When the Boston Red Sox make the Major League Baseball World Series, all of New England feels compelled to get on the bandwagon, Blaze Radio host is a Boston Bruins booster who does not care much for baseball, but admits it is prudent to root for the Red Sox now that they are in the "big dance".
It is expected that the hometown Mayor would lead the charge in civic cheerleader. But five term Boston Mayor Thomas Menino (D-Boston) manged to muff his MLB reference. Boston Globe reporter Maria Cramer tweeted that Mayor Menino told a pack of reporters that he hoped that the Red Sox would win the World Series Cup and that their fans would be responsible.
Mayor Menino seemingly melded MLB's Commissioner's Trophy with the NHL's Stanley Cup. Oops. This was not the first of Mayor Menino's missteps in sports quips. But it is understandable as not every politico is an avid sports fan and they may not have access to the Teleprompter of the United States (TOTUS) to make them sound good.
While it is amusing to twitter at Menino's sports ignorance, it is more more maddening to consider how Mayor Menino has been part of efforts to polemically politicize professional sports. Menino has been a prominent supporter of Mayors Against Illegal Guns (MAIG). For the last few years, MAIG has been running expensive $100,000 ads during the Super Bowl to promote their gun grabbing initiatives.
If an elected official is a sports fan, let them go to town when their team is in the championships. If not, stick to a script on rooting for the home team. And be gracious about the city bets, rather than turning your nose at the hospitality in the World Series wager of the opposing side, as Menino did with St. Louis' offer of fried ravioli. Finally, stop playing partisan politics with a veneer of sports, like with MAIG Superbowl ads.
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