There was a day when I was a great basketball player. I love the NBA. I grew up with a basketball in my bedroom. When I was punished, which was often, it was the only thing I had left to call my own. I paid for my basketball, I went to work for it. I played 32-48 minutes of the hardest basketball I could possibly do in my playing days from 4 years old til my late 20's. I even played for a few NBA teams in summer leagues. Im a fan of the NBA, I tried to be in the NBA, I love it as the slogan goes. Now, Im retired of pro sports. The competitive edge still remains, but the naked desire to win has run afoot, plus I got older and wiser.
I wanna be like John Mccain for a minute and imagine something. Unlike the Maverick of Doublespeak, my imagination will try to relate things that are relevant to The Democratic Primary and present day America. I promise my imagination won't drift off to Iraq and see all the happy gumdrop smiles of freedom and democracy.
I see this historic race right now as an NBA best of 7 series. It's like both team split the first two games at the home teams arena and the samething went true at the other teams home court. A great series to be sure. Unfortunatley during game 4, one team lost 2 players for game 5 because they broke the rules. They came off the bench during a scuffle and that warrants an automatic one game suspension. They were pretty good role players, some even argue game changing players because they can sometimes move the game with their fine play. Fans howl, but that's the rules.
Then a game 5 happens that will be replayed on ESPN Classic for the next 100 years or so. One team pulls ahead and squeaks out a game 5 win because a miracle 3 point shot at the buzzer that would have won the game, but upon review of the tape, it clearly shows that ball didn't leave the players hand in time and was ruled, not good. Fans freaked out, sports message boards were so full of hate, for the refs, for the players, for Kobe (hey, lotta Kobe haters). Some miracle shot that "some people say" should have counted, much to the chagrin of the team that got "screwed" according to die hard fans of the team. Families are being divided because of all the emotion put into cheering for the game. Some argued the shot clock operator held off a milisecond, so the shot should have counted. Some say the refs were sexist because the player who took the shot happens to read feminist literature and supports womens rights. (Hey, it's my fantasy and I believe some players do, though extremely small, maybe one or two.) What if those 2 players werent suspended the die hards cried.
Some people even say, Hamas and Iran conspired with Al Qaeda to make the shot illegal so it will be a cakewalk to invade America on flying carpets and with a magic lamp led by Shaquille O'Neal screaming "Shazaam!" Some of these "theories" have been found to originate from the losing teams locker room.
We move on to game 6 where the team thats up 3-2 takes a fairly decent lead for the first quarter with a string of 11 straight points, and then the game gets bogged down. A bunch of runs by both teams keeps the game within striking distance, but not much more than that. The game however is fierce. Alot of hard fouls, some cheap shots by both teams that had to be apologised for quickly before another Malice at the Palace happens. The refs quickly huddle the coaches and tell them off camera to stop that shit and play a fair game. They do. The game goes back and forth til the start of the final quarter with the team thats leading the series up by around 11 points or so. Same lead they took pretty early on in the game. Slowly and surely, the team thats leading the game and series starts to slowly break away, by a few points or so but most importantly, the clock is winding down. Every minute a point isnt erased off the score, is a point lost by the currently losing team. Some NBA analysts are saying that for the losing team to make a comeback, they need to basically blow the winning team out in the final period with an effort that never been seen before in the NBA. With 3 minutes left in the game the team thats leading the game and series is up by nearly 20 points. Noone in the history of the NBA has ever came back from that deficit and because these are the 2 best teams in America, noone believes the lead can be overtaken. Even the fans know it.
