Barack Obama, Presiden Pertama Yahudi di AS

By James Petras. Axis of Logic
Dec 13, 2008, 08:52
http://axisoflogic. com/artman/ publish/article_ 29031.shtml


“Obama asks Shimon Peres: “What can I do for Israel?"
- Haaretz November 17, 2008


“The UN Special Rappateur on Human Rights in the Palestinian Territories (Richard Falk) has said Israel’s policies there amount to a crime against humanity…He said the UN must act to protect the Palestinian population suffering what he called ‘collective punishment’…He said the International Criminal Court should also investigate whether the Israeli civilian leaders and military commanders for the Gaza siege should be indicted and prosecuted for violations of international criminal law” - BBC News December 10, 2008.


“We need to ratchet up tough but direct diplomacy with Iran, making very clear to them that their development of nuclear weapons would be unacceptable, that their funding of terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hizbullah, their threats against Israel are contrary to everything we believe in…We may have to tighten up those sanctions…and give them a clear choice…whether they want to do this the hard way or the easy way.”

President-Elect Obama on
NBC Meet the Press
December 7, 2008




Introduction

According to a nationally prominent Zionist spokesperson, former Congressman, Federal Judge, White House Counsel to President Bill Clinton and early backer of Obama, Abner Mikvner, “Barack Obama is the first Jewish President”. Mikvner’s affirmation reflects both

Obama’s one-sided and longstanding commitment to the State of Israel and

loyalty to the Zionist Power Configuration (ZPC) in the United States, as well as

the long-term and successful effort of a network of financially and politically powerful Jewish Zionists to ‘embed’ Obama to their ‘Israel First’ political apparatus.

What is striking about the latter is the demeaning and arrogant claims made by some leading Jewish Zionist about their ‘central roles’ in the making of Obama’s professional and political careers – in effect denying the President-Elect any credit for his own academic or professional success. (Historically this has been mirrored in the continuous claims of some American Jews to have fought and won the battle of Civil Rights in the 60’s on behalf of African Americans – essentially denying black Americans any independent political role in their own struggle.) Even their personal flattery about his ‘wisdom’, ‘brilliance’ and ‘intellectual acuity’ is always linked with his unconditional support of the State of Israel. One can envision how quickly his Zionist colleagues would replace their plaudits with crude insults regarding his intelligence if he suggested Israel end its starvation blockade of Gaza… Needless to say the
Zionists know their man, as they confidently proclaim, he is a cautious and prudent politician, who measures power before he speaks, especially as he has filled the White House, economic councils and security apparatus with Zionist zealots.

The Making and Re-Making of Obama

The Chicago Jewish News, a nationally prominent Israel-First propaganda organ, published a lengthy article on ‘Obama and the Jews’ by Pauline Dubkin (October 24, 2008), which quotes approvingly a ‘long-time Jewish observer of the political scene’, who declared that, “Jews made him (Obama). Wherever you look there is a Jewish presence.”

This is not merely the usual arrogant self-aggrandizing boasts of a Zionist power broker, with which we are constantly bombarded on so many political topics, this reflects an important part of what Obama has become, especially in advancing his latter day political ambitions. The Zionist self-promoters (ZSP), ever ready to take credit for any success (no matter how notorious and immoral) –

Wall Street speculators, Ivy League professors, Pentagon militarists, cultural gurus, and even the key patrons of art forms like jazz and constantly rewrite history (or biography in the case of Obama) to maximize their self-importance in all aspects of American life.

The ZSP conveniently fail to mention in their articles that Obama’s white Gentile grandmother gave him the intellectual nurturing and encouragement and diligently petitioned for scholarships for him to attend elite private schools, which formed the basis for his intellectual skills to write, speak and reason as an educated man. The ZSP exclude from their ‘revisionist and Judaized’ biography of Obama, the central importance of Reverend Jeremiah Wright who transformed Obama from an elite Ivy university graduate into an effective social activist. Obama was able to participate and get involved in community organizing in Chicago’s African-American neighborhoods because of Wright’s endorsement and broad credibility. If it were not for Rev. Wright, Obama would never have had a social base or organizational experience to engage in Chicago politics. It is only after Obama had gained these skills and popular appeal that the Zionist politicos noticed him and went to work on his ego and ambitions, recruiting him to their pro-Israel agenda and financing his political career.

The Zionist re-write of his biography has gone curiously unchallenged by Obama. To suit his new mentors, the Israel-First ideologues and financial backers, he has willfully discarded and insulted his former mentors, as well as any current policy advisers and political colleagues who doesn’t adhere to the Zionist line of unconditional support for Israel. Two cases come immediately to mind. When leading Zionist ideologues objected to the presence of Zbigniew Brzezinski and Robert Malley, among Obama’s foreign policy advisors, the Zionists in Obama’s inner circle immediately marginalized them with his approval. When the notorious torture-promoting Zionofascist Harvard Law Professor, Alan Dershowitz raised a howl about former US President Jimmy Carter (a principled critic of Israel’s apartheid policies) speaking at the Democratic Party Convention (following a century-long political tradition of honoring former presidents) the Zionist
operatives blatantly humiliated the elderly Carter by denying him even a five-minute speech – with Obama’s approval. ‘Professor’ Dershowitz publicly crowed about his success and power over the Democratic nominee Obama in censoring the former President.

The conversion and promotion of Obama as an Israel-Firster is an excellent case study of the methods the ZPC has used to build a near invincible power base in the US political system. The construction of the ZPC is not the result of a cabal with a preplanned centrally controlled operation. Obama’s conversion began through an ideologically diverse, individual, family and community-based effort.

As Obama rose from local to national political office, Zionist promotion evolved from local into a nationally organized and concerted effort including campaign funding, business career appointments and paid propaganda and indoctrination junkets to Israel.

The ZPC offers positive inducements for the ‘recruitable’ and threats of retaliation and intimidation via media slanders and systematic public pillory through most Jewish communal organizations for the public political critics of Israel who remain recalcitrant and refuse to toe the Israel-First line.

Turning Obama into an Israel-Firster, according to the Chicago Jewish News article, began during his studies at Harvard Law School where he was ‘spotted’ by a Zionist professor, Martha Minow, as “smart, promising, and politically ambitious” and a likely recruit. The professor proudly recounts how she contacted family members, including her father, a major Democratic powerbroker, and fellow Zionists who ran a law firm in Chicago and recommended they hire the Obama. In brief, the first step in Zionist recruitment was using a prestigious academic post for initial contact, followed by a promise of career advancement through a professional network.

The next step was to introduce Obama to an association of ‘friends and neighbors' in the Jewish Community including prominent Zionist financial supporters. Obama’s early promoters played a key role in convincing him that his political future depended on Zionist allies and that support depended on his total commitment to an Israel-First agenda. As Obama’s ties with his Zionist-liberal backers in the Democratic Party thickened, his links to black community organizing and his pastor and former mentor, the progressive African-American minister, Reverend Jeremiah Wright weakened.

