Another View of Basketball and War

U-T San Diego -- Diana Kutlow is senior program officer at the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice at the University of San Diego.

This Veterans Day afternoon, the nation’s eyes will be drawn to the flight deck of the Carl Vinson, the aircraft carrier that released Osama Bin Laden’s body to its watery grave earlier this year. In a made-for-TV event that is a potent potion of patriotism, militarism, politics and sports, North Carolina and Michigan State will play basketball for bleachers full of sailors and VIPs, including President Barack Obama. The event’s catchy title, the Carrier Classic, implies that this will be an annual event into eternity. (Full Story)