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USA or Mexico: Castillo has another decision to make

Edgar Castillo (ISIphotos.com) 

                                                  Photo by ISIphotos.com

About 20 months ago, Edgar Castillo made what he thought would be the last decision he would have to make regarding his national team future.

The U.S. born-and-raised defender chose to play for Mexico after being courted by former Mexico head coach Hugo Sanchez and after establishing himself as one of the best young defenders in the Mexican First Division. He played for the Mexican Under-23 national team and appeared in a handful of friendlies for Mexico, so when he turned 21 it looked like he would be Mexico's forever.

That was before FIFA's recent rule change allowing players like Castillo, players eligible for multiple national teams, to switch national teams regardless of age as long as they had never appeared in an official senior competition for either country. Castillo has yet to play for Mexico in an official competition and can therefore still play for the United States.

Two years ago, when Castillo chose Mexico, things were going so well for him that you couldn't really blame him for feeling his future was with 'El Tri', but things have changed quite a bit since then.

In the time since he turned 21, Castillo made a move from Santos Laguna to Club America, where he has struggled. He has yet to make an appearance in an official match for Mexico, with both Hugo Sanchez and Sven-Goran Eriksson passing up chances to give Castillo a chance in an official match.

Now, with FIFA's rule changed, Castillo could choose to play for the U.S. national team, where he stands a much better chance of playing because left back is the weakest position in the national team pool.

Will Castillo consider making a change like German-born midfielder Jermaine Jones is planning to do? Almost two years ago, Castillo was adamant that he would not play for the United States.

"Even if they call, I'm not going to come," Castillo told SI.com, referring to the U.S. national team. "I already told them that I'm staying with Mexico."

Castillo said that when he thought playing in the 2008 Olympics for Mexico would happen (Mexico failed to qualify), he said that when he thought he had a Mexican national team place in his immediate future (has yet to be used in anything but friendlies in two years) and he said that when he was at the top of his game in the Mexican First Division (Castillo struggled for a place with Club America).

Now, Castillo failed to be called up by new Mexico head coach Javier Aguirre for Mexico's recent qualifiers and he was also left out of Mexico's squad for the CONCACAF Gold Cup, with Carlos Salcido and Fausto Pinto the left backs on the roster.

Will he reconsider now that he has another chance to play for the country where he was born and raised? Will Mexican manager Javier Aguirre call up Castillo and cap tie him? Will Castillo speak to Jose Francisco Torres and Michael Orozco about what their experiences with the United States have been like? Will U.S. fans accept a player who has worn the Mexican uniform before (albeit in friendlies)? Will he look at the lack of competition for the U.S. team's left back position and decide that it's time to play for his native country?

We will find out soon enough, possibly as soon as Aug. 12th, when the U.S. national team faces Mexico at Azteca. If Aguirre were smart, he would call in Castillo and give him a cap in that game, which would not only keep a quality prospect from joining an arch-rival, but would also offer a symbolic victory for Mexico, who could use one over the United States these days.

Whether Castillo lets that all happen remains to be seen. He has another choice to make and it shouldn't be assumed that he will make the same choice again. His absence from the Gold Cup roster just might serve as the latest evidence to show Castillo that he may not have the future with Mexico that he once thought he had.

What do you think of Castillo's situation? Are you hoping he changes his mind? Would you be against having a player who once played for Mexico playing for the United States? Think he'll snub the United States again?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. hes the fasted kid ive ever played against and smart two. hes little and knows how to squeeze out players from the ball.. he is quick and very good at getting forward. i played against him in club and high school. he is legit. the reason he turned down the usa before is because they turned himdown cuz of his size. but now they want him because they realize how good he is!

    Reply
  2. i think he should switch to the US, or even if the US dosent call him, i hope mexico never calls him back for even thinking about switching. hes pathetic. this kid thinks way to much of himself hes just arrogant.

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  3. Las Cruces NM spent alot of money on this guy. They tried to get through High School but I guess his dream or maybe his dads dream was to play in Mexico for his home town. Either way he left us hanging never looking back. By the way his brother Noel choose the same path. These two are the best players I’ve seen but it’s too late, we don’t player their style of soccer.

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  4. Pick a country and stick to it! Maybe the issue is “EARNING YOUR SPOT BACK” on the roster. Its about the passion of playing for your country, doesn’t seem he has it.

