Bleachers' Brew #132 Forty-Four

(This appears in my November 10 column in the sports section of Business Mirror.)

44

by rick olivares

As a youngster, I once went through the list of American Presidents and noted that many of them saw military service. In my own young mind I wondered if it was a pre-requisite when one ran for the seat of the world’s most powerful man.

Soldiers say that having seen war -- and war is hell -- they eventually become men of peace. So is it any wonder that George W. Bush and his faux service to the Texas National Guard didn’t give him the perspective of men who have seen combat hence his disastrous forays into Iraq and Afghanistan, modern-day quagmires for the weary.

But I too, remember pictures of Jack Kennedy sailing and flashing that sunshine smile of his in old Life magazines that my grandfather, who served with the US Army, bequeathed me with. Of course, the 35th President of the United States was a World War II vet and his exploits in Torpedo Boat PT-109 are well documented. I even saw a movie of it.

I was fascinated by all things military and even contemplated a career in the service. Having an uncle who went to West Point and served a distinguished career at home and Vietnam was an inspiration. I also had a few classmates who tried their hand at it – one at the Philippine Military Academy and another with the US Special Forces.

Still young and far from noticing the charms of the opposite sex, I eventually got into sports. There was football and the New York Cosmos, basketball and the Philadelphia 76ers, and baseball and the New York Yankees.

I too was a vociferous reader and my grandfather egged me on. One time he showed me pictures of Richard Nixon watching NFL football. And as I found out later, the 37th President of the USA lettered at Whittier.

As I grew older, I saw Bill Clinton playing golf and quip, “The economy has produced 6.1 million jobs since I became President, and if Michael Jordan comes back to the Bulls, it will be six million one hundred thousand and one jobs.”

After Clinton, there was Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry windsurfing.

Not that it is odd for men like them to engage in sports. But I wonder now if a particular sport reveals something about a person’s character?

In these times when the world is sick of the morass of Bush’s military adventures maybe it’s time I changed from my stance to adding athletic ability (among many other criteria) to one’s White House aspirations.

And that brings #44 to the plate; he who wears a Chicago White Sox cap.

If Clinton evoked the Kennedys when he swept into office (coincidentally after another Bush was in office), Barack Obama, who will be the 44th President of the United States when he is sworn in on January 20, 2009, brings with him a perspective of a man who is a product of a multi-racial America and is in touch with modern times.

Whether he is the real deal or the prefab product of the fine craft of David Plouffe, Obama’s campaign manager, remains to be seen, and more so after the honeymoon period accorded to the new Chief Executive in his first 100 days on the world’s hot seat.

Polar bears for Obama? Not only is it hilarious but it speaks much about the environment whether this was really a component of one of the slickest and well-devised campaigns in modern history.

There’s an interesting analogy about Obama’s choice of the White Sox. Like the Illinois Senator’s performance in the recent elections, the White Sox swept the Astros 4-0 in the 2005 World Series as the teed off on Roger Clemens, Roy Oswalt, and Andy Pettitte.

So why not the long-suffering Cubs? Yeah… there you go: long-suffering.

For all the love of the grand old game by Obama, he has that new jack cool of being someone who can play the game of basketball, the world’s fastest growing sport.

In Dreams From My Father, the President-elect wrote that he found solace on the hardwood. “At least on the basketball court I could find a community of sorts,” he revealed.

Obama wore #23 at Punahou High School and was a member of the squad that won 1979 Hawaii State Championship.

On the eve of the US Elections, veteran sportscaster Chris Berman conducted an interesting interview with Obama (and McCain in a separate one) during the halftime of ESPN’s Monday Night Football match between the Washington Redskins versus the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Obama revealed that he was a rebellious player who constantly debated with his Punahou High School Coach Chris McLachlin about the playing time of not only himself but other members of the team. On a squad that included whites, blacks, and Asians, “Barry” as Obama was called by everyone, was set straight by McLachlin.

“The team came first,” recalled Obama of McLachlin’s message.

In an interview with the Honolulu Star, McLachlin noted that “His negotiating skills were very advanced.” While overlooking Obama’s leadership skills, the coach agreed that he had the skills and the talent despite his wiry frame.

Obama was a scrappy player and his teammates attest that his competitiveness forced them to raise their level of play at all times. And Barry, the lefty shooter with dreams of being like the Sixers’ gravity-defying Julius Erving, never hesitated to pull an opponent’s jersey, to stick an elbow, and when he found himself open, to take a jump shot.

There are massive problems that plague America and the world today and everyone is looking up to Obama for succor. In the lame ducks days of the Bush administration, every move by the President-elect will be scrutinized and dissected in so many ways. He might not fully have the benefit of that grace period, but like the athlete he is, maybe it’s time to hit the ground running.

But isn’t that what he wanted – more playing time and a chance to make the shot?



Here's the link to Business Mirror:
http://businessmirror.com.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1659:bleachers-brew-44&catid=31:sports