With all the hype and media coverage about the Trump presidency I’ve retreated from the political world, circling back into the sports world. It isn’t the best use of my time and energy, but it allows me to engage in a situation where there remains some modicum of hope.
Sports allow individuals a measurable and finite opportunity to express difference at the level of engagements and stakes as they so choose. The more invested we become in the sports, the less control we have over our level of engagement. The key difference between this and, say, politics is that sports are essentially low stakes. Even in Europe where soccer stadium deaths happen yearly, the level of the stakes remain comparatively low. See, if Manchester City or the NY Giants lose a game I’ll feel bad for a minute. If a team like the Jets continuously squanders opportunities they’ll get a shot at a top drat pick next year and likely free up a lot of capital to grab some other pieces to the puzzle.
If Trump shits the bed then we are all in trouble for longer than the four years he is going to be in office. Sadly, the formula to mess up Trump’s game was just broadcast recently by the Daily Show. It isn’t a terribly secret formula: Bomb a Trump hotel abroad and he’s gonna retaliate.
So that is what high stakes look like…