Red Sox: Séparation de l'équipe et de l'État! La bataille politique...

Les Red Sox sont à Boston ce que les Canadiens de Montréal sont à leur ville. Non, la folie est encore plus grande à Boston je crois. Les partisans sont particulièrement chauvins et ils connaissent parfaitement l'histoire de leurs héros. Normal dans ce contexte que les politiciens rattachés à la ville ou à l'état se présentent comme de véritables partisans de l'équipe. Qui oserait s'avouer fan d'une autre équipe à moins d'être suicidaire? Le problème, c'est qu'à Boston il ne suffit de se déclarer fan, il faut le prouver! Le sénateur démocrate John Kerry, mais aussi l'ancien gouverneur Mitt Romney, doivent faire la preuve qu'ils ne sont pas que de riches citoyens en mesure de détenir des billets de saison, ils doivent faire la démonstration de leurs connaissances... Et ce n'est pas toujours convaincant!

 "John Kerry is the Senator from Massachusetts. So he has to like the Red Sox. He shows up to throw the first pitch when asked, although it doesn’t often go particularly well (check out this NPR report from 2004, when Kerry was booed and the young boy interviewed for the piece said he threw like a girl). And although Kerry needn’t be a super fan, he often sounds like a rookie.

This July 20, 2004 report from Peter Gammons, sums it up:

John Kerry last week professed to be a big fan of “Manny Ortez,” then re-emphasized the phoofery by correcting it to “David Ortez.” No, that was Dave (Baby) Cortez and “The Happy Organ.” A few years back Kerry went on a Boston station with Eddie Andelman and said “my favorite Red Sox player of all time is The Walking Man, Eddie Yost,” who never played for the Red Sox. Kerry is going to sweep New England. He’s going to get 70 percent of the vote in Massachusetts. He doesn’t have to be a Red Sox fan, all he has to do is not be John Ashcroft.

Now, this is not just Sen. Kerry’s problem. Awkward embraces of hometown sports teams are a requirement for politicians of all stripes. It’s just particularly potent in Massachusetts, where there aren’t many casual fans.

Here’s the Daily Beast on former Massachusetts Gov. and current GOP presidential frontrunner Mitt Romney: Is Romney a Red Sox “fan” as we understand it? He often brags that his family has season tickets at Fenway. But that doesn’t prove Romney is a fan; that proves Romney is rich. No, to see how closely Romney follows his favorite team, we go to St. Petersburg, Fla., on June 15. While the Republican frontrunner watched Josh Beckett throw a one-hitter, he marveled that the Rays were playing home games indoors. “I thought I was going to be in sweltering heat,” Romney said, “but instead it’s cool.” Tropicana Field has been hosting major-league games since 1998. The comment marked a watershed of sorts. Mitt Romney was an even phonier Red Sox fan than John Kerry. The solution — divide and stop talking, as the old saying goes. Like church and state, the Sox and politics should probably be separated. Let’s be serious, most pols can’t fake their fandom very well, the fans aren’t trying to think about politics when they are at the park. So let’s just not."

 http://2012.talkingpointsmemo.com/2012/04/john-kerry-red-sox.php?ref=fpnewsfeed