Sports Side Bar here to relate to fantasy: It's widely known in the NBA when your down 20 points in the last few minutes, you empty your bench and take out your starters. It's basically waving the white flag and it prevents alot of feeling being crushed and fights starting. For instance, the fight between Denver and New York last year was because of this unwritten rule or guideline was broken. Denver was up 30 points in the last 3 minutes on New York's home court and Denver kept their starters in to run up the score. Isiah, The Knicks coach, warned the Denver players to run out the clock and not try to run up the score. Isiah took all his best players out of the game already. George Karl, the Denver coach, wanted to teach Isiah a lesson and kept them in. Denver then stole the ball and was gonna go for another dunk to humiliate New York and the player was tackled and a fight started which cost some players around half a season and up to 5 million dollars. None of this would have happened if Karl accepted the white flag and emptied his bench too. Of course, theres no rule that says Karl has to take out his best players, but common curtesy says he should have. Also, this fight killed Denvers season from the suspensions. Was one game worth the fights and suspensions after a lifetime of great coaching? Just to prove a point?
Second sports analogy: Same thing is in place in baseball but the unwritten rules are different. But if you wondered how around 40% of the fights start in baseball, this is why, it'll be unwritten rule #2. First off, theres an unwritten rule in baseball #1, do not show up the pitcher, this causes 60% of the fights. If you hit a homerun, do it like you've done it before and round the bases with some speed to get the game going again. This is why most fights start. The second reason which is around 40% is running up the score. The most aggravating thing for a team thats getting its ass kicked is the no stealing rule. When youre up by 8 or so runs in the last couple innings, as the winning team, you NEVER steal a base if you get a hit. Stealing a base is rubbing it in. If you do steal a base in the final innings in a blowout game, you or your teammate, will be hit with a baseball traveling around 95 miles an hour. It's guaranteed. Every once in a while some young player tests this rule and gets beaned and starts a bench clearing brawl. OK, back to my NBA fantasy.
So back to game 6 of the NBA finals. The game is pretty much over. Anyone doing the math on the scoreboard can see it would take the greatest comeback of all time to win this game and the greatest fuck up by the winning team to lose. Sure, its possible, it could happen, but everyone knows it wont, except the diehard fans who look to a miracle to save them. Some fans even went to the winning teams owner to ask if they could have a tie for the series, maybe even make them co-champions after the game is pretty much decided. They have tons of reasons, the suspensions, the game 5 shot etc. Some fans even claim the 3 point shots that were made should all count as 2 points as per pre 1979 when the 3 point line was created. Nevertheless, the winning teams coach pulls out his starters with around 2 minutes remaining and a insurmountable lead, he's looking forward to playing for the world championships that I just invented right now. He doesn't celebrate, but looks over to the opposing bench's coach and gives a slight signal that, hey, its over right? Just when the teams coach who has just about lose all hopes was about to wave a white flag...
I awake from my fantasy and shout to myself and whoever is in earshot distance, "What the fuck?"
Anyways, I have purposely stayed out of and not posted a single diary or comment on any website about this primary for a few reasons that I will name. Also, I've supported Obama from day 1 like I did Dean in 04. If Obama would have gotten smoked, I would vote for the party nominee like I did for Kerry, even if I held my nose in the booth while doing it.
A) I hate propaganda even when I do it for my own ideals. I could write a diary for Obama every day, I could use links and graphs. There's a few reasons I didn't, but the main reason is I trusted all of you. Even you Edwards supports who ran this website before he bowed out gracefully, I knew you guys would support Obama, if he beat Edwards, which he did. And thank you guys for not saying Obama beats Edwards because he's black etc, you knew he has run an excellent campaign from the beginning and looking back you can see Obama planned alot further along than Edwards did, he put his money in Iowa and lost. BTW, Edwards supporters, he was my #3. Kucinich was #1 and Obama was #2, but I quickly saw that Obama was out to win, so I backed him. Kucinich? Not so much, more like a statement run for president. I dont make statements like voting for Nader.