    Why would any country want him to play for them.

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  5. U.S. should seek him out again and take what it can get if he shows some promise. Some of you are acting as if the U.S. team is some form of royalty that doesn’t need any more help. Did you see that game against Costa Rica?

    This country is a country of immigrants. We should be hounding the world stage for dual-citizenship players to bring into the U.S. team.

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  6. Portland Dawg & Mauricio,
    nice give and take. There’s a similar string of give and take on another soccer
    site of the American scene (also on race)
    There should be a soccer, society, and intellect blog somewhere?
    Is there one?
    vic

    Reply
  7. M.,

    Good of you to reply…briefly retorting:

    1) For the record you have never actually answered the question I asked, but so be it. And for the record, since you mention it, I am a Christian, but for the moment that’s beside the point.

    2) You’re use of white supremacy is troubling, since there are a series of pre-suppositions that Mr. Lipsitz makes that are fraught with error. I am familiar with his work though not intimately. I assure you any sociological theory based upon trying to research our way to a colorblind society is doomed to fail.

    3) You’re wrong about King. While he certainly grew frustrated by certain things in the movement, the Vietnam War, he before his assassination had seen many positive changes that to this day have helped to transform the way the the constitutional law was enforced to benefit all Americans, especially those that had up to that time been disenfranchised- The Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, etc. The night before his death, it was King who said “He’d been to the Mountaintop.” He and others who felt real oppression were convinced the right changes would come, and they have ultimately been borne out to be right.

    4) Well, you can’t imply, or subvert or whatever, and never speak about it and then claim you’ve endorsed it. The “it” I speak of is affirming the good things, even the beautiful things that do still allow the promise of this country to resonate for so many millions of people around the world. Remember the dude standing in front of the tank in Tiananmen Square…he was inspired by the promise of freedom that he believed was his, if the Chinese government would only follow our example. You know this, I am sure.

    5) The fact that there are easy examples to reinforce makes my point, friend. I’ve wanted to hear you say that there are places so bad, so far from what this nation delivers to its citizens that they’d be unthinkable to trade for.

    Since you’re apt to share with me some resources, I’ll return the favor. The article below, from a liberal think tank, no less, describes the net black migration that has occurred since the 1960’s, back into the South. This pattern is a huge historical reversal from at least the 1910’s and the First World War.

    http://www.brookings.edu/urban/pubs/20040524_Frey.pdf

    This is relevant to our discussion for the following reason: In just over a generation, the black Americans who were for so long denied full participation in the political and social have decided to return by the hundreds of thousands, and permanently. How’s this possible, when everything “White America” wants to do runs counter the needs, desires and wishes of this long-oppressed group of Americans doesn’t feel it; certainly not to the degree they once did. The playing field is as level as the law can make it.

    Going back to point #1 you made, there is such a thing as Truth, wouldn’t you agree? We’re not all seeking what’s true for me and for you, and finding that at the end we’re on two sides of the same issue? How do we know what we know?

    Its good to engage, and if your interested, I’ll be glad to share more 🙂 Peace.

    As always,

    PDXDawg

    Reply
  8. CORRECTION:

    [ANSWER: The 1963 era Dr. King DOES serve the ideological view of those who seek a “color-blind” society, a well-intentioned but ultimately disastrous perspective to possess in a contemporary society where very real acts of racism continue to occur.]

    Reply
  9. Hi Dawg,

    1. RE: “I’ll grant your energy, but you’re enthusiasm seems displaced since I asked you a simple question: Since this place is so crappy, and since institutional racism is prevalent, tell me where you and yours could get a better deal. That’s really all I want to hear. We can start on this continent and move to all the others.”

    [Sh*t, I do have a LIFE, and you want me to react to EVERY ONE of your questions? At least thank me for addressing 90% of what you previously wrote!]

    Can I return to your “intellectual dishonesty” motif from earlier? I have not lived in and extensively researched every nation on this planet. Should I assume that you have? To use an analogy, you are like a Christian who has spent nearly their entire life being socialized within the culture of Christianity, and then you argue, “Christianity is better than Islam, Hinduism, or Buddhism.” Yet, how can one know such a thing if they have not seriously spent time engaging and researching non-Christian traditions? [In short, how can one know of non-Christian traditions if 1) they have spent little time engaging them directly or 2) most of what they know of non-Christian traditions is filtered through the perspectives of other Christians?]