By the end of the 1990’s, Obama was firmly embedded in the liberal Zionist Democratic Party network and through it he teamed up with two key Zionist figures who were crucial to his presidential campaign: David Axelrod, Obama’s chief political strategist since 2002 and the chief architect and tactician of his presidential campaign in 2008 and Bettylu Salzman, daughter of Phillip Klutznick, a billionaire real estate developer, slumlord and zealous Israel-Firster. Salzman/Klutznick admits she never would have bankrolled and promoted Obama simply because of ‘his smarts’ or liberal politics if he hadn’t pledged his commitment to Israel’s interests. She states,
“Obviously I’m not going to support someone who is opposed to Israel and what it stands for. He’s right on all the issues when it comes to Israel. He is in exactly the same place (Hillary) Clinton is, maybe stronger. He’s a clearer thinker.” (Chicago Jewish News, October 24, 2008)

While Obama served in the Illinois Senate, he shared an office with an Orthodox Jew and fanatical Israel-Firster, Ira Silverstein, who boasts of his role in ‘educating’ Obama about Jewish Orthodoxy and more important “shared pro-Israel feelings” to the point that … “When Silverstein sponsored numerous resolutions condemning PLO bombings Obama eagerly signed on as a co-sponsor.” (ibid)

Fully embedded in the Zionist Power Configuration of Chicago, Obama was advised by the Axelrods, Klutznicks and other key strategists to make the obligatory ritual pilgrimage to Israel and pay obeisance to its leaders in the course of his Senate campaign. During his trip to Israel, two years later in 2006, Obama was accompanied and guided by the executive vice-president of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago. Under Zionist guidance, Obama ‘connected’ with the Israeli state, totally ignoring the plight of the Palestinians who were being savagely repressed by the Israel Army and assaulted on a daily basis by Zion-Fascist settlers. Obama returned a thoroughly committed Zionist African-American politician.

With the Israeli-ZPC certificate of approval, Obama’s financial base of support widened to include some of the wealthiest pro-Israel Jewish Americans in the Midwest including Lester Crown, whose son, James Crown headed Obama’s financial campaign in Illanois. According to Crown (pater),
“From the time I met him, the times we talked about Israel and we talked about it several times, he has been an ardent backer of Israel’s defense position (sic), Israel’s security position.” (Ibid)

To those Zionfascists who demand that Israel annex all of Palestine and expel ‘the Arabs’ and were disturbed by Obama’s passing reference to a two-state solution, Crown assured them that Obama’s proposal was couched in such outrageously impossible demands for concessions from the Palestinians that it was a dead letter.

Not all Jews accept this view of a Zionist-embedded Obama: Some racists reject him as an untrustworthy and unqualified ‘Schvartze’ because of his ‘very close intimate relationship’ with Reverent Jeremiah Wright. The Zionist-influenced mass media took their cue from the far-right and orchestrated a hate campaign against Reverend Wright and his links to Obama. The ‘liberal Zionists’, who strategized and ran Obama’s presidential campaign, easily convinced Obama to publicly dissociate himself from his former minister and mentor of the 1980’s. Obama complied. However, the alliance of the Republican Right and Zionfascists demanded Obama make a public denunciation of the Minister. The liberal Zionists prepared the script, which Obama recited, issuing a vicious condemnation of Rev. Wright and specifically listed Wright’s defense of the sovereignty and self-determination of the Palestinians as one of his ‘crimes’.

Obama had crossed the River Jordan. His capitulation to the Zionofascists was the inevitable consequence of his intimate and longstanding ties to his liberal-Zionist backers.

The public purging and scourging of a renowned African-American Christian theologian of the oppressed was only the beginning of the Zionist makeover of Obama as the first Jewish (or better Zionist) President of the United States. It was followed by further purges of any ‘centrist’ or ‘realist’ establishment adviser, who might at any time in the past have issued the mildest criticism of Israel’s policies or even praised or associated with any other critic of Israel or the Jewish Lobby in the US. It was ‘guilt by association’.

The Zionofascists soon pressed their campaign to force Obama’s liberal-Zionists to purge Zbigniew Brzezinski, the Cold Warrior National Security Adviser to former President Jimmy Carter, Samantha Power, author and lecturer at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and Robert Malley, a former Clinton adviser for their perceived crimes against Zionism.

Brzezinski was accused of advocating what he called “an even-handed Middle East policy”, something clearly ‘anti-Semitic’ in the eyes of the unconditional supporters of Israel who dominate the Presidents of the Major American Jewish Organizations (PMAJO). Worse still he praised the Walt-Mearsheimer book critical of the Israel Lobby, a capital offense in the eyes of most of the Jewish political spectrum. Power and Malley also transgressed the Israel-First line. Although Brzezinski later recanted his praise of Professors Walt and Mearsheimers’ study, he and the other members of the ‘objectionable three’ foreign policy specialists were marginalized and excluded from having any input on policy issues related to Middle East.

Control of Obama’s Middle East policy was taken over by Dennis Ross, a virulent Zionist advocate of Israel’s ultra-militaristic policies, including an armed preemptive attack on Iranian nuclear and military installations. Ross is an unconditional supporter of the Israeli starvation siege of the 1.5 million residents of the Gaza Strip and fully backed Israel’s savage air attacks against civilian targets in Lebanon. Obama’s appointment of Ross is the clearest guarantee to all Zionists, liberal, orthodox or fascist, that US policy in the Middle East will continue to be subordinated to the interests of the Israeli State and its military.

Obama’s purge of any and all moderate voices on Middle East policy, his placement of fanatical Israel-Firsters in most key positions in his campaign and new Administration reflects his long-term, deep immersion into the Zionist Power Configuration. The result is a “Jewish President” – in the sense that most key White House, economic and security appointments reflect pre-election Zionist power in the making, indoctrination and scripting of the Obama candidacy.

The Configuration of the ‘Jewish President’

One of Obama’s longest supporters, Rabbi Arnold Jacob Wolf, provides a clue to Obama’s affinity for Zionist appointments. According to Rabbi Wolf, “Obama is embedded in the Jewish world.” While the Rabbi is presumptuous to assume that all Jews subscribe to his own Israel-First views, he is absolutely correct if he is referring to the Jewish-Zionist world.

Nothing better explains Obama’s selection of demonstrably failed economists and security officials than his long-term, large-scale links to the ZPC.

