Politics and Sports
In the days of yore when political discourse was, for lack of a better word, "civil," things were different.
Don't you hate when people say "for lack of a better word?" Whenever I hear that, I always think: "of course there's a better word, you just can't think of it." It's like the whole dictionary failed to live up to the lofty concept that you've generated in your Spock-like head. Let's just go with: "for lack of a better vocabulary."
So, for lack of a better vocabulary, civil discourse in the past was in many ways more civil. Why? A big part of it was that America faced real dangers in the world, and didn't need NeoCons to fabricate them. Real dangers mean really pulling together.
In the period from the Civil War ( I know, "not civil") to the Reagan administration (I refuse to call it an "Era"), politics had a certain set of unwritten rules. Politics had its place, but could never be placed ahead of policy and grave matters like war and peace. Presidents like Eisenhower - a Republican - played politics when they had to, and governed with great seriousness and honestly tried to be the leader of the whole nation. Sounds kind of silly and old would now, doesn't it?
Today, politics are everything. They act as the only cause of aggressive wars, budget-destroying deficits, and power-hungry madmen. What changed?
Glad you asked: Baseball.
Yes, it has been the decline of the former 'national pastime' that has created the ugly NeoConservative politics of today.
Baseball is a sport of goodwill. It's a sport where, even though you might fiercely conduct a game against a hated rival, you probably don't end up hurting anybody.
In baseball (not to sound too much like George Carlin), the majors play 162 games in their regular season. That means that there are very few - if any - games in the season that are 'must-win.' I was just checking the scores, and it seems my Red Sox just dropped another at home to the hated Yankees.
Oh, well. We'll get them next time!
The new national pastime is NFL football. In the football season, the pros play 16 games - less than a tenth of the baseball season. When your rivals come to town, you better damn well beat them. Divisional foes (only three teams) are faced twice a year, everyone else is on the schedule only once. Win now, or else.
In a rivalry game, somebody's getting hurt. Probably multiple somebodies. Most players come into the game hurt to one extent or another, and only get worse as things go on.
Baseball games can go one as long as they need to. The needs of the game are most important - make sure the game is satisfied with enough outs and ups. Football is on the clock. Get it done. It's going to end when it says it ends. No player, coach, or official is more important than the clock.
In baseball, some small-market teams are have-nots, and are out of contention by May. And somehow, that's okay. They used to mock football because the league wanted "parity," a more level playing field where any team could compete with any other team.
It's not widely remembered (or discussed) that 'parity' was a dirty word. People, in baseball mode, wanted the Steelers and the Cowboys to be the Yankees and the Dodgers. Who cares that the same few teams win every year?
Now, we celebrate the fact that any NFL team can win a championship from year to year. It's a good thing that hope can exist in all fans, and legitimately. Teams have gone from 'worst to first' and won improbable Lombardi trophies.
But along with that, expectations have risen. If you're not the Rams or the Patriots, why aren't you? The Panthers and Jaguars were in their respective conference championship game two years after starting up - where are you, Texans?
Football is "winning is the only thing." Win or go find another job. In baseball, managers have hundreds of games to show what they can do. In football you can get canned in single-digits.
Politics today is football. There is no long view for the 162-game marathon, it's just next week - that's all that matters. If a coach told the media he was saving something for later in the season, or taking a long term perspective, he'd be pilloried.
Politics is win now and win at all costs. Nothing is as important as the next election - not civil right, war and peace, lives, hunger, budgets, nothing.
Most of this is driven by the Republican party. They made a strategic decision after Nixon to throw out all the stops. Nixon was presented with the divisive election plan that Georgie uses today, but refused to because it would 'split the country in two.' Imagine.
Conservatives can't win based on ideas. Facts, as Colbert said, "have a liberal bias." The playbook based on making a real effort to solve real problems has been replaced with the NeoCon playbook of lying about reality and then solving the made-up problems, resulting in the real problems becoming much, much worse.
