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The Amercian Flag, Liberals, NASCAR and the Bible

Sarah Palin Loves Institutions (Fox News, NASCAR) That Marginalize Blacks

I am a Liberal who happens to love NASCAR. Allow me to refute your claims in a way that says "not every Liberal would agree with this." I was going for something more witty and intriguing, but I hope my following analysis will suffice:

A typical NASCAR race begins with an invocation. A selected individual offers a non-denominational prayer and asks God to protect the participants and fans.

Secular Liberals wouldn't think of starting an event with a prayer. They would suggest that there should be a separation of church and racing.

I respect religion, especially the values and traditions that NASCAR based itself on. The prayer is non-denominational and not targeted to a specific sect - I appreciate that. I'd rather they be able to freely express their beliefs than be suppressed by someone with a dissenting opinion.

After the invocation, an Honor Guard marches in to present the American Flag.

Liberals see the American Flag as an oppressive symbol and would prefer to see the Honor Guard march across the flag rather than carry it.

I see the American flag as a symbol. A symbol that encompasses our nation's history and culture.

Most NASCAR races take place in America, viewed by American people in American homes and American businesses. Why not fly the AMERICAN flag before and during a race? Why would ANYONE want that taken away? Besides, the flag is as ubiquitous at a NASCAR race as it is anywhere else in the nation - to me, it just seems right to have it there for no reason other than to further express the inherent patriotic ideals of the sport.

Once the colors are presented, a guest sings the National Anthem.

Liberals loathe the Anthem and view it as a song of blind patriotism.

This ties in with my views on tradition. It has been part of this nation's history for centuries and properly cements our place in this world. It is our unique way of expressing our history and culture, and I'd hate to see it go. The only people I could fathom hating the Anthem are terrorists and terrorist sympathizers - you're not going to write an article correlating Liberals to them, are you?

As the anthem ends and the crowd cheers as military aircraft fly over the race track.

Rather than view these magnificent machines as symbols of freedom, Liberals view the military as a means to oppress people.

I view the military as an organization made to protect us from the enemies we've made over the years... I respect what they do, what they stand for and I appreciate their hard work. A few incidents in the past in which they've abused their power doesn't change my overall outlook on them, and it sure as hell doesn't detract from the magnificence of any tasteful showing of our nations military.

The Grand Marshall (Marshal) then steps to the microphone and gives the command to start engines. Immediately, 43 race cars thunder to life. Ignoring the Global Warming myth, these gas guzzling 800 horsepower race cars thunder around the course at speeds of up to 200 miles an hour.

I don't buy into global warming. No drawn out defense from me this time, I believe the planet goes through cycles and that global warming is just another money-making scheme and a way to keep people in fear and feeling guilty. If I can get away with another reason - a way for people to feel self-righteous.

Liberals would prefer a 55 MPH limit. They would also be fretting about the 'carbon footprint' that the race cars emit and wondering if any of the car owners had purchased 'emission credits'.

Of course Liberals would prefer that the cars were eco-friendly hybrids. Yes, because NASCAR is soooo exciting as it is at 200 MPH. Let's slow the cars to an insipid 55 MPH for the entertainment of the fans. Catch my drift? The speed and intensity are what draw me to stock car racing; without it I'd rather watch cheese age. I spend more time worrying whether or not the car owners equipped the car with the proper safety features to preserve the lives of the men and women behind the wheel than the emissions. As far as emissions go, they're using unleaded fuel now. They still use over 200,000 gallons of the stuff a year, but I couldn't care less.

As the race progresses the fans cheer the action. At the end of the race the checkered flag waves and the fans cheer for the winner.

Liberals abhor competition that creates winners and losers. Liberals even want to ban dodge ball to prevent the loser from suffering the loss of self-esteem.

Where in the blue hell did this come from? Now you're correlating a political stance with sports? Save that for politics. I am all in favor of NASCAR getting rid of the no-bump drafting rule, which will - get this - MAKE THE SPORT MORE COMPETITIVE. I understand you're drawing a parallel from "Liberals are wimps" to competition, but that's not right. On a related note, I enjoy dodge ball - I even believe any ball that hits someone in the head means two people go out.

Conservatives admire the engineering expertise, the driver's ability, and the thrill of competition - Liberals dismiss all of these attributes.

Not this one. I'm the first one defending NASCAR for being more than just "a pack of cars going around in a circle for 500 miles." Historically, it was just about luck and who could keep their car intact, but since the inception of drafting and new technology, it is much more about skill, fortitude AND intellect.

From the invocation, presentation of the colors, singing the National Anthem, celebrating the military fly over, to the conclusion of the race; there is a great divide between Conservative and Liberals. Therefore, it was easy for me to conclude that regardless of political registration, NASCAR fans are fairly conservative.

I fully agree, but here's where I have a problem. You're tying the Liberal mindset in too deeply with this. Some Liberals will agree with one of these, some will agree with all of them. I agree with NONE. I guess Liberals can't enjoy ANY sport because they perform the National Anthem, are highly competitive and result in a winner and a loser - with the exception of soccer, I'm sure you think soccer is a sport that Liberals can get into due to the possibility of a tie. I hope you don't think that those riots are a result of Liberals being angry over a game resulting in a loser. Pardon my sarcasm.

Yes, NASCAR has a strong faith-based backing, but that shouldn't automatically mean an Atheist, a Muslim, a Liberal, a Communist, a PETA member or any other random religious or political constituency can't enjoy the sport. It's all about respect for the freedom of expression, something I wholeheartedly believe in. Without it, I couldn't write opinion articles. I am hoping that much of this article was hyperbole and not your true feelings. Indeed, the typical Liberal will more than likely share one or more of the attributes you listed - but does that mean we can't enjoy NASCAR? That we can't see it as entertaining and gripping as Conservatives do?

There's a time for politics and there's a time to say "to hell with it all" and enjoy a little healthy competition and wholesome entertainment. I am, in your eyes, the "rare" Liberal who can put his political convictions aside to actually enjoy a sport. As far as Conservatives' convictions getting in the way of entertainment, please explain to me their anger over the "Liberal" messages in the movie "Avatar."

Explain to me the fact that most of the people on censorship boards and watchdog groups are Conservatives. I want to chat with the people you discussed with that led you to the conclusion that Liberals want eco-friendly cars, want them to drive 55 MPH, would be content with people trampling the flag and who loathe the Anthem - I would have to bow to their complete and utter intolerance and stupidity. And - don't get me STARTED on Conservatives and intolerance.

Respectfully,

John Danz Jr,
Newsblaze writer

Judyth Piazza chats with David Ragan, NASCAR Driver #6