Grand Marshal of the NASCAR race in Michigan is up for grabs
Submitted by michigan4clark on April 11, 2006 - 1:08pm.
Call to Action | Michigan
I'm all for it -- Larry
According to public affairs at 3M, the sponsor of the race, they have not yet selected a grand marshall of the race.
If you would like Wes to be considered, drop Shelly an email at
unless maybe they've switched to alternative fuel?
How great must our failure be until we turn in panic and disgrace to a Man of Honor? - Quigley
Actually I think of all people who refuse to be pigeonholed & forced into an either / or, or into a binary answer/position on this or any issue on the national stage it is indeed WKC.
I'm sure race fans like my brother who is a real car buff - especially little vintage broken English two seaters!!- of which he has quite a collection- really have a lot to say about this subject.
No, I didn't really suppose that they had.
How great must our failure be until we turn in panic and disgrace to a Man of Honor? - Quigley
Promoting the use of Ethanol is one of my hobbies, so I'm one of those who like to see mention of NASCAR and biofuels.
This one --- excerpt below from the espn.com site --- is a sad one. And, I'm not much on autoracing, yet, it points out that Ethanol has started to be very much a part of the NASCAR races and, it appears that it will continue to be.
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
from espn.com
"INDIANAPOLIS -- Jeff Simmons, a regular for four seasons in the Indy Pro Series, will replace driver Paul Dana on Bobby Rahal's team starting April 22 in Japan. Dana was killed during a pre-race warmup late last month.
Simmons, a 29-year-old rookie, was hired by Rahal Letterman Racing on Tuesday to take over the Ethanol-sponsored No. 17 car. Dana was driving that car when he was fatally injured in a crash before the March 26 season-opening race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
"Certainly, this is a difficult circumstance and not how I'd like this opportunity to come about," Simmons said during a news conference at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "I wouldn't say we were close friends or anything like that, but it has had a deep and profound impact on me the way this has come about, and I want people to know that."
Article continues on espn.com link:
Clearsky
General Wesley Clark supporter
The republicans have have been allowed to corner the fan base, yet demographics show an equal split between repugs and dems.
Exposure? Dukakis in a tank leaps to mind...bogus in a flight suit leaps to mind...
So here, right here on the front page of the General's board it seems the topic for April is Global Warming: Larry has featured a podcast on Global Warming with a wonderful thought-provoking statement by Wes Clark and an invitation for others who are like-minded to share their thoughts and participate in the global warming discussion, right?
...followed immediately by a story promoting the General to serve as grand marshall at NASCAR??? What kind of exposure are you seeking?
We can't have it both ways.
Cheney booed at stadium yesterday comes to mind...(there are just some things that even the good General had probably best not do...one simply cannot wear all those hats...right?)
...my 2 cents
Exposure is why WKC went to Fox - and that seems to have been a wise decision. What would Paul Newman do!?!
Perfect! ;)
...if he's not available maybe Landeau would give it a shot
How great must our failure be until we turn in panic and disgrace to a Man of Honor? - Quigley
...on the front of my French roast bean bag - (location location location) - PN in overalls...lookin' good...still
didn't PN consider a run against unca joe awhile back? I say draft him!
How great must our failure be until we turn in panic and disgrace to a Man of Honor? - Quigley
PN rocks- betcha he & Wes would have a LOT in common. :)
I'm outta here for a few days-
Happy Easter Darlings!
Have a great weekend and Happy Easter back atcha!
Once in a while you get shown the light, In the strangest of places if you look at it right. - Hunter/Garcia
Right, that was sorta the point I was attempting to make w/o sayin too much. Newman, a liberal and mega philanthropist (apparently not what many think of as a NASCAR dad), loves racing cars. For some reason I don't think of him as having it both ways, i.e., a hypocrite. Besides being a surfer, Newman's daughter, Nell, runs Newman's Own organics out of Santa Cruz. Among other things, she's an ecologist/environmentalist and guess what she loves to do besides garden and fish? Race cars. Here's a quote from the introduction in her "Newman's Own Organics Guide to a Good Life": It's fairly obvious that one can't be a "perfect" environmentalist. But that's okay. Perfection isn't the goal. A good life is. And a good life has a lot do with who you are in the world, with your intent as much as with the end result.
