Competition is a fascinating notion.

Yesterday, I met Bubba. 

Bubba told me he was just invited to participate in the Mr. Olympia competition. The Olympia competition is what gave Arnold Schwarzenegger his start. Bubba can bench press 744 pounds. Wow! Followed by a big so what?  Bubba made me ponder how much the notion of competition is embedded in every thing we do- running, football, baseball, school, SAT, GRE, soccer, fantasy football, drinking games and of course a presidential race.

The act of the competition is greater than the importance of the event. Romney challenges Obama to a skiing competition. Obama counters with a basketball competition.  The media competes for the best story.  The media is more obsessed with who will win, then the winner's impact on the American landscape.

It's the competition itself that makes the event fascinating. If you are in your yard with several people picking up leaves, it will not be too long before someone begins a competition to pick up leaves faster than anyone else. Competition is a good thing I believe. It makes the cream rise to the top. It sorts out the winners from the losers. It is pervasive. I can not imagine a civilization without competition.

The Federal  anti-trust department exists to make sure that competition is alive and well and growing in America. Our legal system is founded on competition. Americans are mesmerized by trials. It is the penultimate stage for showcasing the competition for right and wrong with the ultimate penalty of death.

Is competition good? Does it produce a valuable product or service? All the arguments say, yes. To be against competition is to be against the American way. We root for our losers, the underdog as they say, but we vote for our winners. Competition may be the oldest notion among men.

I need to stop writing now, which may make a few of you happy, but I must go observe a game where we pit our 12 year old grandson in unmerciful competition against other 12 year olds. We will be encouraging them to kill the ball, strike the kid out, and launching other verbal threats hurled from the stands.

Baseball lives on.