#Justicia Para Topo: The Shirt Heard 'Round the World

Robert Lewandoski celebrating a spectacular goal during
Bayern's 6-1 victory over Porto

When FC Bayern Munich lost to FC Porto 3-1 in the first game at FC Porto, it looked like all hope was lost. However, Bayern had one of the greatest aggregate bouncebacks of all time. In the quarterfinal game at Allianz, the German league champs thrashed FC Porto 6-1, including five goals in the first half. This is an incredible feat, and games like this are far and few between. However, the real news was about the coach of Bayern Munich, Pep Guardiola. Pep was charged by the UEFA for "an incident of non sporting nature." The reason? He was wearing a shirt with the words, translated, justice for Topo. "Topo" was an Argentine reporter who died in a car crash in Brazil during the world cup. The investigation, according to the family, has been "sluggish."

Pep Guardiola at the post-match interview

In my opinion, the UEFA decision is despicable. The UEFA constitution of sorts bans the use of "sporting events for manifestations of a non-sporting nature." While this may help with some rulings, such as dealing with anti-Semetic or racist participants, Pep is trying to do a good thing. By having this rule in place, the UEFA is essentially shooting down activists in the soccer world. If they hold this ruling, they are shooting down a potential activism campaign. The UEFA should allow Pep and any others in the future to campaign or show support for good causes, for the sake of soccer.

Original Article:
http://www.espnfc.us/uefa-champions-league/story/2412896/uefa-charges-bayern-coach-pep-guardiola-t-shirt

Aaron Hernandez: A Reputation Lost

A recent event is the verdict in the Aaron Hernandez trial. For those of you who are unaware, Aaron Hernandez was in a month long trial. He was being tried for the murder of his friend Odin Lloyd. The defense team attempted to blemish the deceased man's portriat, focusing on the fact that he was Mr. Hernandez's "blunt master," or marijuanna supplier. The persecution, however, showed Mr. Lloyd as a "loving son" and "protective brother." In the end, the prosecution won the trial and Mr. Hernandez was found guilty of first-degree murder. He also was found guilty of unlawful possesion of a firearm.

Aaron Hernandez was once a fourth round draft pick with a 40 million dollar contract to play football for the New England Patriots. However, his life was turned upside down when he alledgedly committed this act. This story only reinforces the Will Rogers quote that "It takes a lifetime to build a good reputation, but a second to loose it." Aaron Hernandez built a good reputation. He led the Florida Gators to a national title in 2008 and was drafted by the Patriots. However, it took him a few seconds to loose it and jurors 35 hours to confirm that loss. May he serve as an example of this quote and caution others to not fall to the same fate.

Article: http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/15/us/aaron-hernandez-verdict/index.html

Why the U.S. Needs to Upgrade its Security

According to a recent article on CNN, Russian Hackers have  hacked into the White House computer system. Not only can the hackers get in, but "despite efforts to keep them out, [they] have been able to reenter the system. The hackers allegedly got into the system by phishing using a State Department email account. This is not only a danger to the U.S., but has been called "more severe than we previously assessed."

These breaches of the White House's system are completely unacceptable. With computers and hacking so prevalent now, the U.S. needs to take the necessary steps to stop these breaches of one of the most important systems in the country. With the large amount of programmers who work in the U.S., it would be a good idea for the government to hire some of the best to further secure the systems with important information. Another issue is that sometimes it is the employees themselves who let the hackers into the system. Officials have suggested that "government officials and private businesses teach employees what 'spear phishing' looks like." If this issue is not addressed, it could end up being much more important systems being hacked that would have a greater effect on the American people at large. Cyber-security needs to be one of the highest things on the agenda for the U.S. if we want to stay in our current position as a world leader.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/07/politics/how-russians-hacked-the-wh/index.html