Dear reader,
The Olympic Games ended with a fitting finale as the U.S. women’s basketball team came from behind to win in magnificent fashion.
If you don’t think that was a special moment, just look at the photos of senior center Brittney Griner with her hand over her heart and tears streaming down her cheeks as they raised the Old Glory and played the “Star Spangled Banner.”
It was a great two-week spectacle.
We watched the opening boat ride on the Seine. We saw hordes of sprinters, hurdlers, divers, fencers, rowers and even breakdancers trying their hand at their respective endeavours.
What do we love about sports? Why do we tune in and cheer for people who achieve athletic feats that none of us could achieve, even in our youngest and best days?
Can you imagine climbing a balance beam without falling to the ground, let alone trying to get up on it? And forget about prancing and dancing, flips and twists while trying not to fall off and break your neck.
All I could imagine was myself falling to the ground, writhing in pain, as laughing paramedics loaded my old butt onto a stretcher and took it to the hospital emergency room. There I would see a smiling surgeon who would say something like, “That’s going to hurt.”
It was almost enough to entice me and many others to ignore the other competition that was unfolding before our eyes.
Of course, I am referring to the great American spectacle – our quadrennial political Olympics.
We saw the preliminary round, where 78-year-old Grandpa Don seemed like an easy winner over 81-year-old Grandpa Joe after the latter’s dismal performance in the June 27 debate.
Yes, Grandpa Joe looked like a doddering old guy as he froze and stumbled around the stage.
Then, when old Grandpa Joe tried to get up from the ground and come back with momentum, he threw in the towel. This happened after his loyal and eternal supporters quickly turned their backs on him.
Was Harry S. Truman or Lyndon B. Johnson the president who reportedly told a new officeholder, “If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog?” It doesn’t matter, but it’s true.
Be that as it may, Grandpa Joe’s vice president rushed to the front of the line, gathered his staff (and his bulging war chest) and conducted a rapid revival of the then-dormant Democratic campaign.
Her choice for vice presidential candidate fell on a smiling governor from the Midwest who looked like what he claimed to be – a personable high school teacher and football coach.
This choice sent the savvy professional experts (who told us she would choose someone else) back to their Ouija boards and computers.
And pollsters – no matter who they worked for – reported that the numbers for the vice president were gradually moving into positive territory.
As the TV commercial says, “But wait, there’s more.”
The Democratic National Convention is next week, which could give the vice president a boost in the polls. The two candidates will face off on September 10, and it could be a showdown between everyone.
The first round of mail-in voting begins on September 6 in North Carolina, followed in about a week by Alabama, Kentucky and Pennsylvania.
The opportunity to vote in person in advance in Virginia begins on September 17th. Then it continues at full speed until November 5th.
But again, when you weigh the pros and cons, there is more to consider. There are events that could throw a wrench into the works and confuse the prognosticators on both sides, turning their ironclad predictions of victory into an omelette of doubt.
So there is a lot of saber rattling going on in the Middle East as Iran threatens to attack Israel, along with Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. Who knows what the Houthis will do in Yemen. Will they all attack Israel and drag us into chaos?
And for the first time, the Russians sense that the Ukrainian military is going on the offensive and capturing some enemy cities on the other side of the border.
Suddenly, some people – especially those who are convinced of a landslide victory for their side – find themselves in a state of perplexity.
Maybe, just maybe, the election could come down to policy decisions rather than personalities. Will voters cast their ballots because they care more about immigration and the border, or will the issue of women’s reproductive rights outweigh everything else?
And once again, boys and girls, I would like to remind you that it is far too early to bet everything on the final result.
There is still a long way to go.
