We now have the opportunity to discuss one of the very elusive, but in my view pervasively subversive issues of our time: our relationship with honesty - or to put it another way - legalized lying!- institutionalized lying.

The opportunity is provided by the soccer (football) game between Germany and England in South Africa last Saturday. All those who watched that game, - who knows how many millions -  witnessed this in blatant clarity.

My wife, Vreni and I are not regular football fans, though we watch the occasional game on TV and we have watched a few of the matches shown recently. Reacting to the constant incidents eliciting yellow and red cards, Vreni innocently remarked: "Football is really a very nasty game." We laughed it off but I began watching it a little more carefully.

Given the enormous mass-hysteria which surrounds the game and the huge numbers affected by it, I began to think about what wider significance this game - and indeed all sport has in the make-up of our global society and the human psyche at this time. So when the 4th goal of that match happened, I was somewhat pre-sensitized and immediately realized what an overt and telling demonstration of condoned lying and cheating had occurred in the full view of millions.

Listening to some of the subsequent debate has only emphasized the significance of the event for me more and more - to the point where I think it is worth a serious discussion here, in the light of Schweitzer's concern for the demise of morality and consequently Western civilization.

Regardless of what the umpire and linesmen saw, the goalkeeper was in full view of what had happened and hastened to pretend it was otherwise than it had been. Seconds later many in the stadium  and the world audience as a whole were fully in the picture. Yet in none of the discussions of the situation which followed was the sportsmanship, integrity, honesty, and general character of the goalkeeper questioned.

Where then are the standards of honesty and fairness in the game of football. It appears that they can be summed up as: "Whatever you can get away with is allowed"! If that is the case, what message does this send to the population at large, to younger generations, to children observing the adult world?

I do not wish to single out this particular goalkeeper. It is clear that any other in his position would have been expected to do the same. In fact: could we imagine the goalkeeper protesting and saying:" hey, this was a goal"! But does that not firmly underline my point?! And is it not the same case in most business and political situations? And is this not a wonderfully clear illustration of the ethical temperature of our institutions and systems?

I have found it very difficult for some years now to put my finger on this hidden, underlying, obscure malaise in our society, yet knowing at the same time with great conviction, that it lies at the bottom of so many of our problems. It is difficult to bring into the open, because individually most of us think of ourselves as honest upright citizens, trying to do what is expected of us; and I feel sure this particular goalkeeper was doing just that. But the event has exposed the full institutionalized corruptness of the game to full view and has thrown light on so much else, giving us the chance to see it clearly for what it is.

I do hope we can debate this further!
Percy