Posted by Glenn Ribotsky on June 12, 2005 at 07:07:14:
In Reply to: Re: Perhaps I did not notice this before-- posted by ernie beach on June 11, 2005 at 22:20:28:
If there is a barbecue after the race this year, more power to it. Hope they don't forget to bring a lot of beverages, though--that's certainly been a concern at previous editions.
I don't understand the other line of reasoning; could you clarify? There may be people of "questionable character"--but how could that be determined, and what would constitute that? If it involves political agendas, which ones would those be?
I think we all know that this race and others (i.e, Sempre Fi, Rosebank Run) have been heavily suffused with politics, and politicians, in the past. I distinctly remember past editions at which there were local Democratic party workers with petitions gathering ballot signatures, and most of the runners had negative reactions to that, but they were obviously there with the consent of the race committee.
It seems to go back to my previus questioning--are you of "questionable character" if you are Communist? Gay? A Republican?
If a race committee has the right to express, or allow to be expressed, political opinion it is in agreement with, it doesn't have the right to censor or ban those it DOESN'T agree with at an event contested on public property. We still have to wonder who the language is aimed at--it's hard to believe it's there by accident.
Many runners would probably assert they'd like their races free of any political content. I empathize with that. I can't see, though, how at a public event only one viewpoint would be allowable.