It might be time to for Americans to at least slightly recalibrate our negative opinions of the terrorist group ISIS. For all the talk of ISIS being a “backwards” cult who despises progress, the group appears to have come up with what could be a (literally) game-changing innovation that could brighten the lives of millions — even billions — by #disrupting one of the most ruthless boring enterprises on the face of the earth: Soccer.
The Daily Mail reports that ISIS has decided to eliminate referees from their soccer matches because they insist on adhering to FIFA rules and not Sharia Law. The terrorists are also making it permissible to retaliate against players who attempt to injure them:
Commanders told game organisers that referees would be banned because their decisions ‘do not judge according to what Allah has revealed’, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory of Human Rights (SOHR). ISIS bosses claimed some FIFA rules are ‘a violation of Allah’s command and the Sunnah,’ although it is unclear exactly which ones defy Islamic laws upheld by the militants…
They have also written a new set of rules which allow an injured player to claim compensation or exact revenge one their opponents under Sharia law, the SOHR reports. The new rules are to be introduced for the new football league season in the territory around Deir ez-Zor, Syria, due to start soon.
Has the Western world been too hasty in its efforts to dismiss ISIS as an unholy Islamic death cult at war with modernity? Maybe. This bold new effort to reform the rules of soccer should, at the very least, prompt some soul searching on our behalf, and make us question whether ISIS really has nothing positive to contribute to society.
ISIS has done what the so-called “civilized world” has failed to do for centuries: Propose real changes to a tedious game that not only promotes socialism but also encourages whining and fake injuries. Citizens of the best country, America, are not huge fans of the “sport.” It bores them to tears. Eliminating the referees and allowing for violent retaliation would go a long way toward making soccer somewhat tolerable to watch.
Perhaps a second look at ISIS is necessary. Some critics on Twitter simply noted that this was a way of cheapening “The Beautiful Game” and simply making it more like Ice Hockey, which is actually exciting. One Twitter user even suggested that officials from FIFA, a diabolically corrupt organization that might actually be worse than ISIS, get directly involved and fine the terrorist group.
These are clearly knee-jerk reactions by fans of a long outdated and excruciatingly unimaginative child’s hobby that somehow has managed to be appropriated by adults. People by nature fear change, whether in politics or sports. But sometimes changes need to be made to rescue whole societies from themselves. ISIS deserves kudos for embracing disruption on the soccer pitch, and providing leadership where Western civilization has refused to lead. Perhaps in this one respect, we are the “backward” ones who inflict suffering on our own people in the name of “tradition.”
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