Super This, Super That

So, it's Superbowl weekend. This is very exciting, UK reader(s). Football (American) is a much maligned sport in the UK. Rugby fans are particularly sniffy and patronising about it. Rugby fans have no idea what they're talking about (a general rule for life). While rugby is a bunch of slightly over-weight public school boys and Australians running about and bumping in to each other, football is a proper contact sport. There is a reason for the body armour - it's really, really dangerous. And yet - and this is a truth for sports generally here - cheating, play acting and illegal play is considered an affront, almost, to America itself. Even in hockey (where fighting is part of the game) any block that looks like it was made with the intention of hurting another player is met with huge fines and bans. Football is also the perfect TV sport. If a sport was to be designed by TV people, football would be it. It lasts just the right time to get slightly drunk and has natural breaks in play just long enough to sell viagra to slightly drunk men who can't get it up any more.

Anyway, just take it as read that the Superbowl is a good thing. This year it is being spoilt only by the fact that Prince's astonishing half-time performance last year is being followed by, erm, Tom Petty. Hmm, thanks.

Also this week is Super Tuesday. Or Super! Tuesday!! as CNN would have it. This is, as you know, when 20 odd states hold their Primaries or Caucuses. This is almost as exciting a contact sport as football. NBC certainly think so. During the last championship game a preview for Super Tuesday was shown at half time - followed by the classic line - 'football and politics, what more do you need - all here on NBC'. And they may have a point.

American TV calls politics using sports language. 'Obama needs to keep moving the chains', 'McCain hit him out the park on that point', 'when Bush gets the ball back after November he's not going to take a knee. He's going to step back and throw it long'. This last one is a football analogy, meaning Bush isn't going to play out time on his presidency, he's going to want to end on a big play. In this case, the 'throw it long' bit is football speak for 'he's going to bomb Iran out of existence'. It's nice to know these things are taken as seriously as football...

I heard that the UK got shut down this week because it got a bit windy. It's a bit embarrassing really, isn't it? It's as if the UK infrastructure was designed and built on a wave of heady optimism generally missing from the British character. "It'll be fine! The summers will be sunny and the winters benign. Trust me, wind and snow in England? Not going to happen, mate". Bless Britain. I miss it a bit.