    So, there may or may not be countries that offer its citizens a better quality of life than what is available to American citizens. I don’t care to waste my time on this matter because I am most concerned with improving conditions in the U.S., not elsewhere.

    2. RE: “The point, my misguided friend, is that while I am not here to be an apologist for injustice, you need to learn some context. I was born and raised in the Deep South. In my lifetime our region of the country has gone from Jim Crow segregation and institutionalized discrimination to a better era where, largely, the playing field has been leveled. If you don’t recognize the truth of that statement then you are blind.”

    Social progress does not negate the existence of white supremacy, which is still prevalent in American culture. Progress is relative. Yes, women have it relatively better now than they did 100 years ago, and 100 years from now, our society will look somewhat ‘backwards’ in comparison to the social progress made in the future.

    Things may be better now in the south relative to 50 years ago, but I would doubt “level playing fields” are commonplace. This is where HARD WORK via research comes into play. [I would suggest you look into George Lipsitz’s The Possessive Investment in Whiteness or read Tim Wise’s online articles to gain an understanding of just how COMPLICATED institutional racism is. I’m not getting paid for writing this sh*t, and I have REAL work to do, so don’t expect ME to detail all of this for you.]

    The more important question that needs to be assessed is “why do YOU care so much that I acknowledge the relative-ness of social progress?” How does my doing so serve your ideological agenda?

    3. RE: “We are closer to the day when Dr. King’s desire that men and women would be judged by “the content of their character” is becoming true. Until people’s hearts change, nothing changes. That much is clear.”

    Why do white people [or people of color who are apologists for whites] generally co-opt Dr. King circa 1963, and not the Dr. King of 1968, when he began to see some of the logic behind the Black Power Movement’s rhetoric of self-determination? [ANSWER: The 1963 era Dr. King doesn’t serve the ideological view of those who seek a “color-blind” society, a well-intentioned but ultimately disastrous perspective to possess in a contemporary society where very real acts of racism continue to occur.]

    4. RE: “So while you critique the culture of your country I might ask that you affirm the things that make this a great nation. Come to think of it, I’ve read nothing from you that makes me think you’re capable or desirous of such a thing. Let me give you a couple of places to start: Rule of Law, Civil Rights, Freedom of Expression/Religion/Press/Assembly, Right to Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness. ”

    You are smarter than this; please come harder. [Many of the qualities you make note of are SELF-EVIDENT in my writing.]

    Other things that made the U.S. a great nation: Lydia Mendoza, Grace Lee Boggs, Phillip Vera Cruz, Yuri Kochiyama, Jesse Marsch, Howard Zinn, the aforementioned Dr. King, Duke Ellington, Huell Howser, soul food, the U.S. national soccer teams, and the Velvet Underground.

    5. RE: “We live in a country where people on opposite ends of the political spectrum (you and I) can debate in cyberspace. While I type this Iran is jamming satellite transmissions to keep the truth about their elections from getting out. Could you at least admit the qualitative difference between our government/society and that of our friends in the Persian Gulf? Glad you’re here and not there? Think you could get more done here or there?”

    Why do I need to admit something that has nothing to do with my original statements? I’m not too concerned with what is happening in Iran; I’m looking to improve the United States so that it can be a better place than it already is.

    Why do you make comparisons to Iran and not Sweden, Iceland, Tuvalu, Monaco, or Liechtenstein?

    Rather than simply look for easy examples to reinforce your ideological view, why don’t you study those societies that are genuinely unfamiliar to you—discursive practice is not always about ‘winning’ or ‘losing,’ but about learning.

    Best wishes,
    M.

    [now I gotta get back to my real work…]

    Reply
  10. M.

    I’ll grant your energy, but you’re enthusiasm seems displaced since I asked you a simple question: Since this place is so crappy, and since institutional racism is prevalent, tell me where you and yours could get a better deal. That’s really all I want to hear. We can start on this continent and move to all the others.

    Canada?
    Mexico?
    Cuba?
    Any of the Central America’s enlightened countries?
    South America? I think maybe Venezuela’s got hope for you.
    Africa-almost fifty chances there?
    The Middle East…maybe Iran?
    China? they’re into personal freedom. If they’re full try North Korea…how’s that sound?
    Anywhere else?

