The team lost it's main sponsor this week when DSB Bank of the Netherlands was declared bankrupt in Dutch court, leaving the team scrambling to find $300,000 with a short time before the competition. (ESPN story here)
I don't know what exactly it is about this that got me. Maybe it's the infuriating image of America it presents to the rest of the world.
Yes, folks, that's us. Unable to represent ourselves on the world stage because we are indebted to a foreign bank. Here are our best and brightest, helpless against the forces of high finance. Just like the rest of the country, they're willing and able to do the job, but someone else has all the money tied up.
It makes you just want to rise up, doesn't it?
And so I did. Despite our 30 percent (plus) pay decrease, I put in an online donation this morning.
And you know what? It felt pretty good to be giving to this team. If a lot of other people do the same thing, maybe it will send a message to the rest of the world.
Take that, big money elitists. When Americans decide together that we want an Olympic team (or health care, or public schools or fire protection) you don't have the final say. We do.
Now that's a message of optimism.
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