We're talking about an appearance at an event here - venturing out into a new neighborhood... heck, the Fox contract was described here as entering enemy territory... gotta go where ya gotta go.
Do you watch and follow NASCAR ? You would get a resounding yes.
It is precisely why all the branches of the armed services use it as a medium.
Do you think any of the troops that served under Wes in his career followed this sport ?
Do you think any of the troops that served under Wes in his career followed this sport ?
Sure. But that doesn't mean we can have it both ways.
It's about the 'hypocrisy of the thing', real or perceived. A non-appearance would in no way be an indictment of NASCAR - nor is that what I'm attempting. A plea to look beyond the end of one's nose at the type of thing that always comes back to bite one in the a** is all I'm asking here.
(And fwiw, I am NOT a one-issue voter - since we seem to be into disclaimers at this point - in this thread.)
How great must our failure be until we turn in panic and disgrace to a Man of Honor? - Quigley
Personally I don't care one way or the other- it's not something I'd be likely to see. IF he's going to do something like this I would hope that it is a fun interesting way for him to spend the day. I'm sure he can admire the technology & the cars themselves.
What I hope not to start seeing though is pandering for pandering's sake. If this is a four star general type of gig, great. If is a peeing match between Warner & the Bushies for a FOX demographic- not so much.
I wouldn't want to see him do it then have a bunch of confused redstaters show up & freak out about the global warming stuff. And also- I don't think global warming is the best thing to rally around either. It's very depressing in the Chomsky evolve or die out sense. Stick to the traditional stuff- national security, jobs, education, health care. Immigration seems to really be a hot button these days.
I think an even like this is really neither here nor there. I hope he does it. I'm sure it would be fun.
I am soooooo torn about this idea. As an environmentalist at heart, I hate the thought of burning more fossil fuel then is absolutely necessary and this is exactly what is happening in a NASCAR race. It's completely maddening to me that people are entertained by this! I'll end that portion of my rant right there.
I also loathe when politicians use sporting events for self-aggrandizement! But you've got to take the mountain to Mohammed, yada, yada, yada.
So, being a person who works in the field of Marketing, I think it would be a superb way for Wes to get some name recognition from a segment of American society that may not know a thing about him and couldn't care less about day-to-day politics. It would place him on their radar screens and they would be far more likely to perk up and pay attention to something he had to say, in the future. Marketing is all about making a connection.
Hmm......what to do, what to do?
I think it also offers General Clark more of a forum to talk about alternative energy and how NASCAR can be a driving force. I did find it ironic when someone mentioned that this post about NASCAR is right underneath a post about Global Warming.
yeabut, thanks for addressing the conflicting issue of global warming...which mich4clark seems unwilling to do...
between the lines: wrong hat
How great must our failure be until we turn in panic and disgrace to a Man of Honor? - Quigley
Sybil,
You have to recognize that Wes is going to have supporters of all stripes. Some will have Global Warming as a Top 5 issue while others won't. Heck - he even wants to bring in the Fox News viewers - can't get more diametrically opposing viewpoints than us & them! Don't spurn michigan for posting the blog. And if asked to Grand Marshall, WKC will make the decision for himself no doubt weighing both his concern for Global Warming as well as his desire to build a big tent.
With all due respect please read #93543. I think I made my position perfectly clear. Please don't put words in my mouth, I'm not "spurning" michigan as you put it, or even NASCAR for that matter.
"I have to understand"? Thank you, but I guess I have been around long enuf to be aware of Wes's big tent: FOX viewers, NASCAR dads, fighting Dems, greenies, indies and by golly, pretty much most of the 'different stripers' who support him...God bless 'em all.
Melange, I am NOT a single-issue voter, never have been, never will be. I hope we're clear on that.
Thanks
How great must our failure be until we turn in panic and disgrace to a Man of Honor? - Quigley
Let SOMW do it. NASCAR is very big in N. Carolina and the South. I'll bet he would jump at the chance.
Global Warming and how we all need to do good. Let JE look like the hypocrite! :)
Unitary Executive Theory is NOT a theory anymore!
