Screed

Speed Eater's Arrest Is Just Like Apartheid

Max Fisher Jul 6, 2010
OUTLET: British news channel ITN (Independent Television News)
CAUSE: The arrest of competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi for storming the stage at Nathan's hot dog eating competition
APARTHEID COMPARISON: "It's an act of authoritarian heavy-handedness which recalls the imprisonment of Mandela."
WHY THEY LOVE THE HOT DOG EATING CONTEST: "Embodying as it does the core American values of gluttony and obscene gluttony."
REACTION TO KOBAYASHI'S NON-PARTICIPATION: "The competitive eating world's arthritic jaws dropped."
INEVITABLE HEART DISEASE REFERENCE: "So like a Wimbledon final without Federer or a World Cup final without Brazil, the Nathan's hot dog eating contest unfolded with a Kobayashi-shaped hole in its fatty heart."
SAD ENDING: "We're just disappointed that television gold like this may be consigned to history."

Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments or send an email to the author at mfisher at theatlantic dot com. You can share ideas for stories on the Open Wire.

Sources

Topics:
Elsewhere on the Web

User Comments

Please type your comment and click Post. If you’re not already logged in you will be prompted to log in or register

  • The Atlantic Wire on Twitter
  • The Atlantic Wire RSS Feed
  • The Atlantic Wire iPhone App