    The point, my misguided friend, is that while I am not here to be an apologist for injustice, you need to learn some context. I was born and raised in the Deep South. In my lifetime our region of the country has gone from Jim Crow segregation and institutionalized discrimination to a better era where, largely, the playing field has been leveled. If you don’t recognize the truth of that statement then you are blind.

    We are closer to the day when Dr. King’s desire that men and women would be judged by “the content of their character” is becoming true. Until people’s hearts change, nothing changes. That much is clear.

    So while you critique the culture of your country I might ask that you affirm the things that make this a great nation. Come to think of it, I’ve read nothing from you that makes me think you’re capable or desirous of such a thing. Let me give you a couple of places to start: Rule of Law, Civil Rights, Freedom of Expression/Religion/Press/Assembly, Right to Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness.

    We live in a country where people on opposite ends of the political spectrum (you and I) can debate in cyberspace. While I type this Iran is jamming satellite transmissions to keep the truth about their elections from getting out. Could you at least admit the qualitative difference between our government/society and that of our friends in the Persian Gulf? Glad you’re here and not there? Think you could get more done here or there?

    Standing by.

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  11. Hi PDXDawg,

    1. RE: “Your tired rhetoric of entitlement and victimization is just what this country needs less of. For every abuse or missed mark that this country has suffered, some at the hands of “whitey” it has nevertheless remained the example to untold millions around the world.”

    Just what exactly am I entitled to? To speak as an authority on race? Okay, then I would agree with you on this point; your sense of observation is very keen, Dawg.

    Give us more of your white defensiveness. The world needs more “tired rhetoric of entitlement and victimization,” if only from the perspective of Dawgs like you. [Ha, I inverted you!]

    As James Baldwin noted, “That victim who is able to articulate the situation of the victim has ceased to be a victim; he, or she, has become a threat.”

    2. RE: “The fact that you can only point out that minorities have been “pissed off” for centuries, and then list grievance upon grievance, without simultaneously pointing out that minorities in the US have more opportunity guaranteed under the law here than anywhere else is pathetic, if not intellectually dishonest.”

    Are you inferring that I should thank white Americans for my ‘blessed life’ in America? [whoa…talk about ENTITLEMENT]

    I suppose you believe it was out of the kindness of white America’s collective hearts that the Chinese Exclusion Laws were repealed. WRONG!

    Or, that white America fought to diversify school curriculums by introducing Ethnic Studies into higher ed. WRONG!

    Or, that white America…sh*t. I could go on and on, but I’ve got a Lakers game to watch.

    So, let me just say that I WILL give props to some white folks—e.g. Tim Wise, George Lipsitz, Jean Baker Miller, Peggy McIntosh, Greg Jay, John Brown, Chad Barrett, Jerry West, Crispus Attucks (the old East Coast punk band, not the African American martyr), and others who acknowledge/d that American culture is a white supremacist culture. Just because we acknowledge our national culture’s imperfections doesn’t mean we do not love it; I critique the culture with the hopes of seeing it improve. [We also live in a sexist, homophobic, and classist culture, so by no means am I suggesting that racism is the only form of social injustice that needs to be dealt with.]

    3. RE: “Did you mention the black President, or Attorney General, or the woman who serves as Speaker of the House America perfect? Of course not.”

    Why should I mention these things? Surely, you don’t expect me to view them as signs that institutional discrimination has officially ended in America, do you? And you accuse me of intellectual dishonesty? Boy, you really didn’t get the subversion behind my “some of my best friends are…” joke.

    4: RE: “There’s no overreaction here. Folks like you will lead directly the balkanization of this great country, though that may be your goal, huh? Hyphenate everybody’s name by ethnic group, and forget the phrase ‘e pluribus unum'”

    Dawg, you are presupposing that people in America were always united, that they held hands at barbecues, and lived to sing “Kumbayah” for another day. You accuse me of “intellectually dishonesty,” but at least I have provided you with some examples of institutional racism that obviously show your claim about future balkanization to be misinformed. If anything, we were ALREADY ‘balkanized’ long ago. It’s not our differences that create tensions, since there is nothing inherently bad about differences. Unfortunately, some people have a difficult time learning to live with others’ differences.

    Multiculturalism beats Anglo-conformity any day!

    5. RE: “You don’t really mean that because you like Brian Wilson, that makes you tolerant of whites do you? So a suburbanite white family whose children have a love affair with Tiger Woods and Beyonce are enlightened, too?”

