Fighting for Change

John Kerry did not let his electoral defeat in 2004 get him down. He's still out there fighting for the people - and winning. Saturday night's NFL game between the Patriots and Giants was to be broadcast only on the NFL Network, which only 40 percent of the nation has. This did not sit well with Kerry, so he fought back.

"Under the unfortunate circumstance that this matter remains unresolved, leaving 60 percent of households across the country — including thousands in Massachusetts — without access to Saturday's game, I will ask the Senate Commerce Committee to hold hearings on how the emergence of premium sports channels are impacting the consumer, and I will consider what legislative measures may be necessary to ensure that consumers are more than bystanders in this process," Kerry wrote.

With the game only days away, Kerry has prevailed. Kerry, of course, is the Senator from Massachusetts, where the Patriots are based. There was a dispute between the NFL Network and cable companies about how much the latter should charge subscribers for the former, and what cable packages it should be part of. The NFL Network wanted big bucks, and the cable companies said, "No, your network sucks," which I believe it does. So there was an impasse.

But now the game is going to be on pretty much every channel; it will be simulcast on NBC and CBS. The reason for the furor behind this game is that the Patriots have a chance to finish the season undefeated, which has only happened once before. The thing is, this game will be boring. The Giants are going to sit many of their stars, and the Patriots may only play their stars for part of the game, depending on how they balance finishing undefeated and setting records vs. resting their team for the playoffs. But you can watch it, thanks to Kerry.

Isn't it a good thing he didn't win in 2004? If he were president, he would have been way too busy to worry about this!