The picture, taken yesterday, is of Wasilla GOP Senator Charlie Huggins' son Cody, guarding Juneau's Reese Saviers, as Reese drives to the basket against Colony's boys' basketball team in a grudge rematch from last year's quarter finals at the state tournament. Like last year, Juneau came up short in what was a closer game than the final score - Colony 64 -- Juneau 54 - indicates.I've watched young Cody play sports far longer than his dad has been a senator. He and my son have played on the same teams, and against each other, depending on the year or sport. Cody, always a talented and motivated athlete, was sort of a "gunner" when he was young, but has turned into an excellent team player, helping out one of the best teams in the state this year, in a major way. He had a great game yesterday, finishing with 12 points.
Senator Huggins is a team player of a sort, too. His team is big oil. He wants to rack up a lot of points for these fat cats during the current session. He's trying to block the shots already taken by another Mat-Su Valley basketball star, Gov. Sarah Palin. She stole the GOP's slimy ball in the 2006 election, then scored a series of three-pointers from outside during last year's special session tournament. The players for the CBC (Corrupt Bastards' Club) team have been plotting strategy for the grudge match ever since.
Cococo-Phillips, playing the role here of the infamous Renato William Jones in the 1972 Olympics Basketball tournament, is trying to reset the clock in favor of big oil. To top that off, big oil has pimped their cutest presstitute, Dan Fagan, to call a "foul" against the Governor, similarly to the way the 1972 USSR coach, Vladamir Kondrashin, introduced us to a new kind of basketball. Fagan's more used to playing quarter court basketball against girls than accepting any sort of a manly challenge, but big oil, in their desperation, always knows they can count on him to at least be their water boy, mopping up the spills.
Don't you love these uber capitalists and wingnut welfare recipients taking their plays from a Communist playbook? The Alaska Report's new political blog is getting some interesting comments on this.
One thing is certain, though. Sen. Huggins, who is justifiably proud of his kids' achievements (I use plural, because his daughter Haley, having never pole vaulted before 2007, is poised to set a West Point Women's Track pole vault record this spring), is going to be ornery and feisty this coming week. Watch out for him leading big oil's full-court press.
Go Knights!
photo by Michael Penn - Juneau Empire
2 comments:
Phil, While I appreciate the sports metaphors to discuss the political scene, I think the politicians' kids should be off limits unless they bring themselves into the politics. Let him get his basketball glory on his own with bringing in his dad. I think you can cover the dad without using the son.
Steve,
Ever see a politician kiss a baby? In front of a camera?
The earnestness of these kids' efforts is in contrast to the duplicitousness of the adults'.
Using information from a published news story about young athletes to contrast with less innocent modalities of behavior among adults isn't a new construct. And trust me, Steve, Charlie will be using the CHS victory over JDHS all week long as he muscles people over his legislation in the back corridors of our capital city.
To describe the story you're commenting upon as having "used" the kids is, I believe, a misreading. I praised the kids.
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