Are they being ironic? This cliché, misapplied so often and so inappropriately to the iconic President-in-Waiting, got me thinking: why are hopes always “Great White Hopes”? Have they always been white? And how many have there been? Being happily white myself, it seemed an appropriate issue to ponder.
Well, in the case of JFK, in Camelot mode, yes, he did indeed inspire hope and he was indeed white. Tony Blair, too, was white and hope did abound in the early dawn of New Labour. Bill Clinton, too, had his great white moments, if mainly in the oratorical field. In all cases, though, hope hugely exceeded achievement.
Was Nelson Mandela ever so described? I think not. Nor do I recall ever hearing him introduced as the “Great Black Hope”, though surely no one ever better deserved the accolade.
Perhaps this really is the moment to consign this particular phrase to the recycle bin. This is not just your Robert having a belated moment of political correctness. I’ve been as guilty as any other Westie of less than charitable thoughts towards the Scottie dog, the Black to our White on the famous Whiskey bottle. Arrogant, temperamental and smelly were just a few of the adjectives that I may have attributed to our companion dog on the logo.
But time moves on and in Dog Heaven old resentments tend to slip away in a general mood of tolerance and late arriving wisdom. So let me share with you my fervent wish that Obama will indeed represent the tipping point for the many centuries of the racial divide. Goodbye to the “Great White Hope”. May hope now come unburdened by any colour references.
Oh, it just occurs to me however, that Great White, just those two words, is another matter altogether. As a symbol for malevolence and predatory intent, this concept isn’t going away any time soon, particularly as their scary jaws continue to take a regular toll on swimmers and surfers off the beaches of South Africa and Australia. Yes, I know that the lunatic wing of the green fringe keep trying to persuade us that these sharks only ever take lumps out of humans by mistake and, even more ludicrously, actually deserve protection from their human tormentors. Well to them I say “Tosh” and any other dismissive four-letter word that springs to mind.
OMG, I’ve done it again, rambled on, as Led Zeppelin did so memorably, longer ago than my master would care to have me mention. I started with Obama and ended with Jaws. No, there’s no accounting for the unfettered imagination of a dog with more time on his paws than you earth dwellers can possibly conceive. On which thought, I’ll allow you to get to the next pressing task in your finite day. Bye for now.
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