The Troubling Legacy of Superbowl XLIV
Posted in wordpress, Hurricane Katrina, liberal, sports, obama on February 9th, 2010 by Stanford MatthewsIf you are a fan of either the New Orleans Saints or the Indianapolis Colts Sunday’s forty-fourth Superbowl undoubtedly had special meaning for you. Likewise if you are simply a big fan of professional sports the annual premiere pigskin competition gets your undivided attention. But as the case goes for most activities these days there are many ways to analyze this year’s football finale.
Certain aspects of the event receive the lion’s share of attention each year. From the half time entertainment to the big bucks offerings from commercials during the broadcast to commentary on the ‘elites’ on the field or those occupying spectator seating at the venue. But this year presented the almost obligatory injection of politics into the fray.
Move over Janet Jackson your wardrobe malfunction may no longer occupy first place for the absurd at a Superbowl. Fortunately there was no such problem with delivering the National Anthem. And Carrie Underwood’s performance of the Star-Spangled Banner eclipsed The Who’s halftime performance as well as finding the singer’s wardrobe choice a refreshing change of pace. But that’s not the politics. It is part of the usual appraisal.
In the run up to the event news reports or op-eds and other commentary raised an issue for some liberals about the planned advertising spot from Tim Tebow and his mother. Libs of course suggested there should be no political advertising during a sporting event. Their concern was the growing public sentiment against abortion. The ad was described as the Tebow pair presenting the fact that a difficult pregnancy was not aborted and the child born grew up to be a very successful quarterback.
If you saw the ad on Sunday you may be surprised at the uproar from the libs. It was well done and the libs probably raised more attention to it than if they had just let it be. But then liberals are nothing if not neurotic.
So if you want to raise a political issue with the Superbowl how about this? Courtesy of VOA News an opening paragraph from one article on Superbowl 44.
Just four years after Hurricane Katrina decimated the city of New Orleans, the Saints are the champions of the National Football League. The New Orleans Saints defeated the Indianapolis Colts, 31-17, Sunday night in Super Bowl XLIV.
And in the same article this statement:
Saints quarterback Drew Brees, who has dedicated himself to helping both the Saints and city of New Orleans recover from 2005’s Hurricane Katrina, was named the game’s most valuable player.
An otherwise interesting additional article from VOA News examining the possibility of this Superbowl being a ‘classic’ also included something of a political reference.
A victory for the Saints would complete the resurrection of the franchise, which finished 3-13 the season before Drew Brees came to New Orleans. It would also go a long way toward instilling pride in a city still working toward recovering from the horror and devastation of 2005’s Hurricane Katrina. Saints head coach Sean Payton says the team has a special relationship with the people of New Orleans.
“This is a city that really has been very close to this team through a lot of hard times. And after Katrina, when the Saints were able to get back and play in the Superdome there was certainly some symbolism that evening. I think playing good football and giving them something to be proud of is important,” he said.
The game has special meaning for Peyton Manning as well. He grew up in New Orleans, where his father Archie quarterbacked the Saints during 10 losing seasons.
There were more relevant references to NOLA that could have been made but the point is they were unnecessary. Anyone with a brain can make the connections without urging from the media. And if you are going to make an emotional case for a sad situation at least have the common courtesy to present a balanced appraisal. Like most of NOLA’s troubles are of their own making or neglect.
One title in news reports suggested someone might be making the case for balance.
Not everyone is happy for the Saints
It was really no shocker to find a sports report suggesting others in the sporting world may be unhappy with Sunday’s outcome. And in the opening the author wondered upon arriving in NOLA if he would observe a population hung over the Superbowl XLIV or ‘revving up’ for Mardi Gras then expecting both.
And President Obama hosted a Superbowl party in a week when he has renewed talk about bipartisanship in the wake of the failure of his flagship agenda item, ‘health’ reform. The lone member of the GOP invited was Joseph Cao of the LA-2 which includes most of NOLA.
It had nothing to do with the game or NOLA but a down payment on the purchase of Cao’s vote for the Demcare. Cao was the only Republican in the House to vote for it based on promises of help for NOLA from President Obama.
The point here is enough already with the wailing and gnashing of teeth about NOLA or Katrina. For about three hundred years the city has been below sea level. There is an abundance of reference material available to demonstrate the repeated failures of public officials and private interests to adequately deal with Katrina-like vulnerabilities for years. Some of that information is on this site and at this blog.
The final word on New Orleans and Katrina is get over it. Stop blaming others for problems of your own doing.
Following the content listed in most popular news on Google and Yahoo has been a regular occurence here. At first it was disappointing that so much of what made it to the listing were stories with topics that probably shouldn’t rank as high as they did. But that just seemed to indicate a sad trend that ‘clickers’ at these venues concentrated on items that really do not matter. The tabloid type of content was getting the lion’s share of the most popular ratings by click. Again, sad that important issues were being neglected by whatever the demographic was. If one assumed that the readers were a representative slice of the general public the bulk of what they were reading was an even more dismal trend.
The central argument in the NYT piece seems to be that McCain’s VP selection gives ammunition to Obama while diminishing McCain’s criticism that Obama is not ready to lead due to inexperience. Right out of the blocks, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has executive experience and a resume’s considerably more accomplished than Senator Obama’s. No one said you cannot take on the VP slot as it does not lend itself to on the job training. And as for the ability to step in to the Presidency if disaster would strike, how many former VP’s would have been ideal for that contingency? If Palin ends up spending four years as VP she will likely be quite prepared for the Office of President in 2012. Even with the unlikelihood that she would have to take over as President, by then the McCain Adminstration would be in place and the typical resources used by each President would be available to Palin for executing the office. In contrast, nothing about Barack Obama equals that assessment.
The IT topics represented by Microsoft, Apple and Comcast represent a trio of standouts all compromising the digital landscape. MS continues its habit of trying to convince users that things are different now. Apple has become as notorious as a techo-gangsta’ as MS with its idiot phone marketing as the latest Comcast episode proving net neutrality is an issue.
People continue to live in areas where they are likely to lose everything because it is common knowledge they expect someone else to bail them out every time the high risk events take place. Live below sea level and act shocked when everything is destroyed. And do it over and over again. How stupid is that?
Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Majority Whip James E. Clyburn, and other Democratic leaders met this afternoon with Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco today to discuss ongoing efforts to address the needs posed by Hurricane Katrina. Below are Pelosi’s remarks:
“Because of Mr. Clyburn’s relentlessness, and Mr. Melancon’s, on all of these issues, the supplemental also included a provision that waives the local funding match requirements for FEMA funding under the Stafford Act, allowing thousands of reconstruction projects to get under way. In some ways, some say that is more important than some of the money because it is a liberating provision in the bill.
Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco heads to Washington, DC this week to thank Congressional leaders for their quick action on her federal recovery agenda and to discuss Louisiana’s ongoing recovery needs. Topping the agenda is the projected Road Home funding shortfall, which the Governor will urge Congress to help meet. Gov. Blanco is sending updates to constituents back home through e-postcards.
“Louisiana is blessed with some of the Nation’s greatest resources. When a crisis threatens, we must take steps to protect our most precious of those resources – our people. State and local agencies are working diligently together to protect Louisiana citizens. This Web site provides important information your family needs to prepare for a disaster and to evacuate safely and efficiently, to escape harm’s way. Please take time to review the content of this site and discuss emergency preparedness with your family. In the event of a major disaster, I will activate Louisiana’s Joint Information Center and use this site and other channels of communication to quickly provide emergency information to you and your family. Working together, we can assure safety during times of crisis.”
