FIFA officials arrested on racketeering charges

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NEED TO KNOW:

Whether you call it soccer or football, it's the world's most popular sport by far. Children everywhere grow up playing it. And adults everywhere while away their days watching it. The whole thing is governed by FIFA, a multi-billion dollar organization that is famously corrupt, according to many, many sources.

On Wednesday morning, decades of alleged racketeering finally caught up with its leaders when plain-clothed Swiss police arrived at a 5-star hotel in Zurich, where FIFA executives were gathered for their annual meeting, and arrested seven high-ranking officials. The indictment names a total of 14 people and was brought by the US Justice Department after an investigation by the FBI. The officials arrested at the Swiss hotel are expected to be extradited to the United States.

One notable person not named in the indictment is Sepp Blatter, FIFA's all-powerful president. An election this week is expected to give Blatter a fifth term. A spokesman said the election would go ahead as planned.

Blatter is likely the real prize for the FBI. And he is probably very nervous at the moment. Any one of those arrested today could turn over evidence of Blatter's complicity in exchange for a lighter sentence. The FIFA president has a huge amount of power and has, as such, amassed a pretty handy fortune. Politicians who are seeking to hold the World Cup in their countries or cities, and corporations that want their brands attached to the sport, have all knelt before him.

FIFA has been under particular heat ever since it awarded the 2022 World Cup to Qatar. Journalists and human rights organizations have uncovered shocking abuses by the Qatari government as it builds new stadiums and hotels ahead of the tournament. More than a million foreign workers are in Qatar and many of them are living in slave-like conditions. Hundreds of workers have died.

WANT TO KNOW:

Indonesia might ban alcohol entirely, and everyone's kind of freaking out about it. Almost 90 percent of Indonesians are Muslims. There are more Muslims in Indonesia than in the entire Middle East. But it is not a Muslim country. Its government is secular. And many people like to drink.

Conservative political parties in Indonesia have repeatedly tried to get a ban on the sale, production and consumption of alcohol passed by the country's legislative body. But it has always failed. Now they are at it again and this time they seem to have some surprising momentum. The Indonesian government just banned alcohol sales in mini-markets and convenience stores.

Politicians lobbying for the total ban claim they are doing it not for religious reasons but for health reasons. They also say it's to protect Indonesia's youth from the corrupting influence of alcohol (nevermind the corrupting influence of their police and government).

But the reality is that a total ban on alcohol could be terrible for the health and well-being of young people. Jakarta's governor, who doesn't support the ban, warned of the proliferation of bootlegging and the dangers of tainted alcohol if a ban succeeds. Already reports of people — including tourists — dying after drinking homemade liquor containing methanol are common. Last December more than thirty people died and dozens more were hospitalized in separate incidents after drinking bootleg alcohol.

It would also be bad for business. The nightlife in Jakarta at this point rivals any world-class city's. And tourism hotspots like Bali would be especially hurt.

STRANGE BUT TRUE:

Burundi's president really has no shame. President Pierre Nkurunziza is determined to serve a third term in office. The problem is a third term is unconstitutional. He hasn't backed down after weeks of protests and even an attempted coup by a top army general. More than 30 people have been killed and 100,000 have fled the country as a result.

Now he is attempting to fund his illegal third campaign by crowdsourcing supporters on Facebook. On Tuesday, the president's office posted a notice to its official Facebook page asking citizens to donate to an account named "ELECTIONS 2015," at the Bank of the Republic of Burundi.

The post trumpets the goal of supporting “a democratic culture based on the universal principle of the choice of the people.”