Where Has England's Misplaced Optimism Gone?
The English summer - meteorologically defined as two consecutive days upon which the sun is visible to the naked eye - brings with it a host of sporting activities: cricket, tennis, sunbathing in torrential rain. But none are engaged with such masochistic fervor as the biennial pursuit of over-hyping England's prospects ahead of a major international tournament. Press, pundits and politicians compete to whip the national psyche into a froth of bravado, sure that this is the year England finally breaks a 48-year cycle of failure.