11/05/24
September 19, 2004
Football Fans For Truth: Will sportsfans be the all important deciding factor in the 2004 election? At first I thought it was a joke but it seems they are going to put up a billboard near Lambeau Field pointing out that John Kerry throws like a girl.
Yes, Republicans have endured the occasional sporting shame. George W. Bush traded Sammy Sosa. The real owners never let him and his symbolic, ultra-minority share in the Rangers anywhere near the decision-making apparatus of the business.
posted by crank at 09:00 AM on September 19, 2004
I'm pretty sure this is a just a really well thought out joke.
posted by grum@work at 09:21 AM on September 19, 2004
This is certainly an unexpected basis for choosing a president. I mean, remind me again what sport Dick Nixon excelled in...
posted by billsaysthis at 11:01 AM on September 19, 2004
"Every country gets the circus it deserves."
posted by molafson at 11:08 AM on September 19, 2004
That picture of Kerry throwing is a forgery!
posted by worldcup2002 at 11:11 AM on September 19, 2004
This is certainly an unexpected basis for choosing a president. I mean, remind me again what sport Dick Nixon excelled in... You're out of your element, bill
posted by Ufez Jones at 11:36 AM on September 19, 2004
Hah!
posted by chicobangs at 03:01 PM on September 19, 2004
This probably didn't go over well in the US, but I read that John Kerry's most memorable sporting moment was scoring a hat-trick for Yale against Harvard in .... (wait for it) ... soccer! That he still remembers and celebrates this over 35 years later has endeared him to this non-American, at least.
posted by owlhouse at 07:22 PM on September 19, 2004
The funny part is, Kerry IS throwing the ball properly. Your wrist is supposed to end up like that and your fingers are supposed to spread out. See example!
posted by grum@work at 08:18 PM on September 19, 2004
grum, I thought the same thing. I've seen hundreds of pictures of Brett Favre that look identical to that Kerry pic...doubt anyone would say Brett throws like a girl...
posted by MeatSaber at 09:25 PM on September 19, 2004
As long as we're here, I think it's clear that people who are voting solely on the basis of athleticism would have to choose Kerry. Bush will toss out a ceremonial first pitch and go jogging, but otherwise he's mostly inert. Kerry's constantly out there windsurfing, snowboarding, skiing, and throwing the football around. If he wins, I wouldn't be surprised if he becomes the first president to call the winners at the X Games.
posted by rcade at 08:08 AM on September 20, 2004
I though Bush was a cheer leader at college anyway. Which would you prefer, someone whose throwing action might (or might not be) imperfect or someone who stands on the sidelines jigging with pom poms while other people do the work?
posted by Pete at 08:32 AM on September 20, 2004
Pete, it's just more Republican BS, trying to turn a Bush negative positive (CF Swift Boat Veterans).
posted by billsaysthis at 11:19 AM on September 20, 2004
Let's not forget W, the superathlete: - falls off stationary Segway - falls off mountain bike - almost kills himself with pretzel This guy is more of a menace to himself than anyone else.
posted by worldcup2002 at 12:23 PM on September 20, 2004
Spofi doesn't feel like the place to actually get into this, but -- whether either of these jokers was a former #1 draft choice, a multiple gold medalist, a part-time bowler, a scratch minigolfer, a lifetime couch potato or a Jerry Lewis-like klutz shouldn't matter. I'm not saying it won't, I'm just saying it shouldn't.
posted by chicobangs at 12:54 PM on September 20, 2004
Let's just say I wouldn't trust John Kerry with anything more dangerous than string. And I'd keep the string away from Dubya...
posted by MeatSaber at 02:56 PM on September 20, 2004
That's hilarious. MeatSaber 2004!
posted by 86 at 03:28 PM on September 20, 2004
SportsFilter: Keeping the string away from dangerous men!
posted by billsaysthis at 04:02 PM on September 20, 2004
All I know is that Kerry does actually play sports, some of them even "extreme." That's impressive to me. What does the other fella play? I heard the other fella fell off his bike a few times and was throw off a horse when he was governor of some southern state. I guess if doing coke and drinking was a sport the other fella would win. I won’t want to face that other fella in beer pong, but I think I might be able to take Kerry. The again, New Englanders know how to drink. Maybe Kerry even has the edge there. When it comes right down to it, it really doesn't matter who plays what or who knows what about sports. For example, Ford, who played some college football was a bad president, and Jack Kemp, who was a QB in the NFL, was right-wing nut who lost to a Fatso from Arkansas and a stiff board from Tennessee. I what a president who will be a great leader; I could give a rat's ass about if he knows anything about sports or plays sports well or even plays at all.
posted by Bag Man at 07:54 PM on September 20, 2004
Thanks for the vote, 86...unfortunately, the Constitution keeps me out of the race this year, with the age requirement and all. But I'll look forward to your support in 2008...
posted by MeatSaber at 11:41 PM on September 20, 2004
I think it goes without saying that the athletic interests of presidential candidates don't matter. With that disclaimer, I'm also impressed by Kerry's extreme sports hobbies. Republicans keep trying to use them to make him seem aloof or strange, but I think it's cool that he pursues them anyway. And there aren't a lot of areas where the guy would be described as cool. (To provide a little ideological balance, Bush's obsession with baseball is a mark in his favor. I heard him do play by play for an inning while he co-owned the Rangers, and he was a pro -- no malaprops, and he was never at a loss for words.)
posted by rcade at 07:01 AM on September 21, 2004
George Bush for Commissioner!
posted by trox at 08:54 AM on September 21, 2004
Condi Rice for NFL Commish!
posted by mick at 10:04 AM on September 21, 2004
I think Dick Cheney should take Bud Selig out and beat the whey out of him. And then take over his job. Hee hee. I can think of one way in which sports participation could be a legitimate influencer (albeit in a small way) of one's choice for office. A president who places a priority on exercise and fitness sets a good example for our couch potato nation. Illegitimately, of course, it's yet another way that we can frame a candidate as being like or unlike ourselves -- or like we'd like to think of ourselves; a lot of the action sports marketing for products like SUVs is not to appeal to the people who actually do ski and snowboard and kayak whitewater and rock climb and so on on a regular basis (most of whom are way too poor to afford a $40,000 luxury SUV anyway), but to the people who harbor the irrational belief that if they buy this product, they'll magically become the kind of person who does these things.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 12:37 PM on September 21, 2004
in this area... Can John Elway win the US election for Bush? ... if Kerry is the preferred choice of Hollywood and the music business, the current resident of the White House appears to have a clear edge in professional sports.
posted by gspm at 07:32 AM on September 24, 2004
Hopefully this won't turn into a political pissing match (that's what MeFi is for).