B) Talking to my mother, who is a hard working middle class white woman. A legal secretary. Like Obama, I am not. Im of a mixed race so I got all the racist shit in my life that alot of people of various colors have in America. I knew this race would get personal because my mother represents, who I believe, are the main Hillary supporters. Women who didn't get shit from men, like my father, and would up being very successful in their own endevors. My mother is a millionaire now from hard work, better savings, cheapness (hey I was there), and a sense that I dont need that motherfucker to get what I want. She is by no means a feminist though she lives by that creed, she still reads the romance novel paperbacks from the library. I still have relations with both of my parents but my dad was a motherfucker back then and my mom went to work even if it costs us our relationship. Yes, we are friends and I love each of them now, but it was rocky like the mountains for a long time. Maybe I'll diary about how it sucked some other time (growing up in a single family household.) The point is she relates to Hillary on a personal level and when I try to contrast Obama vs Hillary. She doesn't want to hear the arguement but gives a speech about how its time for women. I agree. How can I not? Single women in america have raised their children basically alone. Hell, even my dad claimed a hot trophy wife my age. But this race isn't about women, though alot would like to claim it is. Basically, noone can possibly tell me, even my mother, that sexism in this country is a bigger issue than racism, it doesnt even compare. I hate to make crappy comparisons or break down charts about the american food chain. BUT, there's no way any woman of any color is lower on the american food chain than black men. To make that arguement is ridiculous. And if you try it, you'll notice black women wont agree with you. Ya know, I think theres more black women in Congress than men, Im just guessing, but Im sure its true. So that arguement doesnt relate to all women. Im thinking asian women too but its like 1 to 0. Hispanic women? I think they have more than men too. So, its not an all women problem even though some may want to believe it is. Maybe, and Im gonna be killed for this, its a white woman problem? Reason I say this, is because that female minorities cant even see the glass ceiling?
C) Rubbing it in. I knew Obama ran a campaign to win when I saw someones chart, sorry I cant name or link it, but it was from this site. It showed Obama's ground game in weird fucking states before the primaries were even contested. Like, why was Obama outspending and coordinating in states that we have no chance to win in the GE? The guy drew 25000 people in Texas, granted it was Austin and on the U of T campus and is a fairly liberal city. But, other plaecs like Nebraska, Wisconsin, Montana, Idaho etc. Didnt he know he was black? LOL. My step father broke it down the best he could and he was supporting Hillary too, before we watched one of his speeches together before a Laker game. It's what makes Obama great and No, anyone who listens to him isnt a fucking robot. Obama is rational, he knows he not gonna change america with one step, maybe not even with his presidency. But, he made the statement about gay marriage thats most important not only to that issue, but to all things, racial, political, sexist etc. When he was cornered on gay marriage and why he didnt run out and support it right then etc, he said, I want equal rights for gays, and thats something we can do. I paraphrased that but you saw it at one of the debates. Gay marriage is a battle that will have to continue on, BUT he said, I'll make the first step with equal rights. Thats how shit works. Thats how you change things. Hell, I doubt that Obama is the one who will sign the Gay Rights Act. But I fucking guarantee you thats he's the one of the brave members of government who will lead the way.
God dam I'm tired, can't I go to sleep? Why do I have to stay up all night argueing with fans who didn't like the rules? Why do I go to other progressive blogs and read the hate mail? What the fuck?
Anyways, I was listen to Rachel Maddow on her radio show tonight and she said Hillary planned to go to the convention, which is a logical step, because theres doubt. It really sucks I have to plea to people I will never meet in my lifetime, nor be a participant on a conference calls for bloggers, that somehow Obama didn't win? I would love to post how black people like myself would riot, but thats not reality either. Reality is, black people, including women. Might look for other options, or God Forbid, create some political party of their own. Im not saying Mccain could win the black vote, but remember, black people are conservative in social values for the most part, they just aren't fucking stupid enough to vote for a republican.
Another quick note: Alot of you dont understand that for the most part, black people are conservative. Whether be it religion or race or culture or a few other things. Black gay people dont find acceptance in their community. You are very underestimating black people if you think they vote for democrats because of the issues like other cultures do. Sure, you may want it so in your perfect political fantasy, I do. But, its not reality. Obama is reality.
KDNLA