It's the fossil fuel power plants, factories, hundreds of thousands gas guzzling SUV's/vechicles that are out on the roads everyday, not 43 cars racing around a track on a Sunday afternoon, that are helping the rise of global surface temperatures. If Nascar would stop racing on gas it wouldn't make a difference in Global Warming. Nascar is such a insignificant contributer to this 'Global' issue.
in a few places in the US? Hell no. They are running all week long to practice the runs, over and over. The same people that love NASCAR are running other race tracks all across this country, and all during the week. And all the people going to those races to watch. Fuel, fuel, fuel..... and if we are going to stand by Wes re global warming, then we need to walk our talk, not RACE OFF TO THE NEAREST RACE... to promote a HUGE waste of fuel.
It begins EVERYWHERE........ we either do it, or we all lose.
Everyone has an excuse why their favored way of wasting fuel is not going to hurt anyone. It's just ridiculous!
Unitary Executive Theory is NOT a theory anymore!
Baseball, football, hockey - you name it. Unless they travel on foot, and all the spectators do likewise, cancel them all.
and NASCAR goes wayyyyyy beyond moderation. We are talking about wasting fuel energy, aren't we? Running and jumping is the kind of energy we need in sports, not OIL. I don't object to people driving to sports events or to the sports arenas to see other sports, but again, in moderation.
Unitary Executive Theory is NOT a theory anymore!
I know they do have practice sessions, tests, etc. But they go no long than a few hours. I understand the concern for the waste of fuel (I consider myself an enviornmentalist), but all I'm saying is we need to begin with what the major cause is. Power plants, factories, and the cars everyday Americans drive not the 43+ cars that are trying to race on a weekend. How many people to you see on the highway that are driving this big gas guzzling vehicle, but are the only person in the vehicle?
That goes without saying. But this sport is a HUGE culprit of wasted fuel. There's just no denying it, and having this post under Wes' Global Warming post is so telling to me. What does one believe and how willing to give up the waste to save our environment, our earth?
I want only the best for America, for the World,,,,,,, and for Wes.
Unitary Executive Theory is NOT a theory anymore!
I'm not so much trying to say Wes shcould be the Grand Marshal, even though I think it would be so awesome, but just trying to say that nascar should be at the bottom of the list on what is causing global warming. I mean you make a good piont w/ Wes' stance on Global Warming and being maybe being a grand marshal of a nascar race.
It's okay. I just hate wasted energy. I'm trying like hell to drive alot less, and walk my talk. Sometimes literally. haha.
Unitary Executive Theory is NOT a theory anymore!
No other venue has led to more innovations and safety as to what happens on the tracks. If it can work there, it can work on the street.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/auto_technology/1266616.html?page=6&c=y
NASCAR set to use unleaded fuel in 2008
Official Release
January 21, 2006
05:11 PM EST (22:11 GMT)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- NASCAR on Friday announced that a special unleaded fuel has been developed and will be used by the start of the 2008 season as a result of its partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and its fuel supplier, Sunoco.
"We've been back and forth to the drawing board for several years to find an unleaded fuel that is compatible with NASCAR engines. NASCAR congratulates Sunoco and is proud of the progress it made on developing a fuel that works in NASCAR engines," said Gary Nelson, NASCAR's vice president of research and development.
NASCAR tested a number of possible alternative fuels in recent years, but none that didn't cause engine problems. NASCAR tested an unleaded product in its NASCAR Busch Series in the late 1990s. However, the tests were unsatisfactory and required the sanctioning body to conduct further research. Other fuel solutions were incompatible and led to engine failure.
The unleaded fuel, Sunoco 260 GTX, will be used in Nextel Cup, Busch and Craftsman Truck events. Nelson also said it is already being used in the Grand American road racing series. NASCAR began testing the fuel last fall at its Research & Development Center in Concord, N.C.
"Sunoco came up with a formula that really seems to do the job," Nelson told The New York Times. "It does a very good job inside the engine."
more at link..
I think this would be a good way to have it both ways:
SEE? NASCAR is becoming more enviro-friendly (which WKC can congratulate them on) AND then challenge them to increase fuel mileage too!
What the heck? Maybe?
NASCAR vehicles are a kind of test lab for car makers. If they will be pushed to increase CAFE standards, what better way to promote it and make it a good thing?
SAVE OHIO - Subodh Chandra for Ohio Attorney General
Go Mark Martin #6!
I'll bet they do alot of studying about how to increase fuel efficiency. I do know they have done lots with safety issues, etc. Glad to hear about the unleaded fuel!
This would be SO cool!