We took a road trip recently. Like any long-suffering but loyal fan of the Dallas Cowboys football team, I was wearing a white golf shirt, with a blue star on the left side, At the first stop for coffee, I was standing at the coffee bar pouring a cup, when an older man leaned over to quietly whisper in my ear "Be careful -- this is Redskins country!" I turned to see him smile and then walk away.
At a pit stop in Hardee's (which is the only reason to ever go to a Hardee's), I heard a thunderous voice announce "hey you, you better get yourself on out of here! We don't serve your type here!" I turned to see a large woman behind the counter laughing, along with her co-workers. When I left, I told her I was going someplace that would serve my type. She laughed and waved good-bye.
At the last stop, I was waiting in line to pay, when a large man with a large belly and even larger smile, wearing a Redskins tee-shirt, poked his finger into the star on my chest, saying "That's a girl's team. Real men love the Redskins." I laughed, saying "Yeah, but they're not America's Team!" He laughed and walked outside.
Later, I wondered how the day would have been different if I had been wearing a shirt that said "I'm a Democrat" or "I'm a Republican." Football, like most team sports, celebrates our differences. Politics doesn't!
What is more important than religion? Yet, we don't get incensed whenever we meet a Protestant, a Catholic, or a Jew. Religious differences are better tolerated than political differences . . . why? Maybe, it is because the media doesn't push breathless 24/7 coverage of our religious differences? Maybe, it is because political differences are about power, and that's far more important than religion?
At a pit stop in Hardee's (which is the only reason to ever go to a Hardee's), I heard a thunderous voice announce "hey you, you better get yourself on out of here! We don't serve your type here!" I turned to see a large woman behind the counter laughing, along with her co-workers. When I left, I told her I was going someplace that would serve my type. She laughed and waved good-bye.
At the last stop, I was waiting in line to pay, when a large man with a large belly and even larger smile, wearing a Redskins tee-shirt, poked his finger into the star on my chest, saying "That's a girl's team. Real men love the Redskins." I laughed, saying "Yeah, but they're not America's Team!" He laughed and walked outside.
Later, I wondered how the day would have been different if I had been wearing a shirt that said "I'm a Democrat" or "I'm a Republican." Football, like most team sports, celebrates our differences. Politics doesn't!
What is more important than religion? Yet, we don't get incensed whenever we meet a Protestant, a Catholic, or a Jew. Religious differences are better tolerated than political differences . . . why? Maybe, it is because the media doesn't push breathless 24/7 coverage of our religious differences? Maybe, it is because political differences are about power, and that's far more important than religion?