Obama started with the appointments of dual US-Israeli citizen, Illinois Congressman Rahm Emmanuel and Zionist David Axelrod to top White House posts, as well as Lawrence Summers (long-time Harvard ally of the Judeo-fascist, torture advocate Alan Dershowitz) as chief White House economic adviser. Summers is a life-time Israel-Firster, who used his presidency at Harvard University as a bully pulpit to attack a student-faculty group critical of Israeli policies in the Occupied Terrtories. As the former Treasury Secretary under the Clinton regime he was a key architect of the speculator-dominate d financial system, which is currently in total collapse. In line with the ‘Jewish Presidency’, Obama named one of the foremost, unconditional Israel-Firsters to be his key Middle East policymaker – Dennis Ross, a leading Zionist ideologue and co-author of a presidential position paper advocating pre-emptive war with Iran. Ross is the pivotal Zionist
figure in Obama’s entourage and his appointment is the guarantee for the 52 Presidents of the Major American Jewish Organizations (PMAJO) that the Obama regime will follow and support with American guns and American tax-payer money every Israeli war crime, assault or invasion on its Arab and Parsi-speaking regional neighbors.

Ross, Axelrod, Summers, Emmanuel and their craven followers in Congress together with the AIPAC and the entire Zionist community-based network will ensure that Obama is inextricably ‘embedded’ in their agenda. They will not allow the publication or support of any intelligence investigation, judicial inquiry or United Nations report, which challenges Israel’s occupation of Palestine and promotion of pre-emptive war with Iran based on the fabrication of data about its so-called nuclear threat. Each and every recently appointed Zionists has condemned the United Nations and International Atomic Agency reports refuting Israel’s phony claims of an Iranian nuclear weapons program. They will make sure that newly appointed National Security Adviser, General James Jones will never bring up or make public his highly critical internal report based his on-site investigation of Israel’s crimes against the civilian Palestinian population in the
Occupied Territories.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, President Obama and Defense Secretary Gates are so deeply ‘embedded’ in the Zionist network and so deeply infused with the Israel-First ideology that ZPC ‘pressure’ will not be necessary. The three are, in effect, Zionized Zombies, eager to fawn and truckle, even to grotesque excesses, at every wink and gesture, signaling military handouts, UN vetoes and repeated provocative acts of war against Iran. They have even exceeded President Bush in their eagerness to please their Zionist mentors by recognizing Jerusalem as the ‘undivided’ capital of the Jews – effectively denying the rights of the Palestinian residents.

Nothing speaks to the dominance of the ZPC over US political life – domestic and foreign - than the election of their meticulously groomed first ‘Jewish President’ – and the subsequent takeover of strategic economic and security posts in his administration.

Conclusion

The ascent of a minority of ambitious power-driven political operatives acting first and
foremost for a militarist colonial power in a strategic region of the world economy represents the biggest threat to world peace and to US democratic values in recent history.

Think about it: Not only do the Zionists and their embedded clones rule the White House, they also have the political apparatus (left, liberal, center and right) to silence, insult, witch hunt and isolate any critic of their agenda, their organizations and of the State of Israel. When confronted by a critic the entire apparatus brays in unison about ‘anti-Semitism’ and follows up with severe civil sanctions. As Obama’s career under his Zionist handlers illustrates, they are capable of hurling repulsive denunciations against his former African-American mentor and spiritual councilor, Reverend Wright; capable of publicly humiliating and pushing aside a former President and Obama supporter, Jimmy Carter; capable of isolating and ‘sanitizing’ former top foreign policymakers from earlier Democratic Administration like Brzezinski, simply for pointing out Israeli crimes against humanity (although such observations are made daily in the European
press and political circles).

The apparatus combines the carrot (embedding and promoting Obama) and the stick (stigmatizing Carter): It all depends on whether an individual, politician, academic, writer or journalist is ‘useful’ (i.e. an unconditional supporter) or ‘harmful’ (i.e. critical) to the State of Israel.

The Obama experience illustrates how a small, close knit, well-organized and well financed minority operating through prestigious professional posts and powerful economic enterprises can penetrate major political institutions, capture upwardly mobile politicians and ‘turn’ them into willing accomplices in promoting wars on behalf of a foreign colonial militarist power. If in the past we have experienced Zionist thuggery mugging our freedom of speech in civil society, think of what we can expect when these thugs have complete control of the White House. The ‘First Jewish President’ of the United States indeed! Where does that leave the American people, their rights, their interests and their country’s independent foreign policy?

Epilogue

In early December 2008, Israel’s right wing party, Likud, under the leadership of ‘Bibi’ Netanyahu, met and nominated its slate of candidates for the upcoming national elections (February 12, 2009). The majority of candidates nominated represent what most Israeli journalists call the ‘hard right’ or what might be accurately described as Zionfascism. The Likud Party majority favors

the expulsion of all Palestinians (i.e. non-Jews) from Greater Israel,

the military seizure of Gaza,

the end of any pretense of peace negotiations and

the immediate bombing of Iran.

Currently Likud and its fascists have the support of a plurality of Israeli Jews. If they win, it is a virtual certainty they will receive the automatic support of all the principal, respectable pro-Israel Jewish organizations in the US, who follow the line that: “It is not ours to question whom the Israelis vote for office. It is our duty to back the State of Israel.”

The election of an Israeli-fascist regime will up the ante in Washington. Does Obama’s embedding in the Zionist apparatus include support for Jewish fascism, the total ethnic cleansing of Palestine and their unilateral decision to ‘nuke’ Iran? Three weeks into his presidency Obama will face his biggest Middle East challenge, which will define the nature of US policy in the region.

Obama has recently suggested that Washington would nuke Iran to protect Israel –which has never yet signed a treaty with the US – to which the Bush Administration replied contemptuously that it would be very hard to convince American parents in Kansas that their sons should risk nuclear incineration for the sake of a small country in the Middle East. Clearly Obama is a greater war monger on issues involving Israel then even Bush: It comes with being a “Jewish President”.


Satrio Arismunandar
Executive Producer
News Division, Trans TV, Lantai 3
Jl. Kapten P. Tendean Kav. 12 - 14 A, Jakarta 12790
Phone: 7917-7000, 7918-4544 ext. 4023, Fax: 79184558, 79184627

http://satrioarismu nandar6.blogspot .com
http://satrioarismu nandar.multiply. com

Readmore »»