    Do I really have to answer this? [I was joking, albeit subversively.]

    I love you like an annoying dysfunctional brother; there’s still hope for you, but with each passing year, I get a little more depressed about your future. Now go read some (good) books (see Lipsitz, Wise, et al.).

    M.

    Reply
  12. For people who don’t understand.. Its seems offensive when someone born and raised here doesn’t consider this his country. Not a huge deal, let him emigrate, but he shouldn’t expect to be welcomed back.

    Jones is different. He was born and raised mostly in Germany. Being a second option is not an insult. Being on the US team is hardly a claim to fame and fortune. Of course we are more welcoming to immigrants than emigrants.

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  13. Ives why are you writing this?

    Castillo is no Roberto Carlos. We must focus on our players, not some guy who choose to play for Mexico and they forgot about him.
    No second chances. He has worn the Mexico jersey and great for him Im sure hes proud even if it was only a couple of games… But he sure as hell will not wear the US jersey.

    Theres a reason why Mexico does not call him up. Why should we?
    We have enough talent pool to figure out our left back situation.
    He can’t even start in America. He obviously does not care for the US. We don’t care for him. Period.

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  14. Mauricio,

    One more thing:
    You don’t really mean that because you like Brian Wilson, that makes you tolerant of whites do you? So a suburbanite white family whose children have a love affair with Tiger Woods and Beyonce are enlightened, too?

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  15. Mauricio,

    Your tired rhetoric of entitlement and victimization is just what this country needs less of. For every abuse or missed mark that this country has suffered, some at the hands of “whitey” it has nevertheless remained the example to untold millions around the world.

    The fact that you can only point out that minorities have been “pissed off” for centuries, and then list grievance upon grievance, without simultaneously pointing out that minorities in the US have more opportunity guaranteed under the law here than anywhere else is pathetic, if not intellectually dishonest.

    Did you mention the black President, or Attorney General, or the woman who serves as Speaker of the House
    America perfect? Of course not.

    Name a better place, and be specific without dribbling on about past abuses that have since been corrected.

    There’s no overreaction here. Folks like you will lead directly the balkanization of this great country, though that may be your goal, huh? Hyphenate everybody’s name by ethnic group, and forget the phrase “e pluribus unum”

    Reply
  16. Hi Nick,

    RE: “Just look at Italians in New York in the early 1900’s or Japanese-Americans during WW2.”

    Your understanding of U.S. history is lacking, to say the least. The World War II-era 442nd combat unit, consisting exclusively of Japanese Americans from Hawaii and the U.S. mainland, is arguably the most decorated unit in U.S. military history, so don’t even SUGGEST that Japanese Americans were disloyal to America.

    As a matter-of-fact, anti-Japanese sentiment was so high in the U.S. AFTER the war, 2nd generation Japanese Americans did their best to shed all signs of their “Japanese-ness” to the extent that self-hatred ran rampant in this ethnic community for many decades.

    M. Gomes

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  17. the only reason he choose mexico is because the united states don’t have any fans everytme they play at home it looks like there away there is more fans from the away team and that is just sad.

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  18. In sum, this collective body of postings has taught me the following:

    1) ELAC still rules.

    2) Overly defensive white people (as well as racial minorities who act as white apologists) can be annoying.

    3) Some white people DO get it. (i.e. they get that whiteness isn’t a universal standard or norm, and that the use of the term “American” as a RACIAL label is an outgrowth of one’s socialization in a white supremacist culture)

    4) RE: Scott’s comment – “Imagine if somebody posted on here saying that they like to piss off ‘Black Americans’ or ‘Asian Americans.’ Would be an uproar.”

    Racial minorities have been pissed off for centuries in the U.S., so it would be a little redundant to begin posting anti-Asian, anti-Black, anti-(non-white) Latino, anti-Native Hawaiian, and anti-American Indian postings here.

    Are you familiar with the term “institutional racism?” [see Indian removal, the destruction of Native Hawaiian peoples, Angel Island detainment, the Chinese Exclusion Acts, Japanese American internment, anti-miscegenation laws, alien land laws, the Immigration Act of 1924, the 1790 Nationality Act (which was in effect for Asians up to 1954), the Jim Crow system, Operation Wetback, the Zoot Suit Riots, Anglo-conformist assimilation in schools, Vincent Chin / Luis Ramirez, the emasculation of men of color, media white-washing, blackface, yellowface, minstrelsy, the glass ceiling, and so on. (Where’s slavery?)]

