David Hoppe

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:: The rearview mirror cracked

Away we went

By David Hoppe

2008: whatta year!

Will we ever think of shoes in quite the same way as we did before an Iraqi journalist pitched both of his at George Bush, Jr? Now that we know that tossing a shoe is a way to express displeasure, it is possible that some folks might begin hauling around a spare pair - just in case somebody looks at them cross-wise. I'm thinking of buying some toddler-size sneakers -- the better to carry and conceal.

Then there was the unraveling saga of Blago, the delusional governor of our next door neighbor, Illinois. He and Mitch Daniels were photographed meeting President-Elect Barack Obama at a gathering in Philadelphia about a week before it became known that Blago was trying to sell Obama's Senate seat. The trio are standing there like a Sesame Street jingle come to life: Three men in suits, but which one doesn't belong?

2008, of course, will go down as Obama's year. Our first African-American president. People around the world celebrated this historic break-through for a variety of reasons. Gun dealers were especially thrilled as they saw their deadly wares practically fly off the shelves as boy-men around the country used the election as yet another excuse to cultivate their self-absorbed paranoia.

People who dig things that go bang found Indianapolis particularly hospitable this year. The Hoosier/RCA Dome was finally dynamited on Dec. 20 to make way for a convention center expansion. First the Dome was deflated, a rather melancholy exercise, then the implosion. The whole thing begged the question of what will become of the Market Square Arena site, a prime piece of real estate now waiting to be squandered for the lack of anyone who sees downtown Indianapolis as a worthwhile investment.

Speaking of investments, this was the year they disappeared. The stock market tanked, credit crunched and the cost of a gallon of gas went from a record high to a record low. More people rode public transportation than ever before, which was a good thing. But public transportation systems were short the cash to keep up with demand. Oh, well.

How about those Pacers? Our troubled basketball franchise finally cleaned house, got rid of troublemakers as well as its ineffectual superstar (two words that can only go together in Indianapolis) Jermaine O'Neal, stocking up on a younger, seemingly better behaved roster. Danny Granger promptly lost his front teeth while taking a bite out of the Conseco Fieldhouse floor. But this endearing incident aside, our boys appear to be on the road to proving the axiom that nice guys finish last.

Speaking of nice guys: Peyton Manning is not only a nice guy, he's one of the most thoughtful athletes in this or any town. Manning was quoted in the Indianapolis Star to the effect that he's troubled by the constant use of military terms to describe the game he plays: "I have a problem with that.like we use terms 'warriors' or 'going into battle' as football lingo, and you think about the people really fighting wars, I just hate when people use that."

Thank you, Peyton. And thanks for bringing a little perspective to an otherwise over-hyped, over-analyzed business.

Someone who probably wishes he watched his language more closely is Greg Ballard, closing out his first year as our mayor. Early in 2008 he commented that he thought Indianapolis could use a Chinatown - and that he hoped we could become the cricket (as in the sport) capitol of North America. While it's hard not to find these ideas deliriously apt for our landlocked metropolis, one still wonders what might have possessed Mayor Ballard to pipe up in such a, well, original way. Unfortunately he offered no elaboration upon returning from his first overseas trade junket to - where else? - China.

Then you'd think Indiana was a foreign country the way journalists from around the nation treated us during the closely contested primary and presidential races. Sheesh. Had none of these folks ever bitten into a pork tenderloin sandwich or gotten hammered on Crown Royal before?

And then came the incredulity over the outcome. What was going on here? No Democrat could possibly win in this traditionally red state. The pundits blabbed about demographics, generational shifts and income levels. But those of us who live here know why Barack Obama won. Instead of writing Indiana off like every Democrat had done since The Beatles were first on The Ed Sullivan Show , Barack (we call him Barack) made 47 trips here - or was it 48? After that, McCain didn't have a chance. Hoosier Hospitality kicked in and we couldn't let such a personable and well-spoken young man leave us empty-handed.