Photo: GOFFINF.COM
So first: Vanity Fair asked President Barack Obama what he'd do if he had one day off. Our president from paradise said:
“When I lived in Hawaii, I’d take a drive from Waikiki to where my grandmother lived—up along the coast heading east, and it takes you past Hanauma Bay. When my mother was pregnant with me she’d take a walk along the beach. . . . You park your car. If the waves are good you sit and watch and ponder it for a while. You grab your car keys in the towel. And you jump in the ocean. And you have to wait until there is a break in the waves. . . . And you put on a fin—and you only have one fin—and if you catch the right wave you cut left because left is west. . . . Then you cut down into the tube there. You might see the crest rolling and you might see the sun glittering. You might see a sea turtle in profile, sideways, like a hieroglyph in the water. . . . And you spend an hour out there. And if you’ve had a good day you’ve caught six or seven good waves and six or seven not so good waves. And you go back to your car. With a soda or a can of juice. And you sit. And you can watch the sun go down …”
Naturally, Surfer magazine picked up on this, because......our president surfs! Stoke! But the comments following this piece? Gnarly, brah! Apparently the surfing world is just as divided as the rest of us:
From Joe:
I would run him over if I saw his commie butt anywhere near the lineup. Not all surfers are miserable hippies with socialist ideas Surfer Mag. If it was up to this clown, we’d be taxed for every wave, so the kooks could have their “fair share” of the lineup. How’s that for Hopelessness that’ll never Change?
From Gus:
This is BS…he’s NOT a surfer. He’s not even a bellyboarder, or kneelo, or a damn SUP…he’s a dime a dozen kook body surfer. Who just so happens to be hell bent on ruining this country. I don’t want a president who surfs…I want a president who will work for this country and get us back on our feet. The last four years? Are you FREAKING KIDDING ME?
On the other foot, there's Rob:
…and if Romney surfed, I’m confident he would be a Stand-Up Paddler barrel-dodging and wave stabbing his way through a pack of what he sees as entitled victims.
And this, from Havok:
So many haters, yet when was the last time you heard any politician break it down like that? A pure, non-phony expression of stoke for riding waves. Simple. Awesome!
An finally, From EP:
Slater K, I surf with K. Slater, I know K. Slater, K. Slater is a friend of mine. And Sir, you’re no K. Slater.
So Surfer-in-Chief Barack Obama: dime-a-dozen kook body-surfer? Or stand-up paddler and barrel-dodging wave stabber? Aloha.
Leave a Comment:
Hawaii looks beautiful, but it's a long flight. My Uncle was named the honorary Mayor of Maui.Cool huh.
Right on . Every autumnly hued , nostalgic point , gave me an extra heartbeat .
Mr. Obama drives his own car to the beach to ride waves for free and enjoy the ocean and the day.
Mr. Romney is driven to the Yacht Club to get on an oversized overpriced boat and occasionally 'cuts loose' on a jet ski.
I think I identify with Mr. Obama faaaaaar more than Mr. Romney
Amen, thank you.
So many nasty haters out there.
If you've ever lived near an ocean, you know that 90% of most surfers are morons. Hippie morons, fascist morons, the point is they're morons. I am mainly aware of Southern California surfers, who are dumber than most.
They hate him because he is black and beautiful inside and out.
They hate him because they're told they can...every time you hear the word "socialist" the talker is a parrot. You have to be willfully blind not to see the improvements these past four years. Haters worship other things than honesty.
Seriously? This is a topic?
Beats looking at Scott Brown any day of the week.
There is nothing like a sweeping indictment to start up the cranky old funny bone .
Let me see ,
Self projection check
Blanketed inclusion of a monomaniacal delusion check
Covering delusional indictment with tedious repetition check
Including regional focus for defining character flaws check
All in a days work eh , "Brute ?"
Pam Cleland
I can't help but wonder why no one noticed that Romney's "tax plan" consists of "more jobs" ... which would be a good thing ... if he didn't actually say that it was "his plan" for "increasing revenue" to pay for their wars. It was a pure admission that he plans to raise revenue on the backs of the middle class and working poor ... while letting the wealthy fly to the Caymans. Where is the outrage? Not in the media ... who apparently weren't listening. Not in the public ... who just heard the phrase "more jobs." And not in the political camps ... who, like the media ... apparently weren't listening.
Good comment...also just how does he propose to create these jobs? What is he and fellow Repubs waiting on because they gets the big tax breaks, and why not help the president help the people? DUHHH I am so sick of the media in this country that don't ask good questions and dance to their own agenda. Next did Obama loose? Well gee people when in four years have you ever seen him loose his composer? EVER? I thought he looked Ok and answered the questions honestly. Whether or not people are smart enough to figure out on their own is another question. If you leave it to the media whom I believe is very BIASED they have already decided that Romney is elected. If he is.... look out America! No insurance for working people like me, war with Iran, higher tax for me no tax for the rich, and do away with anything for the handicap, or those down on their luck. It's very bad here in MI. My son is a 20yr cop and this year alone 35 suicides on his shift that no one talks about. Thanks Pam for a good read.
I live less than a mile from there.
The place he is talking about is most likely Sandy Beach, and I have never seen a long board surfer out there. Just bodyboarding.
But the surfers commenting are wrong to associate that with lame amateurs- only those experienced at extreme shorebreak conditions should go out. The surf is exceptionally dangerous there due to undertows. Only experienced strong swimmers who know how to handle the undertow should try it. Typically, manly macho guys from the mainland take a look at it, ignore the signs and pay with their life.
I suppose there is a metaphor in there somewhere.
We have the nation's highest drowing rate largely because of sites like Sandy Beach. (NYTimes article) It's not a place I regard as relaxing, but the President seems to enjoy that sort of confrontation with the elements. It echoes some of the observations Michael Lewis made about the president's preference for extreme challenges in sports.
They're right. Pres. Obama is not a surfer. He's a bodysurfer. BUT, and this is important: if you know anything about the breaks on Oahu, he's talking about bodysurfing at Sandy's. The break where he bodysurfs is a shore break called Gas Chambers, and I defy the commenters to bodysurf it without sustaining serious neck injuries. It's a break that is just no good for surfing. You really, really have to know what you're doing to bodysurf there. Pres. Obama does. Hawaii has a different relationship with the water that surrounds it than do other states. Here, people bodysurf, bodyboard (Boogieboard on the mainland), surf, and SUP, and there's respect for them all. When I read that part of the article, I clicked with it immediately, and I told my kids about it the next time I took them bodyboarding. The mainland surfers who are criticizing bodysurfing are, unfortunately, just ignorant.
Well said, spoken with pono.
rather sad that surfers too can be liars and wannabee violent idiots.
Not any that I've ever known. Surf's up! Come on everybody let's go to Surf city.
Hopefully after the election the public can help deliver more than one day off to do whatever the hell he wants!!!
I hope that after he wins the election he will take a few days and go back to Hawaii to surf and relax
One of those rare instances where the posted comments are as interesting as the article, esp. those by vbmike and JohnMesserly. Couldn't find a link to Michael Lewis' article about Obama and extreme sports, but I'd like to know more.
Michael Lewis' article. It mentioned that Obama wants his sports with challenge.
http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/2012/10/michael-lewis-profile-barack-obama
Gosh such venom from surf bums who seem to resent that their "sport" is not as taboo as they thought. Imagine that a nine to fiver that can hang ten-he must be banned from the beach!!!
Gidget--GIDGET! He in not the great kahuna! Now get back here.
LoL!! "miserable hippies". Way to go fishy joe!