Seeing the World Series through Western Democratic eyes The Big Strategy

There are some parallels between the Rockies/Red Sox series

Of course, the first is team from the West vs. team from the upper Northeast. Outside of the actual Yankees, there is no more of a yankee team that the Red Sox. And, there is no more team from the interior West than the Rockies. Its just geography.

The Rockies aren't as religious as you think they are. Just as the western conservatism is more libertarian than the southern sort, the Rockies aren't as religious as people would like to think. The Independent of the UK wrote up a piece called "Batting for Jesus," profiling these supposed religious centered team, but the Denver Post knocked it down a bit:

Character, not religion, is the critical factor in the Rockies' chemistry, according to the players. That explains why so many players reacted negatively to the portrayal of their clubhouse in a USA Today cover story in Wednesday's editions that stressed the importance of Christianity.

"It was just bad. I am not happy at all. Some of the best teammates I have ever had are the furthest thing from Christian," pitcher Jason Jennings said. "You don't have to be a Christian to have good character. They can be separate. It was misleading."

Todd Helton and Jennings were quoted supporting the article's premise regarding religion's role in the clubhouse. But both said they never were asked about religion, and were questioned only in general terms about the clubhouse environment.

"I wouldn't say it was accurate. (The writer) asked me about the guys in here and I said it's a good group. We work hard and get along well," Helton said.

For the Rockies, its all about the farm team. For the Red Sox, by and large, its about big name free agents. This may not be totally true, but its a nice story. This is how the Democrats have been winning in the west, starting small and the allowing the local victories translate into larger ones. For example, lost in the story of Brian Schweitzer being elected in Montana was the story that Democrats control the state Senate and are within one vote of the house.

Emmett O'Connell | October 25, 2007 | Comment on This Post (0 so far) Permalink: Seeing the World Series through Western Democratic eyes The Big Strategy

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