The Best Horse

The Best Horse

          The Kentucky Derby made history yesterday by taking away the winning crown from Maximum Security and awarding it to Country House. Never has such a controversy and claim of foul so upended this historic horse race.  The foul claim was that on a muddy track, Maximum Security drifted outward in its lane and bumped another horse to box it out.  No one thinks it was intentional by the jockey, but rather an instinct or drift by the horse itself. And yet it was enough to unseat the winner and replace it with a distant second place contender.

          I am sure that among horse racing aficionados this will be a much-discussed event for years to come.  Who knows, there might even be an infamous asterisk in the record books.  It is unclear on if it should or will impact the breeding rights, which are based on the aggressiveness and performance capability of the proposed offspring.  Horses are not bread for politeness, but for raw talent and will to win.

          Here’s the thing though, if sportscasters, horse owners, trainers and breeders make published comments about these events it is one thing.  But, President Trump decided he should weigh in and have his views on the event be counted.  To nobody’s surprise, he did so via official White House tweet, the way he communicates all his directives.

          He said, “The Kentucky Derby decision was not a good one. It was a rough & tumble race on a wet and sloppy track, actually, a beautiful thing to watch. Only in these days of political correctness could such an overturn occur. The best horse did NOT win the Kentucky Derby – not even close!”

          Where do we start with this?  I think its fine for a President to have personal points of view on anything they so choose.  However, I am unclear that it is even remotely proper for someone in his position to opine on a matter such as this in any official capacity.  He is not a private individual and his tweets are not private tweets.  He tweets from his office and speaks from his office.

          The second thing is that his alignment of this ruling as being an issue of political correctness is beyond absurd.  Does he know how the ruling was adjudicated?  Why would one equate a horse race decision with political correctness? Does he know something that the rest of us who watched the race and the supposedly offending event don’t know?  Does he understand the rules of horse racing well enough to have a valid opinion?  The answer to all of these questions I am certain is a resounding no.

          In many ways, this is all symbolism for our country’s political plight.  We have gotten used to the winner-take-all economy in this country, but it now seems that Trump wants us to move to a win-at-all-costs world.  In this instance there are clear subconscious shades of Trump feeling that his inability to win the popular vote in 2016 and his likely inability to win at all (the three swing states’ margins for the electoral college are said to have been 70,000 votes in total) were it not for the Russian interference on his behalf. His instincts are to ignore foul play (indeed to rebut and rebuke it) and declare the winner as the horse that crosses the finish line by any means.  Then declare the winner as the absolute BEST horse.  Trumpet the success, denigrate the other horses and riders, start investigations on the other horses in retort for any investigations about his win.  It all rings too familiar.

          I applaud the decision of the Kentucky Derby judges even without knowing what went into the decision or caring much as to who won or placed.  The thing I applaud is the same thing that Trump bashes, the rule of law.  There are rules for a reason.  Without them we would be living in a lawless and chaotic world where might makes right.  And the thing about might is that it is most often mindless and driven only by self-interest.  It is rarely about what is best for the world.

          We have contests for a reason.  Cavemen probably didn’t have time for contests and games because they played for keeps every morning they walked out of their caves.  There was no need for simulated warfare, they lived it every moment of every day.  Mankind invented games as amusement for himself and to feed the inner beast that needs to struggle to win to feel right with the world.  The sport of kings is just a way of men doing battle with beasts.  They invented rules to accompany the sport as a means of recognizing the limits of the simulation and the belief that a level playing field was needed for the contests to mean something.  Chess is a thoughtful game of combat with strict rules and protocols.  It has stood the test of time as a great simulation for strategic warfare.  Donald Trump’s version of chess is like that scene in Star Wars where the hologram chess pieces maim and eat one another.

          But politics is not simulation.  It’s the real thing and real peoples’ lives are impacted with every decision.  Rule by might and win-at-all-costs are the means of autocrats and dictators.  It is certainly one way to go and sometimes in history it has been inevitable.  But I do not think the Trump base really wants that at all.  They are mostly weak and needy folks (not all, but many) who feel put upon and want the gladiator in the ring to punish others since they cannot.  They somehow hope their vote will give them some preferential position with the bully’s team.  I wish they would make a realistic accounting of what they have gained over three years.  I suspect they would find they have actually lost, even with a good economy overall.

          Let’s return to the naming of a best horse.  I want a horse that runs fast and runs true.  I want a horse that knows it wins sometimes and sometimes a newer faster horse comes on the scene and my horse gives it his all and gracefully bows to the new champion, as there will always be a new best horse.  Mr. Trump lives in the imaginary world where he and his acolytes are the best horses.  He has said clearly that he hires the best people and we have all seen via the revolving door of the White House that that is far from true.  He has touted his academic, intellectual, business and net worth prowess and declared himself the best at everything.  Yet he has moved heaven and earth to prevent the world unmasking the reality of his lack of accomplishment and his far cry from best at anything other than perhaps consistent lying.

          Now Trump sees himself as being on the verge of another four-year mandate and he has declared that he wants to reclaim another two years for the lost two years due to the Democrats and the Mueller investigation.  That would mean we would have Trump until 2026.  Even if he had been at one time the best at something, it is unimaginable that anyone would believe it is best for the country to have this version of a best horse in any race of importance.