Monday, January 01, 2007

I wish we held our elected officials to the same standard....

I love sports. I have followed professional football and baseball as long as I can remember. I am not alone. Legions of fans saddled up to the tube to support their favorite football team this weekend to see who goes home or continues into the playoffs.

I thought I died and went to heaven when they created the NFL channel. All football all the time. God is good.

When a team performs poorly, it is no question a coach or coaches will lose their job. Yesterday the regular season ended. Arizona stunk, Dennis Green gone. Falcons were wretched, Baby boy Mora, gone.

In the middle of the season, Andy Reid changed how he managed his offense. He fired himself as offensive coordinator. He did not "stay the course."

Fans expect solid management from the coaches and high performance from the players. The sportscasters and writers function as quality control. Incompetence, poor leadership and management skills are simply not tolerated. The fan base are very vocal and are not above letting the owners of their favorite team know just how they feel. Grassroots democracy in action.

After a crappy performance, key players and the coach face the media. The sports reporters have done their research and ask the hard questions. At times it is painful, to watch the exchange. Reporter: " Ah coach, your team sucked today. What are you going to do about it? Coach: Yeah, you're right. They weren't prepared and that was my fault." Coaches and players are required contractually to make media appearances.

Three thousand citizens have lost their lives for this bullshit war. This administration lied about the war. The Congress gave Georgie Boy the authority to go to war. They also approved the Patriot Act which has deluded our basic rights afforded to us under the Constitution. If I hear another fellow citizen say "What's the problem? I am not hiding anything." I will scream.

In our desire to spread democracy, we have given away many of the freedoms we have sent our troops to die for.

To compound the problem, the MSM sat back and let it happen. They are lazy, unprepared and more concerned about Brittany's hoochie and Michael Richard's meltdown. God help us all.

Who has taken responsibility for this debacle?

Donald Rumsfeld's, the mastermind managing this mess, parting words were essentially, "Kiss my ass." The only thing he didn't do was drop his pants and moon the world on his last day of work. It would have been less offensive. Maybe.

Unfortunately, we do not hold our elected officials to the same standard as our sports coaches and reporters. When a sports reporter gets the facts wrong, before the ink is dry, the error is quickly corrected. The folks who have radio or TV shows have research teams and welcome callers. If there is not enough audience participation, they lose their jobs.

When was the last time a sports reporter resigned because his or her facts were wrong?

Most rabid fans can rattle off team statistics, player and team history. I wonder how many know who represents them in Congress. Or worse, still think or Iraq was tied to 9-11.

My wish for the new year, is that my fellow fans show the same passion for their country as they do for their team. By doing so, their elected officials will do better. The MSM will spend less time on Brangelina and more on the war, health coverage, loss of jobs.

Boo-Ya

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