For the umpteenth time, former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling has made me insanely happy:’ He announced Tuesday that he will not be running for the late Edward Kennedy’s senate seat.
‘Given the amount of things going on I cannot in good conscience even consider running for the open Senate seat here in Massachusetts,’ Schilling wrote in his blog. ‘I wouldn’t have even considered it if I didn’t think I could win. I don’t think I possess the experience I would want, or the time needed, to commit to doing this.’
Thank you, Schilling. You’ve saved Massachusetts again.
Don’t get me wrong, I see Schilling’s qualifications:’ He never cracks under pressure, even if he bleeds through his sock; he obviously cares about politics, as evident by his constant blog posts; and with the amount of money he and his wife Shonda have raised to fight amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), he may be able to pay off the deficit.
But he’s a Major League pitcher. His former job involved spitting and scratching himself, hardly becoming behavior for a senator.
Schilling isn’t the only one who decided fame and fortune were not enough:’ More athletes than I care to count have decided to go into politics. In some cases, they are widely successful:’ Steve Largent, a Pro Football Hall of Famer, is the US Representative for Oklahoma’s First District. Wrestler Jesse Ventura was governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2003. Heisman [cq] Trophy runner-up Heath Shuler is serving North Carolina’s 11th District, and Bill Bradley, who played for the New York Knicks in the 1960s and ’70s, was later elected to the NBA Hall of Fame when he was the New Jersey senator from 1979 to 1997.
This does not mean all professional athletes are qualified politicians.
Arnold Schwarzenegger, the bodybuilder-turned-Terminator-turned-Governator of California, saw the state go into bankruptcy. When you make millions of dollars a movie, I guess it’s difficult to see the state does not have unlimited resources.
Actors also catch the political bug, from President Ronald Regan to comedian/Minnesota Senator Al Franken. Even Gary Coleman ‘- yes, the ‘What you talkin’ about, Willis?’ kid ‘- announced he was running for Governor of California in 2003. Coleman withdrew his candidacy after Schwarzenegger announced he was running and decided to support Mr. Junior. Guess he realized Schwarzenegger could do some serious damage in a fight.
I’m not saying athletes are not needed in our society. They make us happy and help us connect with fellow fans. But they have no political experience and their education is often cut short when they sign with a team. Professional athletes are almost universally adored and can hide in the locker room after a bad day. Senators ‘- well, they can run, but angry constituents and reporters will catch up to them.
So, Schilling, thank you for doing the right thing and realizing the only nomination you should be clamoring for is for a spot in Cooperstown. I don’t care if you never pitched a no-hitter, I’ll root for you in that election.

‘- Gal Tziperman Lotan is a middler journalism major and member of The News staff.