The Curt Factor

I'm slightly worried about Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling campaigning for Bush in New Hampshire, since NH is a swing state. Part of me wants to write off Schilling as a dumb jock who nobody will listen to, but I know both of those things aren't true.

I'm worried because Schilling has reached out and touched fans in a personal way like no other athlete out there. This is the man who based his decision on allowing himself to be traded to Boston on fan input -- Direct fan input. He logged onto a Sons of Sam Horn chatroom on the night of Thanksgiving last year and found over 30 Sox fans in there talking about the upcoming 2004 season. He knew Red Sox Nation was filled with rabid fans, but he never knew just how dedicated some fans were because talking about baseball this early in the offseason is unheard of for most fans. So he introduced himself to the chatroom, had to prove that he actually was the Curt Schilling, and chatted it up with Sox fans begging him to come to Boston. It was at this point that Red Sox Nation fell in love with the man, and how could you not love him? He's continued to contribute pieces to Sons of Sam Horn and Boston Dirt Dogs, skirting the maintream sports press to give the story directly to the fans, talking with them when he can. He's a very personable, likeable guy.

Normally an endorsement from an athlete wouldn't mean much, but given Schilling's charisma, his endorsement and campaigning in New England's only swing state for Bush has me a little worried.

18:57 Update - Curt's ankle kept him from campaigning with Bush today. In a statement emailed to Boston Dirt Dogs, he had this to say:

"I am now not medically cleared to do anything until I see Doc on Sunday, so I cannot travel with President Bush tomorrow (Friday). Second, while I am a Bush supporter, and I did vote for him with an absentee ballot, speaking as I did the other day was wrong. While I hope to see him re-elected, it's not my place, nor the time for me to offer up my political opinons unsolicited. I am proud we have the right to vote, and the message I wanted to send but didn't, was that regardless of who you are voting for, the bottom line is that you MUST vote. You must vote because there are millions of Americans who have given their lives before us, and will continue to give their lives after us, so that we can remain free to make the choices we need to make when it comes to electing our Nation's leaders."

See? I told you he was kind of cool.