Fascinated by #1? Get Over It!

For whatever reason, being the absolute best is at the core of the American psyche. Anything less than numero uno is seen as a failure...yesterday's news as we seek the new "it" person over whom to fawn as he or she adorns cereal boxes, lunch pails and billboards touting American superiority. I would suspect that this is a similar act to the Romans ' desire to erect statues to every hero from every war against every puny barbaric tribe up until the Visigoths came to town.

While I get it that national pride is an important thing, sticking my chest out and strutting around because the USA women beat Canada in two extra periods in soccer just doesn't make sense. Good for the...it's a nice achievement, but it doesn't make us any better that the folks who say "eh?" after everything. So, it seems that Lolo Jones is going to have a rough couple of weeks following her fourth-palce finish in the 100 hurdles at this year's Olympics. Having been featured by just about every magazine and sports journal (video and written) as someone to watch following a disappointing Beijing Olympics, she incurred the wrath of her fellow hurdlers who felt somewhat dismissed in the hype. Good hurdlers both, they seemed to feel that Jones' looks (and possibly race) were primary factors in the story. No matter. Jones finished out of the medal standings while the other two mounted the podium to be lauded, as they should have been. Hopefully, Dawn Harper and Kellie Wells will get the deserved Letterman appearance (though track performers rarely do) and endorsements...my guess is that Missy Franklin and the women's gymnastics teams along with Michael Phelps will reap the rewards. However, winning does not guarantee immortality: as proven by the face that appears next to Ms. Jones in this post...and he finished fourth in his only Olympic appearance.