There is only one guarantee about sports and politics _ follow them long enough, and it's only a matter of time until they break your heart.
The candidate to whom you would gladly donate a kidney gets swamped at the polls.
Mighty Casey strikes out.
This week, we had the confluence of an election and the World Series. Both events offered the opportunity for hopes to be raised, but also dashed to the ground.
Whether it's sports or politics _ or life _ somehow the thrill of victory never quite seems as thrilling as the agony of defeat is agonizing.
Winston Churchill wasn't much for sports, although he was decent enough at polo. But he knew a thing or two about politics ... and heartbreak.
In 1945, even though he had guided Great Britain through the perils of a world war and was generally acknowledged as the greatest man in the world, Churchill was booted from office by the British electorate.
His wife, Clementine, was trying to be comforting when she told him, "It may well be a blessing in disguise."
A grumpy Churchill replied: "At the moment, it seems quite effectively disguised."
Americans had a hard time understanding how the hero of Western civilization could possibly have lost an election. Didn't the hero always win?
Well, back then, they sure seemed to, in sports and politics.
In the movies, didn't Jimmy Stewart win out over the corrupt politicians in "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington"? Even playing doomed baseball hero Lou Gehrig, Gary Cooper stood tall in "The Pride of the Yankees."
The movies back then made us think that politics and sports were avenues to success.
But these days, there's the whole genre of films in which they get you all invested in the well-being of the hero and heroine, only to see something awful happen to them in the last reel.
I'm sorry, but after sitting in a theater for two hours, it's kind of disappointing to learn that despite my best efforts to root for Good to triumph, Evil has walked away with Good's lunch money.
Sometimes, even when it appears that the bad guy has met a grisly fate, he somehow comes back in sequel after sequel.
From what I understand, the main culprits are the slasher movies. I can't say I've ever sat through one. I figure if I'm going to watch somebody wear a hockey mask, I want to see a puck. As far as I'm concerned, any limbs that fall victim to a chain saw had better belong to a tree.
They say it's hard to keep a good man down, but it seems nigh unto impossible for gruesome villains Freddy Krueger or Michael Myers or Jason Voorhees to stay buried for very long.
Of course, this is nothing new. No matter how many times Dr. Van Helsing whacked Dracula through the decades, the count was never actually down for the count.
Drive a stake through his heart, expose him to sunlight, turn him into dust, it didn't matter. A few drops of blood on his ashes, and _ poof _ there he stands, good as new and even wearing a tux and cape.
What ever happened to truly happy endings? Where does all this disappointment end?
Does Lassie lead the grown-ups to the wrong well while Timmy goes down for the third time?
While Snidely Whiplash beats up Dudley Do-Right, does Little Nell _ tied to the tracks _ get run over by the train?
After Robin Hood disarms the Sheriff of Nottingham and confidently tosses the blackguard's sword back to him, does the Sheriff run Robin through and have his way with Maid Marian?
Does the Wicked Witch of the West get her feet on the Ruby Slippers and force Dorothy to stay in Oz, where she has to take in Munchkin laundry to get by?
Does Wile E. Coyote (gasp) catch and make a meal of the Road Runner?
Well, we certainly hope not. But gee, the way things are going, it's always possible.
We learn rather early in life that we don't always win, and neither do our heroes. Some people never quite come to terms with that concept, but one who does is former Buffalo Bills Coach Marv Levy.
A sports writer once asked him if an upcoming game was "a must win."
"No," Levy replied. "World War II was a must win.' "
A member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Levy is the only coach to lead his team to four consecutive Super Bowl appearances.
The thing is, the Bills lost every one of those Super Bowls.
"I'm emotional during games," he once said. "But as important as the game is to me, as important as my job is, I know it isn't life or death."
Sports and politics certainly have heartbreak in common, but it's important to remember something else they share after a bitter defeat.
There will be another game next year.
Sam Pollak is the editor of The Daily Star. He can be reached at spollak@thedailystar.com or at (607) 432-1000, ext. 208.
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