of the recent controversy in Haditha, where a few Marines are being investigated for covering up the murder of 24 Iraqi civilians, when is the last time anything more than a brief comment was said about Iraqis, civilian or otherwise, dying?

Oh, that’s right; they’re usually listed under “collateral damage.”

You might hear a politician say something along the lines of, “Every day, more and more of America’s sons and daughters are being killed in Iraq .” But have you ever heard that followed up with, “And holy cow! Look at all those dead Iraqis!”?

Of course not. Politicians want to affect people. And if the American people don’t concern themselves with the humanity of collateral damage, then congressmen aren’t going to waste their breath.

The most damaging side of this attitude, however, is not on the part of the media or politicians, but from the soldiers in Iraq — those Americans who have direct contact with Iraqis on a daily basis.

In a Washington Post article, an Iraqi lawyer involved in the Haditha massacre case summed up how his countrymen feel.

“ Iraqis have become like dogs in the eyes of Americans.’’

Can you blame him?

Our biggest ally in ending this war is cooperation between the Iraqi people and U.S. forces — something that cannot and will not happen without at least a minor understanding and acknowledgement of one another as peers.

Understanding builds trust and a mutual trust would undoubtedly relieve much of the unnecessary violence that is taking place all over the world on a regular basis.

We’ll see what happens.

Until then — I’ll be watching soccer.