Wednesday, November 05, 2008

Obama and the Phillies

Last night I found myself in a debate: which was the bigger win, Obama or the Phillies?

The Obama victory speech at Grant Park in Chicago (NY Times)


Phillies parade celebrating the 2008 World Series Champs on Broad St, Philadelphia (Inq)

In both instances, what many thought was impossible became possible. Both wins were transformative: the Phillies win transformed the battered psyche of the Philadelphia sports fan, Obama's victory transformed our nation's psyche and brought with it a renewed sense of hope. I suppose electing a competent president is seemingly more urgent than winning the world series, especially with the financial crisis, the war in Iraq, climate change and the ongoing energy crisis. Still, the Phils championship can't be understated. And to have both wins happen within a week of each other...it sure feels good to support a few winning teams for once.

Apparently, the state of Alaska didn't get the memo about this tranformative moment in our nation's history. We are on the verge of re-electing a convicted felon to the US Senate and old Don Young (who's currently under investigation) to the US House of Representatives. Pretty embarassing. The good news, however, is that we didn't lose our governor to the vice-presidency. What a week!