Can we look past the politics?
I don’t write about politics. Doesn’t seem to be any advantage to it. I don’t think it’s all that interesting, at least compared to sports, and I don’t think readers are all that interested.
Some are, but not many. Some are tired of the partisan bent of politics, and some that aren’t tired of it don’t want to read anything thoughtful. They just want to read whatever fits their already-conceived beliefs.
We see some of that in sports. I got a call last night, pretty late, from someone from the 918 area code. Guy seemed surprised that I answered my cell phone, and he seemed pleasant enough, but he had just read my column from Big 12 Media Days on Mack Brown, and wanted to know why I wrote about Mack Brown instead of Bob Stoops.
Well, I was cordial enough to give him an answer. BECAUSE BOB STOOPS WASN’T AT THE EVENT ON WEDNESDAY; MACK BROWN WAS! I wrote about Stoops the day before.
That kind of thing drives me bananas, and that’s the kind of stuff you get all the time in politics.
But yesterday, I hope our sports page stepped out of such narrow-mindedness just a little. I wrote about Eunice Kennedy Shriver, the founder of Special Olympics and the sister of JFK. If the Kennedys ran against swine flu, the family wouldn’t carry every county in Oklahoma.
I don’t blame Oklahoma for its political conservatism. That’s who we are as a people, and there’s nothing fundamentally wrong with that, just so long as we acknowledge there is value on the other side of the debates, too. The demonization of the other side, both ways, is a bottomless pit that demeans us all.
But yesterday I didn’t write about politics, though I wrote about someone whose life was wrapped up in politics. The sister of a president. The sister of two other U.S. senators. The wife of a vice presidential candidate. The mother-in-law of the governor of California.
Eunice Kennedy Shriver rose above all that with Special Olympics. My column didn’t come close to unveiling all she did to make Special Olympics go from nothing to mainstream in the course of a generation or two. But this story might:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1149366/index.htm
That’s a link to a Sports Illustrated story from 2007, when the magazine named Eunice Shriver its first recipient of the Sportsman of the Year legacy award, for her Special Olympics vision. I didn’t read that story before I wrote my column; I wanted to make sure I wrote something fresh. I’m pleased with that choice; the SI story focuses on things I didn’t really touch. I hit on some things SI didn’t write about. So read them both, and maybe you will appreciate Special Olympics anymore.
Maybe I’ve gone to dream-weaving, but I hope the story of Eunice Shriver makes us all sit back and think a little more about the people behind the politics, on both sides, rather than the politics behind the people.
-------------Berry Tramel can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including AM-640 and FM-98.1. You can e-mail him here and follow him on Twitter @BerryTramel. Visit Berry's website here.
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Comments
Your column about Eunice Kennedy Shriver was excellent. Thank you for highlighting some of her accomplishments. She truly was a visionary. Because of her love for people with intellectual disabilities and her determination, she changed the world. I hope people will visit the website at http://www.eunicekennedyshriver.org and be inspired.
One last comment to one of your blogs. I used to work with Cessna Aircraft. Each year they organize private jet service for many of the Special Olympic atheletes. I understand for those involved that it is one of the most rewarding experiences of their lives. What Eunice Kennedy Shriver was able to establish is nothing short of amazing. Okay, back to work….
You can write about Stoops all day and night, but right now Mack is in
the drivers seat in the big 12. he sent bob back to the out-house. Like
Barry said, “it’s a short walk from the penthouse to the outhouse”. Kudo’s
to Switzer for being envolved for so many years in special olympics.
I did not read the article on Eunice Kennedy. I did not have to. I know the fruits of her labor. I was fortunate to have attended 3 Oklahoma state Olympic and a couple of disstric Special Olympic competitions. They are out of sight and so enjoyable to attend. If you want to talk about community involvement and organizing for the greater good of humanity, THAT is where you find it. There are few agendas, there are no steroid scandals. What you find are lots of hugs, smiles, and good friendly sportsmanship and competition. I would rather watch the Special Olympics than the real ones because they are real, and about real life. Thank you for writing on this, and thank you Ms. Kennedy Shriver for the fruits of your labor. They were good and pure and gave back to society in a most positive way.
Nice article.