But if it wins the in the short-term, it's a winner.
Don't you hate when people say "for lack of a better word?" Whenever I hear that, I always think: "of course there's a better word, you just can't think of it." It's like the whole dictionary failed to live up to the lofty concept that you've generated in your Spock-like head. Let's just go with: "for lack of a better vocabulary."
So, for lack of a better vocabulary, civil discourse in the past was in many ways more civil. Why? A big part of it was that America faced real dangers in the world, and didn't need NeoCons to fabricate them. Real dangers mean really pulling together.
In the period from the Civil War ( I know, "not civil") to the Reagan administration (I refuse to call it an "Era"), politics had a certain set of unwritten rules. Politics had its place, but could never be placed ahead of policy and grave matters like war and peace. Presidents like Eisenhower - a Republican - played politics when they had to, and governed with great seriousness and honestly tried to be the leader of the whole nation. Sounds kind of silly and old would now, doesn't it?
Today, politics are everything. They act as the only cause of aggressive wars, budget-destroying deficits, and power-hungry madmen. What changed?
Glad you asked: Baseball.
Yes, it has been the decline of the former 'national pastime' that has created the ugly NeoConservative politics of today.
Baseball is a sport of goodwill. It's a sport where, even though you might fiercely conduct a game against a hated rival, you probably don't end up hurting anybody.
In baseball (not to sound too much like George Carlin), the majors play 162 games in their regular season. That means that there are very few - if any - games in the season that are 'must-win.' I was just checking the scores, and it seems my Red Sox just dropped another at home to the hated Yankees.
Oh, well. We'll get them next time!
The new national pastime is NFL football. In the football season, the pros play 16 games - less than a tenth of the baseball season. When your rivals come to town, you better damn well beat them. Divisional foes (only three teams) are faced twice a year, everyone else is on the schedule only once. Win now, or else.
In a rivalry game, somebody's getting hurt. Probably multiple somebodies. Most players come into the game hurt to one extent or another, and only get worse as things go on.
Baseball games can go one as long as they need to. The needs of the game are most important - make sure the game is satisfied with enough outs and ups. Football is on the clock. Get it done. It's going to end when it says it ends. No player, coach, or official is more important than the clock.
In baseball, some small-market teams are have-nots, and are out of contention by May. And somehow, that's okay. They used to mock football because the league wanted "parity," a more level playing field where any team could compete with any other team.
It's not widely remembered (or discussed) that 'parity' was a dirty word. People, in baseball mode, wanted the Steelers and the Cowboys to be the Yankees and the Dodgers. Who cares that the same few teams win every year?
Now, we celebrate the fact that any NFL team can win a championship from year to year. It's a good thing that hope can exist in all fans, and legitimately. Teams have gone from 'worst to first' and won improbable Lombardi trophies.
But along with that, expectations have risen. If you're not the Rams or the Patriots, why aren't you? The Panthers and Jaguars were in their respective conference championship game two years after starting up - where are you, Texans?
Football is "winning is the only thing." Win or go find another job. In baseball, managers have hundreds of games to show what they can do. In football you can get canned in single-digits.
Politics today is football. There is no long view for the 162-game marathon, it's just next week - that's all that matters. If a coach told the media he was saving something for later in the season, or taking a long term perspective, he'd be pilloried.
Politics is win now and win at all costs. Nothing is as important as the next election - not civil right, war and peace, lives, hunger, budgets, nothing.
Most of this is driven by the Republican party. They made a strategic decision after Nixon to throw out all the stops. Nixon was presented with the divisive election plan that Georgie uses today, but refused to because it would 'split the country in two.' Imagine.
Conservatives can't win based on ideas. Facts, as Colbert said, "have a liberal bias." The playbook based on making a real effort to solve real problems has been replaced with the NeoCon playbook of lying about reality and then solving the made-up problems, resulting in the real problems becoming much, much worse.
But if it wins the in the short-term, it's a winner.
posted by fiduciary at 8:41 AM
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