Sudah Saatnya Menata Pembinaan dan Kompetisi

Bicara tentang persepakbolaan nasional, maka muaranya kita mesti melihat tim nasional Merah Putih. Dan semua tahu di segala level kompetisi, timnas Indonesia telah gagal total. Terakhir kegagalan dialami di ajang Piala AFF 2008.
Sejak satu dasawarsa terakhir Indonesia sering berganti pelatih, tercatat sejak 1998 ada enam pelatih menangani timnas dan semuanya 'gatot' (alias gagal total). Mulai Rusdi Bahalwan, Bernard Schumm, Nandar Iskandar, Ivan Kolev (dua kali masa kepelatihan), Peter Withe, dan Benny Dolo (dua kali masa kepelatihan hingga sekarang)
Rata-rata mereka hanya bekerja selama dua tahun. Ini bukan kebiasaan negara-negara sepakbola di mana pelatih timnas akan dikontrak selama empat tahun apapun hasil di sebuah turnamen. Jika ada yang melakukan pergantian radikal, biasanya karena kinerjanya tak bisa lagi ditorerir atau tim bersangkutan punya banyak dana, misalnya negara-negara kaya minyak dari Timur Tengah yang dengan mudahnya mengganti pelatih.
Enam pelatih yang sudah menangani timnas itu tak ada gelar bergengsi yang bisa diraih. Bahkan lambat laun, Indonesia justru makin susah mengalahkan Myanmar, dan semakin tertinggal di bandingkan Vietnam apalagi Thailand.
Kalau sudah berganti pelatih dan hasilnya tetap, maka pandangan kita tentu tertuju kepada para pemainnya. Fabio Capello pun bila melatih Indonesia, dia pasti akan kesulitan membangun tim dengan materi yang ada. Kita ambil contoh bagaimana Peter Withe yang dua kali sukses membawa Thailand menjuarai Piala Tiger yang sekarang berganti menjadi Piala AFF. Begitu menangani Indonesia, pelatih asal Inggris itu pun gagal. Problem utamanya dia tidak bisa menemukan materi pemain yang sudah mumpuni di Indonesia seperti dia temukan di Thailand.
Para pelatih timnas Indonesia pasti merasa kesulitan karena amunisi yang sangat terbatas. Seorang pelatih timnas tak akan pernah direpotkan pada pengasahan skill dan tehnik pemain. Dia hanya akan berkonsentrasi pada seleksi pemain, taktik dan strategi bermain. Pelatih timnas punya waktu yang sangat terbatas dalam bekerja. Dia hanya punya waktu pendek untuk bertemu dengan pemain sehingga masa itu hanya akan digunakan mengoptimalkan stamina dan permainan secara tim. Ironisnya ini menjadi problem persepakbolaan nasional yang tak terpecahkan hingga saat ini.
Lalu, apa yang harus dilakukan? Berkaca dari itu semua pokok permasalahannya sebenarnya sudah ketemu sejak awal yaitu pemain berkualitas. Darimana ini di dapatkan tentu dari pembinaan sejak usia dini dengan metode pelatihan yang benar, kemudian arena pematangan yaitu kompetisi.
Dua hal inilah yang harus segera dibenahi insan sepakbola di Indonesia baik terutama PSSI sebagai induk. Ada pengalaman menarik dari arena Pekan Olahraga Mahasiswa (POM) Asean di mana Indonesia yang diwakili juara PON 2008 Kaltim yaitu tim Jatim harus bermain setengah mati, dengan kata lain napas sudah sampai di leher, begitu pengakuan para pemain ketika menghadapi tim mahasiswa Thailand.
“Soal skill dan teknik kita tidak kalah, tapi bila sudah di lapangan menghadapi permainan kolektif, passing dan movement mereka sudah seperti pemain-pemain Eropa. Umpan-umpan mereka semua penuh kekuatan dan speed mereka juga luar biasa ini yang membuat anak-anak keteteran,” cerita Haruna Soemitro manajer tim Indonesia di POM Asean. Artinya pemain-pemain Indonesia sejak usia muda atau junior saja sudah kalah dari Thailand apalagi yang senior.
Belajar dari itu, maka pelatihan pemain usia dini dengan metode yang benar-lah sekarang yang harus dibenahi. Selama ini tentu ada yang salah dengan metode dan pola pembinaan pemain usia dini. Bisa kita hitung sejak Ligina diputar mulai 1994, berapa pemain berkualitas yang skill dan teknik kemudian cara bermainnya se-level dengan pemain-pemain terbaik yang dimiliki Thailand atau Vietnam? Tidak ada.
Setelah membenahi pembinaan pemain usia dini atau muda, barulah kita menata kembali kompetisi dengan benar. Ketika membawa tim U-23 Indonesia di SEA Games 2005 Filipina, Withe pernah berujar bahwa pemain Indonesia punya skill dan tehnik yang lebih baik di Asia Tenggara. Namun Withe mengeluh seringnya pemain Indonesia melakukan kesalahan elementer dalam permainan yang terkadang sangat merugikan. Timnas hanyalah hasil karena pendidikan sebenarnya ada di dalam kompetisi. Bagaimana pemain Indonesia bermain adalah kebiasaan mereka di dalam kompetisi. Artinya, jika ingin melihat peningkatan segala sektor timnas maka perbaiki pula iklim kompetisi lokal Indonesia.
Indonesia terkendala pada kemampuan pemainnya sebagai produk dari kompetisi lokal yang tidak memadai. Salah satu kelemahan mendasar timnas Indonesia adalah manajemen bermain. Bagaimana menyerang yang baik, bertahan yang ideal, mengawal lawan yang pantas dan sebagainya. Jika mengacu pada cara bermain Singapura dan Thailand, terlihat jelas bagaimana alur permainan mereka yang lebih rapi. Bagaimana permainan dibangun dengan struktur yang jelas. Sepanjang Piala AFF lalu, Indonesia lebih banyak bermain secara sporadis, kemudian rusak di tengah jalan karena kehabisan stamina.
Kompetisi Indonesia berjalan sangat buruk. Wasit yang tidak menjalankan aturan dengan baik membuat pemain Indonesia tampil tidak berbeda dengan mereka yang sering bermain di turnamen antar kampung. Ironisnya, para manajer dan pengelola klub menjadi figur sentral soal mengatur hasil pertandingan dengan suap sana suap sini.
Tapi saat sebagian pemain itu tampil untuk timnas, mereka tidak bisa mengulangi kebiasaan "main kayu" itu karena wasit di laga internasional akan lebih tegas. Akibatnya, para pemain seperti bingung harus melakukan sesuatu yang tidak biasa dilakukan.
Kebobrokan seperti inilah yang harus dibenahi, memang tidak bisa dalam waktu yang singkat. Tapi minimal untuk ke depannya Indonesia bisa kembali berjaya di Asia Tenggara. Minimal kita sebenarnya sudah punya modal teknik dan skill yang tidak kalah. (rahmat adhy kurniawan)

Readmore »»

The Art of Coaching

By David Clarke

The art of coaching soccer to young players requires one thing in abundance... enthusiasm. It's your most important quality. Kids will respond to you if you're an eager, hard working leader. Some young players find learning boring, some don't care about winning, and some can't remember which goal they are kicking towards. But what unites them is their desire to have fun and play a game. And that's your job, making learning fun.

Think first
Think about why you want to be a coach and what you want to achieve from your coaching sessions. Gain trust and respect. You are a role model with responsibility to your team. If you set high standards the children will follow. Be enthusiastic, make it fun.

Praise not criticism
Be patient with your players, you get more out of them if you praise work rather than criticise. Body language is important. Smiles and positive gestures will reap rewards. Shouting will not help you keep control and many parents watching may not like it. Be consistent, set achievable goals and give lots of feedback.

