So there they were, in this fabled tournament of champions: the heavenly (yet earthly) King against the talented Court Jester*, and the valiant (though depleted) Knight** against the brilliant (but yet-unproven) Tactician***.
The King humbled the Court Jester, and the Tactician outsmarted the Knight.
Finally, the King met the Tactician in an epic duel.
Except it wasn't epic. The King's grace and power were too much for the Tactician, who fell in three straight sets despite a brave fight.
So the King continues his reign for one more year--his fifth--on the courts of Flushing Meadows. It had been a grueling year for him, having lost epic, bloody duels with the tenacious Knight at the courts of Wimbledon and Roland Garros after having survived a crippling disease which left him weaker. There were--and still are--those who doubted the King's ability and wanted to see him fall in defeat. But as he has proven in his latest victory, he is healed and ready to lead the Kingdom of Tennis once again with the talent and genius only he possesses.
May King Roger reign forevermore, in tennis and in our hearts!
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I had way too much fun with that. Wasn't Roger amazing? He's BAAAACK!
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*Novak Djokovic, known as the Joker. "Court" jester seems appropriate, right?
**Rafa Nadal. "Knight" seems to fit him pretty well. Grounded, unpretentious, tough, and athletic.
***Andy Murray. Roger himself called Andy a tactician...who am I to doubt his words?
Showing posts with label historical_moments. Show all posts
Showing posts with label historical_moments. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Historical significance
So Senator Barack Obama has officially become the Democratic Party's nominee for the 2008 presidential election. There is so much historical significance in the dates of the convention and in the candidates (Hillary and Obama) themselves.
Obama:
Aug. 26, 1929: With the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, women won the right to vote in the U.S. In 2008, Hillary was close to becoming the first female presidential candidate of a major political party, putting those 18 million cracks in that glass ceiling.
Aug. 27: LBJ's 100th birthday. He fought for and helped pass legislation on such issues as civil rights, healthcare for all Americans, improved education, restraint in foreign policy, and environmental conservation. All of these issues are still relevant today. He also increased American involvement in what was to become an unpopular war (Vietnam); there's the highly unpopular Iraq War II today which most Americans want the next president to end.
Aug. 28, 1963: MLK Jr. gave his historic "I Have a Dream" speech on the National Mall. Obama will give his acceptance speech today, 45 years later; his nomination is seen by some as the culmination of the efforts of so many leaders of the Civil Rights movement, including King. Obama himself had worked as a community organizer in south Chicago, where many poor African-American families reside.
Aug. 29: 3rd anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's landfall in New Orleans. Many attribute the dearth of federal aid by the Bush Administration to the fact that the most greatly affected were low-income blacks.
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Also, Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday is in February of 2009, just a few weeks after the inauguration of the next president. If Obama wins, the significance of that will be incredible. Both are/were tall, lanky men from Illinois, hardened by difficult circumstances in childhood, and both are/were hardworking and intelligent. Lincoln helped free the slaves, and no doubt because of that, Obama is able to run for the nation's highest office today.
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Bill's right. History is on Obama's side. What a year 2008 has been!
Obama:
- He will be the first black President in the history of the United States if he wins in November.
- His age and inexperience have been points of debate, but he will have a chance to reassure voters later today in his acceptance speech.
- The most recent polls have shown him and McCain in an incredibly tight race.
- He chose Biden no doubt to appeal to the voters who voted for Hillary, among whom many are blue-collar whites.
- He was the first Catholic president.
- Voters were wary of his age and inexperience, but he reassured them in his acceptance speech.
- The Kennedy/Johnson ticket won by a hair.
- The choice of LBJ as VP was intended to appeal to southern whites as well.
Aug. 26, 1929: With the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, women won the right to vote in the U.S. In 2008, Hillary was close to becoming the first female presidential candidate of a major political party, putting those 18 million cracks in that glass ceiling.
Aug. 27: LBJ's 100th birthday. He fought for and helped pass legislation on such issues as civil rights, healthcare for all Americans, improved education, restraint in foreign policy, and environmental conservation. All of these issues are still relevant today. He also increased American involvement in what was to become an unpopular war (Vietnam); there's the highly unpopular Iraq War II today which most Americans want the next president to end.
Aug. 28, 1963: MLK Jr. gave his historic "I Have a Dream" speech on the National Mall. Obama will give his acceptance speech today, 45 years later; his nomination is seen by some as the culmination of the efforts of so many leaders of the Civil Rights movement, including King. Obama himself had worked as a community organizer in south Chicago, where many poor African-American families reside.
Aug. 29: 3rd anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's landfall in New Orleans. Many attribute the dearth of federal aid by the Bush Administration to the fact that the most greatly affected were low-income blacks.
----
Also, Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday is in February of 2009, just a few weeks after the inauguration of the next president. If Obama wins, the significance of that will be incredible. Both are/were tall, lanky men from Illinois, hardened by difficult circumstances in childhood, and both are/were hardworking and intelligent. Lincoln helped free the slaves, and no doubt because of that, Obama is able to run for the nation's highest office today.
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Bill's right. History is on Obama's side. What a year 2008 has been!
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Usain Bolt is just nuts. 9.69 seconds to smash the world record, and he took some kind of leisurely stroll in the last 20m; he even looked around to see how far ahead he was! I can't imagine how much faster his time would have been had he actually focused through the entire race. He's just like that kid in class who fools around and never pays attention, yet aces every test and makes everyone dumbfounded.
The guy makes the 100m dash seem like child's play while the other guys seemed to struggle. Most exciting 9.69 seconds ever! Here's hoping the doping test results come back negative.
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The U.S. crushed Spain in basketball. Serves the Spaniards right for that stupid ad.
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Federer may not be no. 1 for much longer, but at least he's got something to smile about after a tough year. He won gold in the men's doubles tournament, and you could see his happiness pouring out when the two men hugged each other and jumped up and down like kids. They played around, with Fed pretending to massage his doubles partner on the court. It's so nice to know that he's finally got the Olympic gold he's always wanted--ironically, during the year in which he lost his no.1 ranking and his near-invincibility on the court. It'll be tough for him to beat Sampras' record now...
The guy makes the 100m dash seem like child's play while the other guys seemed to struggle. Most exciting 9.69 seconds ever! Here's hoping the doping test results come back negative.
----
The U.S. crushed Spain in basketball. Serves the Spaniards right for that stupid ad.
----
Federer may not be no. 1 for much longer, but at least he's got something to smile about after a tough year. He won gold in the men's doubles tournament, and you could see his happiness pouring out when the two men hugged each other and jumped up and down like kids. They played around, with Fed pretending to massage his doubles partner on the court. It's so nice to know that he's finally got the Olympic gold he's always wanted--ironically, during the year in which he lost his no.1 ranking and his near-invincibility on the court. It'll be tough for him to beat Sampras' record now...
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