    The point I am making here is that racial minorities–given an understanding of institutional racism–generally know what it means to “overreact” [i.e. get overly defensive] to perceived racism. They’ve got REAL experience on this topic.

    By extension, most of the individuals who are reacting to perceived “anti-white” prejudice at this forum tend to be OVERREACTING.

    5) If I really hated white people, would I be a big Brian Wilson fan? [Some of my best friends are white.]

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  19. This is what we get for being a nation of opportunity. People come to this country for monetary gain but they don’t want to lose their “heritage” so they remain loyal to their roots. This loyalty can last generations. Just look at Italians in New York in the early 1900’s or Japanese-Americans during WW2. Its the same thing now with Hispanic-Americans. Just look at all the baseball players who live, work and are citizens of the US but for some reason chose to play for Dominican, Puerto Rico, Venezuela etc. Its what this country has to deal with for being the global power it is.

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  20. I don’t blame players for switching countries in order to play in the World Cup. Heck, I would play for American Samoa in order to get an international cap. Don’t say you wouldn’t either.

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  21. These discussions bring out lots of nationalistic sentiments.

    I have no problem with Edgar Castillo choosing Mexico. Like millions of other Mexican-Americans he’s comfortable in both countries and he got his early career opportunities in Mexico not in the US. Since he’s played for Mexico and declared that he wants to continue playing for them there would be a good bit of backlash against him if he changed his mind at this point.

    He’s still in the early years of his career and will have plenty more chances if he continues to do well.

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  22. Not to pile on you ELAC, but your posts really are scatter brained. Your last posts insinuates that tree huggers are an ethnicity. Lets agree that this country is so massive that many talented players, whether they be white, black, latin or whatever, fall through the cracks and move on.

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  23. Good point, Jason, especially on Regis, who was married to an American and got divorced once he was eligible–all to play in a WC. And once there, wasn’t what I’d call outstanding. Who’s heard from him since?!

    But I beat you’ll all will be more than happy to sell your souls if we field a team with Jones and Castillo that takes us to the WC final–patriotism be damned.

    Just something to chew on…

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  24. ELAC,

    You are by self-admission a racist since you apparently see it as your goal in life, “your passion”, to treat with disrespect an entire portion of the human race. Call it what you will. Its not cool just because you’re talking about white folk, as if they’re “all the same.”

    You have a limited vocabulary because you finish most of your very short paragraphs with vulgar little phrases. It seems that insults with pseudo-profanity attached is your crutch. Too bad for you.

    You ramble about in your thoughts with no apparent thread to tie it all together. You’ve yet to answer any of the concerns I had. It was you that made, and continue to make racist comments, and speak irrationally about needing more Spanish speaking, Spanish surnamed players. If the best 11 players in this country are all named Rodriguez or Smith, I couldn’t care less. I don’t see them any different than any other American players, but apparently you do.

    Want to root for the Latino NATS, and start a club? Cool-go for it.

    Want to flame half the people (you know those whites you’re not too fond of) on this board and speak in racist language? Not cool, and if Ives even reads this stuff, ought to get you banned.

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  25. Pissing off white Americans is my passion. LOL!

    Seriously, the only tool here is you, PDX. I stand by comments. Ridiculous, yes. Racist, no. Dogmatic, yes.

    PDX unless your last name is Webster, than who are you declare who has a limited vocab?

    I can’t believe you took my comments seriously. LMFAO.

    Diversity is beautiful. Let’s hug a tree while we are at it. However, that diversity didn’t translate to much at the 2006WC. It won’t mean much at the Confed Cup either if we come home with no points.

    When you’re done drinking the Kool Aid Gulati made you, you’ll realize that all I’m saying is include more American players with Spanish surnames or of varying technical abilities AND welcome them to US soccer. Give them an equal chance, too. That means hiring coaches with a little more international experience.

    PDX tool #1,
    ELAC

    Reply
  26. josh, wanted him? it seems like “el tri” isn’t very interested in him at all if they haven’t called him in 2 years to their roster, that’s why there is a debate about his future in the first place because now it seems that mexico doesn’t want him.

