Desecrating the memory of the Babe Ruth
By Mike Odetalla
9-23-2005
hanini.org
I was appalled to read that, while on a speaking tour in Israel, Former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, said Sharon
reminds him of baseball legend Babe Ruth. How Mr. Giuliani arrived at the conclusion of comparing Ariel “the butcher of
Beirut” Sharon and Babe “the sultan of swat” Ruth, is beyond even my wildest imagination.
Although I was born In Palestine and came to America at the age of 8 in 1969, soon afterwards, I discovered the game of
baseball and grew to love the game with all of its subtle nuances, idiosyncrasies, and especially its rich and wonderful history.
As a youngster, I learned how to play baseball in the youth league, which was named after baseball legend Babe Ruth (the
Babe Ruth League). It didn’t take long for me to fall in love with the game, and as I became better at it, the more I wanted to
learn of its history, reading as many books as I could find in our small school library about the sport and the many colorful and
gifted players that played it.
In 5th Grade, we were assigned to do a report on our favorite athlete or personality. Although I was a huge Detroit Tigers fan,
I skipped past legends Ty Cobb, Al Kaline, Mickey Cochrane, and decided to do my report on George Herman Ruth Jr., “the
Babe”, The Great "Bambino".
I checked a couple of books about Babe Ruth and the great New York Yankee teams of the 20’s and 30’s, a period where
the Yankees dominated all of baseball, especially the 1929 team, which is still widely regarded as the greatest baseball team of
all time.
For a period of more than 20 years, Babe Ruth was the most famous athlete in America as he tore through the record books
with his superhuman exploits on the field. Children were naturally attracted to the larger than life Babe, and he to them,
spending much of his time in their company.
By the time he retired in 1935, Babe Ruth, through his feats on the baseball diamond and lifestyle, had achieved legendary
status not just in New York, but the entire country. In 1936, he was among the first 5 baseball players to be inducted into the
Baseball Hall of Fame.
Babe Ruth's popularity and fame were so widespread that even America's enemies knew of him. Almost a decade after he had
bashed his last home run, his presence still was felt.
Babe Ruth's record of 60 homers in 1927 stood up for 34 years.
During World War II, when Japanese soldiers charged American troops, they would sometimes scream, "To hell with Babe
Ruth." Not "to hell with FDR" or "to hell with Douglas MacArthur," but "to hell with Babe Ruth."
What bigger compliment could an American receive?
Ruth was a man of mythic proportions. He became even more than the ultimate American sports celebrity. He was "a unique
figure in the social history of the United States," wrote Robert Creamer in Babe: The Legend Comes to Life. "For more than
any other man, Babe Ruth transcended sports, moved far beyond the artificial limits of baselines and outfield fences and sports
pages."
After doing my report and presenting it to the whole class in a Yankee Jersey with the number 3 stitched on the back, signifying
the number that he wore on his Yankee uniform, I was instantly transformed into a fan of the Great Bambino, a fascination that
is still with me today.
How Rudy Giuliani could ever compare the war criminal Ariel Sharon, a man whose hands are soaked with the blood of
thousands of innocent men, women, and children to the loveable, smiling Yankee giant, is sacrilegious.
The only thing that Babe Ruth ever destroyed was baseballs and records, unlike Ariel Sharon, who also known as the
"bulldozer" for his penchant for wreaking havoc and destruction on the Palestinian people, their property, and rights.
There are many photographs of Babe Ruth, smiling, playing, and signing autographs while surrounded by large groups of
smiling little children. On the other hand, there are many gruesome photographs of dead and horrified little Palestinian children
in the wake of a "visit" by Ariel Sharon.
Babe Ruth used to stop in the middle of residential neighborhoods and throw the ball to little children as he played catch with
them, while Ariel Sharon and his infamous and brutal Unit 101 were documented throwing hand grenades throw the windows
of Palestinian homes where little children were cowering in fear with their parents.
Looking at the 1930's era watch, with the smiling mug of the Great Babe Ruth on the dial that is prominently displayed on my
office desk, I know of no two human beings could more different from each other than the Babe and Israeli Prime Minister
Ariel Sharon.
I guess in the world of "political prostitution", whereby Rudy Giuliani resides and is hoping to capitalize by cuddling up to Ariel
Sharon and his Zionist constituency in the hope that they will help him in his eventual bid to becoming the next president of the
United States, desecrating the name and memory of an American icon by comparing him to a war criminal is "acceptable", but
not to this longtime fan of the Babe and the concept of justice.
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