Get the knowledge
If you understand the skills and techniques involved in what you are trying to teach you will be better equipped to pass this on. Try out the training yourself, is it too hard, too easy? Demonstrating how skills work is better than using words. If you can't do a particular skill use one of your helpers who can.

Warm up, warm down
You must make sure your players stretch their muscles before and after a training session. Growing bodies need to be looked after. Some knowledge of how the body responds to training and how to prevent injuries is important.

Remember you're coaching individuals
Some young players take longer to understand - or to catch onto the technique you are coaching - than others but it doesn't mean they are not as good, you have to adapt to their speed rather than the other way around.
Make sure you have equipment and kit for the whole group. Children react badly to feeling left out. Avoid sessions where kids have to sit out. Don't make all the games competitive.

Mind games
You are the confidence builder for individuals and the team, set goals, control emotions, help your kids concentrate. As a coach you are in charge of minds as well as the physical side.

Readmore »»

MENJUAL KEPERAWANAN

Wanita itu berjalan agak ragu memasuki hotel berbintang lima . Sang petugas satpam yang berdiri di samping pintu hotel menangkap kecurigaan pada wanita itu. Tapi dia hanya memandang saja dengan awas ke arah langkah wanita itu yang kemudian mengambil tempat duduk di lounge yang agak di pojok.
Petugas satpam itu memperhatikan sekian lama, ada sesuatu yang harus dicurigainya terhadap wanita itu. Karena dua kali waiter mendatanginya tapi, wanita itu hanya menggelengkan kepala. Mejanya masih kosong. Tak ada yang dipesan. Lantas untuk apa wanita itu duduk seorang diri. Adakah seseorang yang sedang ditunggunya?.

Petugas satpam itu mulai berpikir bahwa wanita itu bukanlah tipe wanita nakal yang biasa mencari mangsa di hotel ini. Usianya nampak belum terlalu dewasa. Tapi tak bisa dibilang anak-anak. Sekitar usia remaja yang tengah beranjak dewasa.
Setelah sekian lama, akhirnya memaksa petugas satpam itu untuk mendekati meja wanita itu dan bertanya: '' Maaf, nona ... Apakah anda sedang menunggu seseorang? "
'' Tidak! '' Jawab wanita itu sambil mengalihkan wajahnya ke tempat lain.
'' Lantas untuk apa anda duduk di sini?"
'' Apakah tidak boleh? '' Wanita itu mulai memandang ke arah sang petugas satpam..
'' Maaf, Nona. Ini tempat berkelas dan hanya diperuntukan bagi orang yang
ingin menikmati layanan kami.''
'' Maksud, bapak? "
'' Anda harus memesan sesuatu untuk bisa duduk di sini ''
'' Nanti saya akan pesan setelah saya ada uang. Tapi sekarang, izinkanlah saya duduk di sini untuk sesuatu yang akan saya jual '' Kata wanita itu dengan suara lambat.
'' Jual? Apakah anda menjual sesuatu di sini? '' satpam itu memperhatikan wanita itu. Tak nampak ada barang yang akan dijual. Mungkin wanita ini adalah pramuniaga yang hanya membawa brosur.
'' Ok, lah. Apapun yang akan anda jual, ini bukanlah tempat untuk berjualan. Mohon mengerti. ''
'' Saya ingin menjual diri saya, '' Kata wanita itu dengan tegas sambil menatap dalam-dalam ke arah satpam itu.
Satpam itu terkesima sambil melihat ke kiri dan ke kanan. '' Mari ikut saya, '' Kata petugas satpam itu memberikan isyarat dengan tangannya. Wanita itu menangkap sesuatu tindakan kooperatif karena ada secuil senyum di wajah petugas satpam itu. Tanpa ragu wanita itu melangkah mengikuti petugas satpam
itu.
Di koridor hotel itu terdapat kursi yang hanya untuk satu orang. Di sebelahnya ada telepon antar ruangan yang tersedia khusus bagi pengunjung yang ingin menghubungi penghuni kamar di hotel ini. Di tempat inilah deal berlangsung.
'' Apakah anda serius? ''
'' Saya serius '' Jawab wanita itu tegas.
'' Berapa tarif yang anda minta? ''
'' Setinggi-tingginya. .' '
'' Mengapa?" Petugas satpam itu terkejut sambil menatap wanita itu.
'' Saya masih perawan ''
'' Perawan? '' Sekarang petugas satpam itu benar-benar terperanjat. Tapi wajahnya berseri. Peluang
emas untuk mendapatkan rezeki berlebih hari ini. Pikirnya
'' Bagaimana saya tahu anda masih perawan?''
'' Gampang sekali. Semua pria dewasa tahu membedakan mana perawan dan mana
bukan.. Ya kan ...''
'' Kalau tidak terbukti? "

