Remembering Muhammad Ali

The current travails of Barrack Obama in the primary elections remind me of what happened years ago to Muhammad Ali, the legendary boxer. Ali won the heavyweight championship of the world in 1964, when he was just 22 years old. He was a marvelous boxer with a style so different from the plodding heavyweight boxers. He was fast on his feet, and could dance around his opponents throwing lightning fast jabs at them, round after round. It was sheer delight to watch him box. Nobody could beat him. He was a showman, and knew how to hype the boxing events with predictions, funny poems and on-liners. In short, he was a big boost to the sports of boxing. However, he did not fit the traditional mold of ‘dumb black heavy weight champion’ who did whatever the higher ups told him to do. Ali became extremely unpopular when he joined the ‘Nation of Islam’, which was one of the very few organizations in those days that instilled pride about ones black heritage. The Boxing Commissions in this country, controlled by ultra conservative whites, waited for a chance to strip Ali of his title although he was unbeatable in the ring. They got their opportunity in 1967, when Ali refused to answer the call to be drafted to the U.S. Army to fight in Viet Nam. (‘I have nothing against Viet Cong. They have never called me a nigger’). Without any hearings for his refusal to go to war for USA, they summarily took back his boxing license. Ali was criticized severely in the MSM, and many calling him ‘unpatriotic’ and a ‘traitor’. It took three years before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Ali was right, and that he should be given back his boxing license. Ali won his championship back, and became a legend in boxing with many memorable fights. But the Ali who came back in 1970, was not his old self. He had lost his speed and stamina, and had to change his style to ‘rope a dope’ which involved tiring the opponent by taking heavy punishments to his body. This did its damage over the years, and now Muhammad Ali is a sorry figure, ‘punch drunk’, disabled with Parkinson’s disease.

How does the Ali story relate to Barrack Obama? I find many similarities between the two. Like Ali was to boxing in 1964, Obama is a dazzling phenomenon in American politics with a style so different from the ‘slash and burn’ tactics of the established. Like the classic Ali’s fights, Obama’s speeches are mesmerizing, and will be referred and discussed for years to come. Obama has an excellent mind, with an ability to see the big picture and to identify the root causes of an issue. He can work with the both sides (Republicans and Democrats). He is the leader this country deperately needs at this time, like boxing needed a showman like Ali in the 1960’s. As Ali was unbeatable in 1964-65, Obama is now unbeatable in the on-going primary elections. There is no way that his sole opposition, Hillary Clinton, can catch up with him in the number of primary delegates won, states won, and even in the popular votes cast. Yet, like Boxing Commissions in 1960’s, the establishment of the Democratic party ('super delegates') is still waiting around, looking for a reason to deny Obama his nomination, and to give it to their favorite, Hillary Clinton. The recent flap over Obama’s association with a controversial preacher, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, may be the opening they are waiting for. There is no doubt in my mind that the Democratic Party would be severely damaged if Obama is denied his well-earned nomination, and would lose the the general election to John McCain of the Republican Party. Maybe then the chastened party will go back to Obama in 2012. Unfortunatley, as Ali was in 1970, Obama would be past his peak by then. He would have become another ' seasoned politician' in Washington, less idealistic, and out of touch with the people.