Today, I caught part of a Democratic Primary Forum from Iowa on C-Span, where a collection of "community leaders" posed questions to the various candidates (who came on stage individually.) I only saw Chris Dodd and Barack Obama, but the tone of the event was a recitation of problems facing everyday people (and the individuals asking the questions) and what the candidates would do to fix the problem. Predictably, Dodd and Obama promised the folks that once they were president, he would pass legislation to fix the particular problem (in fact, they had already proposed legislation to fix the problems!)It was kind of like watching the old "Queen for a Day" show.
That brought to my feverish mind a brilliant idea! So, without further ado, here is the text of a letter addressed to all the Democratic candidates:
Dear___________,
Hello. My name is Gary Fouse, and I am the chairman of "People for a Perfect World". I live in southern California, but for the past 45 years, I have been a die-hard fan of the Chicago Cubs. I first fell in love with the Cubbies in 1963, when I was 18 years old. Now,I am 62, and have yet to see my Cubbies win the National League pennant, let alone win a World Series.
Are you aware that the last year the Cubs won the National League pennant was 1945-the year I was born? Are you aware the last year the Cubs won a World Series was 1908-the year my father (God rest his soul) was born? Meanwhile, in all those years, how many pennants and World Series have the Yankees won? What about the Dodgers, the Cardinals etc. It seems that the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer. Where is the justice, I ask you?
In addition, there have been years when it seemed like justice was about to be done. Take 1969, for example, when the Cubs had an 8 game lead in September, only to have the New York Mets steal it all away from them. Then there was 1984, when the Cubs won their division and had a 2-0 lead on San Diego in the playoffs-only to have the Padres steal it all away from them. Worst of all was 2003. We had a 3-1 lead over the Marlins in the playoffs, again, only to see it all stolen away from us-aided by the infamous Steve Bartman-a Florida plant.
Perhaps even more galling is the fact that since I have been a Cubs fan, I have had to witness newly-arrived (expansion)teams like the Mets, Marlins, Padres, Astros, Diamondbacks, Rockies, Angels and who know who else, come into our league and steal pennants that should have gone to our own Cubs (an original Major League franchise). It's just not fair.
To sum it all up, I am a victim!
So now, I am 62 years old, the shadows are getting longer, and I wonder if I will ever see my beloved Cubbies win it all before I pass on. And it's not just me. There are millions of other suffering Cub fans in Chicago and all over this great country of ours crying out for justice.
So my question to you is this: Will you make a commitment, here and now, that if elected, you will pass legislation to ensure that the Chicago Cubs will be the World Champions of baseball in 2009? MLB cannot be trusted to do the right thing. Government must step in.
No pennant-no peace!!
I eagerly await your response.
Sincerely,
Gary Fouse
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