Why It’s Okay To Mix In A Little Politics With Your Sports

We're less than a week away from the election, and talk of it has seeped over into a good amount of sportswriting. Leitch is a big fan of doing it. Nor am I one to resist. Now, writing about politics online, in a forum that is not inherently political always produces two results. One: a retarded flame war. Two: A great deal of anger erupts at the writer for daring to bring the drudgery of politics into a forum where it isn't welcome. "Wah wah! Why'd you have to bring politics up, you asshole?"Now, normally, I would agree with that last sentiment. I really would. I don't really want to discuss fucking immigration policy on a fantasy football board. But I don't agree with that policy right now. Not this week. Tens of millions of people have watched the coverage of this campaign, from the debates to all the other bullshit filler in between. It's a huge part of the national conversation right now. Fuck, it's practically the ENTIRE conversation. And to say to people, "Hey, don't talk about what everyone's talking about!"? I'm sorry, but that's fucking dumb. Sports are great, but sports are made even more interesting by the context in which they're being played. And ignoring that context only serves to diminish their impact. Dave Zirin has a new book out, and in the intro, he states:

Sports can also be a place of inspiration that doesn't transcend the political but becomes the political, a place where we see our own dreams and aspirations played out in dynamic Technicolor.

So loosen up a bit this week. Don't get all pissy just because someone said something mildly political you happened to disagree with. Because this shit is kind of a big fucking deal.