'' Tidak usah bayar ...''
'' Baiklah ...''
Petugas satpam itu menghela napas. Kemudian melirik ke kiri dan ke kanan.
'' Saya akan membantu mendapatkan pria kaya yang ingin membeli keperawanan anda. ''
'' Cobalah. ''
'' Berapa tarif yang diminta? ''
'' Setinggi-tingginya. ''
'' Berapa? ''
'' Setinggi-tingginya. Saya tidak tahu berapa? ''
'' Baiklah. Saya akan tawarkan kepada tamu hotel ini. Tunggu sebentar ya.
'' Petugas satpam itu berlalu dari hadapan wanita itu. Tak berapa lama kemudian, petugas satpam itu datang lagi dengan wajah cerah.
'' Saya sudah dapatkan seorang penawar. Dia minta Rp. 5 juta. Bagaimana?''
'' Tidak adakah yang lebih tinggi? ''
'' Ini termasuk yang tertinggi, '' Petugas satpam itu mencoba meyakinkan.
'' Saya ingin yang lebih tinggi...''
'' Baiklah. Tunggu disini ...'' Petugas satpam itu berlalu.
Tak berapa lama petugas satpam itu datang lagi dengan wajah lebih berseri.
'' Saya dapatkan harga yang lebih tinggi. Rp. 6 juta rupiah. Bagaimana? ''
'' Tidak adakah yang lebih tinggi? ''
'' Nona, ini harga sangat pantas untuk anda. Cobalah bayangkan, bila anda diperkosa oleh pria, anda tidak akan mendapatkan apa apa. Atau andai perawan anda diambil oleh pacar anda, andapun tidak akan mendapatkan apa apa, kecuali janji. Dengan uang Rp. 6 juta anda akan menikmati layanan hotel
berbintang untuk semalam dan keesokan paginya anda bisa melupakan semuanya dengan membawa uang banyak. Dan lagi, anda juga telah berbuat baik terhadap saya. Karena saya akan mendapatkan komisi dari transaksi ini dari tamu hotel. Adilkan. Kita sama-sama butuh ... ''
'' Saya ingin tawaran tertinggi ... '' Jawab wanita itu, tanpa peduli dengan celoteh petugas
satpam itu. Petugas satpam itu terdiam. Namun tidak kehilangan semangat. '' Baiklah, saya akan carikan tamu lainnya. Tapi sebaiknya anda ikut saya. Tolong kancing baju anda disingkapkan sedikit.
Agar ada sesuatu yang memancing mata orang untuk membeli. '' Kata petugas satpam itu dengan agak
kesal. Wanita itu tak peduli dengan saran petugas satpam itu tapi tetap mengikuti langkah petugas satpam itu memasuki lift.
Pintu kamar hotel itu terbuka. Dari dalam nampak pria bermata sipit, tampan, gagah, namun agak berumur tersenyum menatap mereka berdua.
'' Ini yang saya maksud, tuan. Apakah tuan berminat? " Kata petugas satpam itu dengan sopan. Pria bermata sipit itu menatap dengan seksama ke sekujur tubuh wanita itu....
'' Berapa? '' Tanya pria itu kepada Wanita itu.
'' Setinggi-tingginya '' Jawab wanita itu dengan tegas.
'' Berapa harga tertinggi yang sudah ditawar orang? '' Kata pria itu kepada sang petugas satpam.
'' Rp.. 6 juta, tuan ''
'' Kalau begitu saya berani dengan harga Rp. 7 juta untuk semalam. ''
Wanita itu terdiam.
Petugas satpam itu memandang ke arah wanita itu dan berharap ada jawaban bagus dari wanita itu.
'' Bagaimana? '' tanya pria itu.
''Saya ingin lebih tinggi lagi ...'' Kata wanita itu.
Petugas satpam itu tersenyum kecut.
'' Bawa pergi wanita ini. '' Kata pria itu kepada petugas satpam sambil menutup pintu kamar dengan keras.
'' Nona, anda telah membuat saya kesal. Apakah anda benar benar ingin menjual? ''
'' Tentu! ''
'' Kalau begitu mengapa anda menolak harga tertinggi itu ... ''
'' Saya minta yang lebih tinggi lagi ...'' Petugas satpam itu menghela napas panjang menahan emosi. Dia pun tak ingin kesempatan ini hilang. Dicobanya untuk tetap membuat wanita itu merasa nyaman bersamanya.
'' Kalau begitu, kamu tunggu di tempat tadi saja, ya. Saya akan mencoba mencari penawar yang
lainnya. ''
Di lobi hotel, petugas satpam itu berusaha memandang satu per satu pria yang ada. Berusaha mencari langganan yang biasa memesan wanita melaluinya. Sudah sekian lama, tak ada yang nampak dikenalnya. Namun, tak begitu jauh dari hadapannya ada seorang pria yang sedang berbicara lewat
telepon genggamnya.
'' Bukankah kemarin saya sudah kasih kamu uang 25 juta Rupiah.
Apakah itu tidak cukup? " Terdengar suara pria itu berbicara. Wajah pria itu nampak masam seketika
'' Datanglah kemari. Saya tunggu. Saya kangen kamu. Kan sudah seminggu lebih kita engga ketemu, ya sayang?! ''
Kini petugas satpam itu tahu, bahwa pria itu sedang berbicara dengan wanita. Kemudian, dilihatnya, pria itu menutup teleponnya. Ada kekesalan di wajah pria itu. Dengan tenang, petugas satpam itu berkata kepada Pria itu: '' Pak, apakah anda butuh wanita ... ??? ''
Pria itu menatap sekilas kearah petugas satpam dan kemudian memalingkan wajahnya.
'' Ada wanita yang duduk di sana, '' Petugas satpam itu menujuk kearah wanita tadi.
Petugas satpam itu tak kehilangan akal untuk memanfaatkan peluang ini.
"Dia masih perawan..''
Pria itu mendekati petugas satpam itu. Wajah mereka hanya berjarak setengah meter. '' Benarkah itu? ''
'' Benar, pak. ''
'' Kalau begitu kenalkan saya dengan wanita itu ... ''
'' Dengan senang hati. Tapi, pak ...Wanita itu minta harga setinggi tingginya.''
'' Saya tidak peduli ... '' Pria itu menjawab dengan tegas. Pria itu menyalami hangat wanita itu.
'' Bapak ini siap membayar berapapun yang kamu minta. Nah, sekarang seriuslah ....'' Kata petugas satpam itu dengan nada kesal.
'' Mari kita bicara di kamar saja.'' Kata pria itu sambil menyisipkan uang kepada petugas satpam itu.
Wanita itu mengikuti pria itu menuju kamarnya. Di dalam kamar ...
'' Beritahu berapa harga yang kamu minta?
'' Seharga untuk kesembuhan ibu saya dari penyakit ''
'' Maksud kamu?
'' ' Saya ingin menjual satu satunya harta dan kehormatan saya untuk kesembuhan ibu saya. Itulah cara saya berterima kasih .... ''
'' Hanya itu ...''
'' Ya ...! ''
Pria itu memperhatikan wajah wanita itu. Meskipun cantik tapi tampak terlalu muda untuk menjual
kehormatannya. Wanita ini tidak menjual cintanya. Tidak pula menjual penderitaannya. Tidak! Dia hanya ingin tampil sebagai petarung gagah berani di tengah kehidupan sosial yang tak lagi gratis. Pria
ini sadar, bahwa di hadapannya ada sesuatu kehormatan yang tak ternilai. Melebihi dari kehormatan sebuah perawan bagi wanita. Yaitu keteguhan untuk sebuah pengorbanan tanpa ada rasa sesal. Wanita ini tidak melawan gelombang laut melainkan ikut kemana gelombang membawa dia pergi. Ada kepasrahan di atas keyakinan tak tertandingi. Bahwa kehormatan akan selalu bernilai dan
dibeli oleh orang terhormat pula dengan cara-cara terhormat.
'' Siapa nama kamu? ''
'' Itu tidak penting. Sebutkanlah harga yang bisa bapak bayar .... '' Kata wanita itu

