Beating "the king of penalty kicks"

Iraqi goalkeeper Noor Sabri Abbas celebrates his amazing save.

Apparently, South Korea's goalkeeper has been dubbed "the king of penalty kicks," but that was not the case today.

Iraq have reached the final, and they did it with style. I haven't watched the game yet, but I have it recorded. From everything I've read so far, despite the initial 0-0 score, it was a tense game up until the fourth penalty kick scored by Iraq. That was when "the king of penalty kicks" lost his throne.

South Korea went out with a 4-3 score, after penalty kicks.

The man of the match for the tense game was Iraqi goalkeeper Noor Sabri Abbas (pictured above).

This is a very exciting day for all Iraqis, who were given the gift of victory by their team and their brilliant Brazilian coach, Jorvan Vieira. The streets of Baghdad and pretty much every city in Iraq are filled with shiny, happy people jubilating and celebrating Iraq's success at the Asian Cup. The final game will be June 29 and Iraq will play Saudi Arabia, who beat Japan today as well with 3-2.

Coach Vieira getting ready for a press conference.

I will be posting a video on my blog of the highlights from the game as soon as I come across one on YouTube. In the meantime, you can view the highlights at this link through the official AFC website: http://www.afcasiancup.com/en/fanzone/hilights.asp

GO IRAQ!!!!!

The one good thing

In the midst of all the turmoil in Iraq, and people losing their lives left and right, it's hard to find a bright side, and even harder to find humanity.

Today, I found a tiny bit of light in the very long and dark tunnel this country has dug itself in to; the quagmire that is Iraq.

It is a very touching story about a soldier who adopted a stray puppy the day before a roadside bomb killed him in Iraq.

Hero, the puppy, was brought to the US to help 22-year-old Army Spc. Justin Rollins' family and girlfriend cope with his unfortunate death.

So many soldiers and innocent civilians have lost their lives in this war, and there is absolutely no good news no matter how you look at it.

The story of Hero, however, is the only story that warms your heart and reminds you that there is still humanity in the midst of all the madness and death. It is unfortunate that people can't be shipped to a safe place, but it's still nice to know that animals are being taken into consideration.