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  27. Imagine if somebody posted on here saying that they like to piss off “Black Americans” or “Asian Americans”. Would be an uproar. This is the worst discussion ever

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  28. Better yet, let’s get him back, play him during stoppage time against Mexico in the Gold Cup, cap tie him, then never call him up again. LOL

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  29. Don’t want him. He made his bed now he can sleep in it. I hope Mexico fails to qualify for 2010 and he watches on TV only to wonder what might have been.

    He can go to hell.

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  30. ELAC,

    I wasn’t responding to the issues of player development in the USSF, and you’ve yet to address my issues I’ll raise them again.
    There was no tone in my comments; I raised the possibility that you’re simply a man with a limited vocabulary, who thinks he can say what he wants with no regard to how ridiculous it sounds. After this, I must conclude my suspicions were right.

    So one last time:
    When one looks at our team compared to any other on earth, you’ll notice that it has the most diverse roster going. You don’t see this? Since when are we afraid to suit anybody that wants to play? Dooley, Ramos, Mastroeni, Balboa, Preki, Clavijo, Adu, etc, etc, etc.

    There’s no subtlety in your words, and if your goal is to piss off “White Americans” that makes you a tool.

    Reply
  31. Dave van den Bergh is married to an American. I’m sure he would easily qualify for citizenship if not already. Should he be capped?

    smile when you read this one.

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  32. Settle down PDXpup and Esteban T.,

    It’s quite obvious from the moronic tone of your responses, that you missed the subtle facetiousness of my comments. I’m used to it as a ChivasUSA fan in Galaxyland. I piss off White-American-footie fans like Florentino Perez throws away cash. I call it the Sotomayor effect.

    Honestly, I don’t care who suits up for the USMNT in terms of race and neither should you. Just consider this, probably in the next 10-20 years, more and more American-born Spanish speaking soccer playing kids are going to have to make a choice(just like Gringo Torres and M. Orozco)and pick a country to play for. Judging from some of these comments, they’ll probably want to play for their parent’s country. This really is a global sport with various styles emanating from every corner of the world.
    Here in the US, I think we have a serious problem evaluating talent and coaching the technical game. We seem to ignore on a grand scale players that aren’t 6ft or run the 100m in under 10 seconds. I’m not saying the USMNT should be all white or black or whatever, but when a player like
    Landon Donovan is considered the best player in the MLS, let’s not forget that he grew up most of his life playing with those same Spanish speaking kids. His talent is natural born, not doubt. However, what about those players he played with?
    It behoove US Soccer to do more for these players. Even if it means, opening the door for a blowhard like Castillo.

    For fun,
    READ THIS:
    http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=398411&cc=5901

    World famous ELAC.

    Reply
  33. “Xenophobe” is your new word of the day!! Use it well. Actually, I think it is being misused here, a tad off its definition.

    I will not like ANYONE who spurns my “mothersport” with my “fatherland.” 🙂 Plain and simple. Rossi is a wuss. Castillo is a wuss. Jones is a potential hero.

    Two-faced? No. I see it that way every time.

    Reply
  34. E. Castillo has got a little brother we need to worry about also. Even if we don’t get him to apply to FIFA to change we have to work on his little brother from New Mexico.

    BTW, props to Ives for getting the Jermaine Jones story RIGHT unlike some other media outlets. I’ve followed the guy for a while and actually hoped years ago he’d play for us. Obviously once he choose Germany I was bitter towards him but still have taken some pride in his play at Schalke the last few years. I’m pleased Ives got the story right rather than breaking it with some falsehoods like other things I was on the net. So good job Ives!

    Reply
  35. The sentiment over Castillo when he chose Mexico over U.S was: Wow, that sux! How did we lose him to El Tri. A lot of folks were ticked at our youth development programs for snubbing him. Also, when Pearce was struggling in the qualifiers, most fans wished Castillo was playing for the U.S. Just because Castillo had a bad season and Bornstein had one ok game vs. Honduras doesn’t mean our LB issue is solved. So if he decides he wants to play for the U.S through the new FIFA rule, then I would welcome him back with open arms. Anything to improve the quality of our player pool…

    Reply
  36. And to those of you who question whether or not he speaks English, you’re stupid. Castillo grew up in NEW Mexico, one of the fifty states and didn’t even leave to play in Mexico until after his junior or senior year of high school. I played with his brother in ODP and they are completely bilingual. If he wants to give the US a shot, then let him!

    Party on.

    Reply

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