'' Saya tak bisa menyebutkan harganya. Karena kamu bukanlah sesuatu yang pantas ditawar. ''
''Kalau begitu, tidak ada kesepakatan! ''
'' Ada ! " Kata pria itu seketika.
'' Sebutkan! ''
'' Saya membayar keberanianmu. Itulah yang dapat saya beli dari kamu. Terimalah uang ini.
Jumlahnya lebih dari cukup untuk membawa ibumu ke rumah sakit. Dan sekarang pulanglah ... '' Kata pria itu sambil menyerahkan uang dari dalam tas kerjanya.
'' Saya tidak mengerti ...''
'' Selama ini saya selalu memanjakan istri simpanan saya. Dia menikmati semua pemberian saya tapi dia tak pernah berterima kasih. Selalu memeras. Sekali saya memberi maka selamanya dia selalu meminta. Tapi hari ini, saya bisa membeli rasa terima kasih dari seorang wanita yang gagah berani untuk berkorban bagi orang tuanya. Ini suatu kehormatan yang tak ada nilainya bila saya bisa membayar ...''
'' Dan, apakah bapak ikhlas...? ''
'' Apakah uang itu kurang? ''
'' Lebih dari cukup, pak ... ''
'' Sebelum kamu pergi, boleh saya bertanya satu hal? ''
'' Silahkan ...''
'' Mengapa kamu begitu beraninya ... ''
'' Siapa bilang saya berani. Saya takut pak ... Tapi lebih dari seminggu saya berupaya mendapatkan cara untuk membawa ibu saya ke rumah sakit dan semuanya gagal. Ketika saya mengambil keputusan
untuk menjual kehormatan saya maka itu bukanlah karena dorongan nafsu. Bukan pula pertimbangan akal saya yang `bodoh` ... Saya hanya bersikap dan berbuat untuk sebuah keyakinan ... ''
'' Keyakinan apa? ''
'' Jika kita ikhlas berkorban untuk ibu atau siapa saja, maka Tuhan lah yang akan menjaga kehormatan kita ... '' Wanita itu kemudian melangkah keluar kamar.
Sebelum sampai di pintu wanita itu berkata:
'' Lantas apa yang bapak dapat dari membeli ini ... ''
'' Kesadaran... '' jawabnya tegas.

Di sebuah rumah di pemukiman kumuh. Seorang ibu yang sedang terbaring sakit dikejutkan oleh dekapan hangat anaknya. '' Kamu sudah pulang, nak ''
'' Ya, bu ... ''
'' Kemana saja kamu, nak ... ???''
'' Menjual sesuatu, bu ... ''
'' Apa yang kamu jual?'' Ibu itu menampakkan wajah keheranan. Tapi wanita muda itu hanya tersenyum ... Hidup sebagai yatim lagi miskin terlalu sia-sia untuk diratapi di tengah kehidupan yang serba
pongah ini. Di tengah situasi yang tak ada lagi yang gratis. Semua orang berdagang. Membeli dan menjual adalah keseharian yang tak bisa dielakan.
Tapi Tuhan selalu memberi tanpa pamrih, tanpa perhitungan.....
'' Kini saatnya ibu untuk berobat ... ''
Digendongnya ibunya dari pembaringan, sambil berkata: '' Tuhan telah membeli yang saya jual... ''.
Taksi yang tadi ditumpanginya dari hotel masih setia menunggu di depan rumahnya.
Dimasukannya ibunya ke dalam taksi dengan hati-hati dan berkata kepada supir taksi: '' Antar kami kerumah sakit ...'' (NOC Pers). .

Readmore »»

A Hero of Our Time: Muntadar al-Zaidi

By DAVE LINDORFF

When Iraqi journalist Muntadar al-Zaidi heaved his two shoes at the head of President George W. Bush during a press conference in Baghdad, he did something that the White House press corps should have done years ago.
Al-Zaidi listened to Bush blather that the half-decade of war he had initiated with the illegal invasion of Iraq had been "necessary for US security, Iraqi stability (sic) and world peace" and something just snapped. The television correspondent, who had been kidnapped and held for a while last year by Shiite militants, pulled off a shoe and threw it at Bush—a serious insult in Iraqi culture—and shouted "This is a
farewell kiss, you dog!" When the first shoe missed its target, he grabbed a second shoe and heaved it too, causing the president to duck a second time as al-Zaidi shouted, "This is from the widows, the orphans, and those who were killed in Iraq!"
I'll admit, listening to Bush lie his way through eight years of press conferences, while pre-selected reporters played along and pretended to get his attention so they could ask questions which had been submitted and vetted in advance, I have felt like throwing my shoes at the television set.
Al-Zaidi, who paid for his courageous act of protest by being brutally beaten by security guards, is a hero of the profession. He stopped taking the president's BS and called him what he is: a murderer and a criminal, with the blood of perhaps upwards of a million Iraqis on his hands. Al-Zaidi used what was supposed to be a staged photo-op for the president as an opportunity to speak up for those whose lives have been ruined by this president—the ones our suck-up journalists
routinely ignore.
I'm not suggesting that journalists should routinely leave presidential press conferences in their stocking feet. We have different ways of expressing our sentiments to people we feel have insulted our intelligence than throwing shoes at them, but it would be nice to see a journalist or two flip the president the bird when he lies so blatantly to them. Or they could all get up and just walk out,
leaving him standing alone at the presidential lectern.
It's time for the press corps to stop treating presidents like royalty. If he accomplished anything at all in eight years in office, President Bush has demonstrated that, to the contrary, the president is a very ordinary—and in his case a rather less than ordinary—man. The office of president deserves no more respect than that of the mayor of Detroit, or of Wasilla.
My suggestion is that the press corps use the remaining five weeks of the Bush administration to develop a new relationship with the presidency—one in which they drop all the phony propriety and tradition and start acting like boisterous newshounds of old, barking questions, laughing cruelly at inane answers, demanding follow-ups when they are given the run-around, and, where necessary, walking out,
or perhaps tossing the occasional shoe.
The journalism profession was a full-blown disaster and an utter disgrace during the Bush administration, and with all the crises facing the country and the world, in part because of that failure on their part, we cannot afford to have them continue that failure into the Obama administration.
With the Bush administration reduced to a running joke at this point, it gives the journalism profession a chance to redeem itself by using these few remaining weeks to establish a new tradition for presidential press conferences and photo-ops—one that can continue on into the new presidency.
Meanwhile, I'm suggesting that my alma mater, the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, hire al=Zaidi to teach a class in press conference journalism techniques. They should make it a multi-year appointment, because if he left after just one year, his would be difficult shoes to fill.
NOTE: Speaking of shoes and the White House, Skip Mendler of Honesdale, PA has a great idea. He suggests that everyone who is disgusted with the outgoing Bush/Cheney administration send a shoe to the White House. Just imagine a pile up of a million smelly old running shoes in the White House mailroom! I think he's got something.
Spread the word!
DAVE LINDORFF is a Philadelphia- based journalist and columnist. His latest book is "The Case for Impeachment" (St. Martin's Press, 2006 and now in paperback). His work is available at www.thiscantbehappe ning.net.

Readmore »»

Arogansi AS dan Anarkisme

“Pada negara yang berdasar hukum, eksistensi sebuah negara akan membahayakan bila negara itu gagal menjalankan hukum dengan cermat. Pemerintah kita sangat kuat, kita hadir di mana-mana sebagai guru guru. Baik atau buruk, ini menjadi contoh bagi negara atau bangsa lain. Kejahatan itu menular. Jika negara merusak hukum, maka mereka menghina hukum, dan itu mengundang setiap orang menjadi hukum itu sendiri, dan ini akan mengundang anarki” Louis Dembitz Brandeis, Hakim Agung AS era Presiden Woodrow Wilson.

