Reviewing the Daytona 500

Reader Dean Fairbrother perceptively covers both the aesthetic and the political angles in his review of the opening of yesterday’s Daytona 500:

I watched the opening of the “500” yesterday (plus most of the race) and have to admit to getting a little misty-eyed. Perhaps because there seemed to be so much authenticity in everything that went on — the President was so happy to be there and the drivers were obviously excited, Leann Rimes (not really one of my faves) threw herself into R-O-C-K and poured all she had into the National Anthem, and what can you say about Lee Greenwood? Liberals really hate that “God Bless the U.S.A.”, which makes the song that much more thrilling. Lee really did a great job — you could tell that he was with likeminded friends, all 180,000 of them, and he gave them his best effort.
Of course, what would a NASCAR opening be without a military fly-by. Two jets and a B-2 bomber — that’s why they invented surround sound receivers that go up to “11”! God bless it all…
Our President seemed rather humbled by the adulation, if you ask me. I like guys like that. You can just picture the last president in a similar situation, standing there all smug, his head up high, jaw jutting out. You’d want to go up and sucker punch him in the gut…
A final thing — did you see the picture of AF1 lifting off from Daytona? It looms huge behind the grandstand. Can you imagine being there to see that — a sight one would never forget. Yesterday gave me a bit of a morale boost. A few more scenes like it, and I don’t think re-election will be much of an issue.

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