Apakah Pakistan bertanggung jawab dengan Mumbai Attacks? Tidak. Apakah serangan itu jawaban terhadap tindakan represif terhadap minoritas Muslim di India? Tidak. Apakah ini tanggung jawab pemerintah Amerika Serikat? Ya.
Mumbai Attacks digambarkan media barat sebagai sebuah teror golongan radikal Islam. Itu yang didengungkan pemerintah AS melalui media massa barat yang menjadi corong propaganda dalam memusuhi Islam. Yang benar itu semua merupakan akibat dari hadirnya AS sebagai 'guru' di berbagai belahan dunia ini. Bila kita tarik ke belakang kita ingat bagaimana peran AS di Iran mulai era Shah Iran hingga naiknya Ayatullah Khomeini, penempatan pasukan AS di Saudi Arabia, serangan pasukan AS di Afghanistan, dan Irak termasuk saat mereka menjatuhkan bom di lapangan sepakbola tempat di mana berlangsungnya sebuah upacara pernikahan.
Apa yang dilakukan AS selama ini selalu saja memusuhi kaum Muslim, kita tahu bagaimana AS membela mati-matian Israel yang melakukan pembersihan etnis Palestina yang ingin berdiam di negara mereka sendiri.
Itu semua adalah gambaran arogansi AS dan ingin dunia melihat bagaimana mereka menerapkan hukum mereka dengan mengatasnamakan moralitas dan hak asasi manusia. Pemerintah AS sudah mengusung war on terror, namun sejatinya memerangi teror ala Amerika ini ternyata menimbulkan teror lain. Moral superiority of the West yang didengungkan AS ternyata menimbulkan crime against humanity dengan bentuk lain. Tampaknya selama Islam atau kaum Muslim di dunia ini tidak menurut sang Guru, maka tetap saja cap radikal Islam tidak pernah habis.
Dan apa yang diucapkan Louis Dembitzs Brandeis, seorang hakim yang dihormati di AS, ternyata benar adanya hingga sekarang ini. Hukum masyarakat dunia versi AS yang sebenarnya merusak tatanan hukum itu sendiri, menjadikan manusia bertindak seperti hukum (tentara AS yang dengan seenaknya berperang di Somalia, Afghanistan, Irak dll), akibatnya ini telah mengundang anarkisme. Dunia tak pernah aman. "Innal hasanaat tushrifna sayyiaat/ Sesungguhnya kebaikan akan mengalahkan kejahatan" (Hud:114) (*)

Readmore »»

Beda-Beda Tipis Rafa-Freddy

Pekan kedua bulan Desember kemarin menjadi momen penting bagi dua pelatih, Freddy Muli di Persebaya dan Rafael Benitez di Liverpool. Memang menyamakan dua pelatih ini tidak adil, tapi kita ambil sisi positifnya bila berbicara soal profesi.

SOAL prestasi Freddy Muli memang bukan levelnya Rafael Benitez, tapi kita harus sadar mereka berdua memiliki profesi yang sama yaitu pelatih sepakbola. Di mana-mana pelatih sepakbola memiliki hak dan kewajiban yang sama, sesuai dengan level mereka masing-masing.
Kebetulan Rafael Benitez levelnya sudah kita ketahui bersama, demikian juga level Freddy Muli di pentas sepakbola nasional. Yang menarik entah kebetulan atau tidak pada pekan kedua Desember ini mereka berdua menghadapi situasi yang sama.
Liverpool sementara memimpin klasemen Premiership, demikian juga Persebaya memimpin klasemen sementara kompetisi Divisi Utama Wilayah Timur. Rafael Benitez kala itu juga sedang menunggu negosiasi perpanjangan kontrak, demikian juga Freddy Muli yang kontraknya berakhir pada 21 Desember mendatang.
Kontrak Rafa, sapaan akrab Rafael Benitez sebenarnya baru berakhir pada 2009 nanti, namun sesuai dengan aturan maka sekarang ini bisa dilakukan pembicaraan ulang apakah kontrak itu diperpanjang dengan tambahan klausul tertentu atau hubungan kontrak mereka diakhiri karena tidak ada deal yang win-win solution.
Pada awal Desember secara sepihak Rafa menghentikan proses nego, karena manajemen Liverpool tidak memenuhi permintaannya soal kenaikan gaji. Sebelumnya gaji Rafa adalah 3 juta pound per tahun (Rp 48,8 miliar), kemudian dia minta tambah seperti yang diterima dua pelatih terbaik di Inggris lainnya yaitu Sir Alex Ferguson dan Arsene Wenger yang sama-sama digaji 4,5 juta pound per tahun (Rp 73,3 miliar). Tuntutan ini tidak langsung dipenuhi bos Liverpool, George Gillett dan Tom Hicks.
Namun atas dukungan pemain, suporter dan jajaran direksi The Reds tuntutan Rafa itu akhirnya dipenuhi big boss Liverpool, apalagi begitu dengar proses nego Rafa-Liverpool terhenti, klub besar Juventus sudah menyatakan ketertarikannya untuk memboyong Rafael Benitez.
Alhasil, Rafa pun tetap menangani Steven Gerrard dkk dan kini menjadi pelatih ketiga di Premiership yang digaji 4,5 juta pound per tahun. Beda-beda tipis apa yang dialami Rafa juga dialami Freddy Muli. Jangan dilihat soal nilai kontraknya (karena memang tidak sebanding), tapi bagaimana proses nego kemudian kesamaan profesi dan momen yang dialami dua pelatih menarik untuk disimak.
Freddy akhirnya memutuskan hengkang dari Persebaya karena permintaan gaji dan kontraknya Rp 650 juta tidak penuhi Persebaya, sementara Persebaya hanya mampu memberi gaji Rp 25 juta per bulan. Penyebabnya, Persebaya memang tidak punya uang untuk menggaji pelatih sebanyak permintaan Freddy. Sedangkan Freddy menganggap tawaran yang diberikan Persebaya terlalu rendah. Bahkan dia beranggapan Persebaya tidak menghargai dirinya karena memberikan penawaran senilai itu.
Layakkah Rafa mendapat gaji Rp 70-an miliar, pantaskah Freddy mendapat kontrak Rp 650 juga atau kurangkah bila Freddy mendapat gaji Rp 25 juta per bulan? Tidak ada ukuran yang pas untuk mengukur kelayakan pendapatan yang diterima seorang pelatih sepakbola di dunia ini.
Karena kita hidup di Surabaya, tentunya bisa dihitung berapa biaya yang kita keluarkan untuk hidup satu bulan. Dan setelah meresapi kondisi itu dari lubuk hati masing-masing, barulah kita bisa menilai benarkah keputusan Freddy itu? Yang jelas larangan penggunaan APBD kemudian ditambah krisis global sekarang ini, membuat seluruh komponen di persepakbolaan nasional kacau balau. Tak terkecuali Persebaya yang selama ini hanya mengandalkan sosok Saleh Ismail Mukadar untuk urusan finansial. (*)

Readmore »»