Swim Big Shoulders and Support Obama???

Where's the moderator? Shouldn't this post be removed? I thought politics were off limits on this site. :mad:

It was just a shirt. :dedhorse: The event, it's organizers and support organizations are class acts. 500+ plus swimmers show up each year for a reason, because Big Shoulders is a great swim event. I've been ther the last three years and will be back next year. The swim is the swimmers come for. And by the way the shirt urges me to swim, not to vote. :2cents:

The Big Shoulders swim, held in Chicago Sept 6th. Offered the new look in USMS sanctioned swims, political partianship. For a link to the discussion go here http:/.../showthread.php This is the same organization that is running next years Nationals. USMS, you need to address this. Bad link.

Look under Illinois Zone

We are looking in to establishing policy and legislation to ensure this doesn't happen again. Boo. I think the meet organizers should decide on the logos used for their events and there's no need for some kind of "approval" for this. This smacks of censorship to me. People can choose to wear the shirt or throw it in their rag pile. I posted a photo of the shirt here: forums.usms.org/showpost.php if anyone's interested in what all the fuss is about.

ILMSA (Illinois Masters Swimming Association) did sanction the event. The event organizers were Big Shoulders-Chicago Masters and University of Illinois-Chicago, not Illinois Masters. ILMSA does not show any political partisanship. ILMSA did not approve the shirt and medals for the event. ILMSA does not support the decision made by the event organizers Nadine KM Day, ILMSA Chair

If Nadine has to okay every t-shirt when will we swim. What a silly idea. ILMSA can't be involved as the t-shirt Gestapo. Really a bad choice to put anyone on a t-shirt. What I love about masters is that even though I have no speed now i can still participate. We should see ourselves as boosters of our sport not as anything else. Even though I think everything is political in our country.

ILMSA (Illinois Masters Swimming Association) did sanction the event. The event organizers were Big Shoulders-Chicago Masters and University of Illinois-Chicago, not Illinois Masters. ILMSA does not show any political partisanship.-YOU JUST DID ILMSA did not approve the shirt and medals for the event. ILMSA does not support the decision made by the event organizers ILMSA wishes to hide its head in the sand at Ohio Street Beach immediately after screaming..."Not Us! Not Us!" Love it when people in leadership positions start looking for the door when trouble appears. ILMSA is not hiding anything. I have received many emails and phone calls regarding the event. ILMSA doesn't approve the logo designs and medals for events. I apologize that the event organizers used inappropriate judgement in there decision in printing the shirts and the medals. We are looking in to establishing policy and legislation to ensure this doesn't happen again. Nadine KM Day, ILMSA Chair

I agree. I would NOT swim in any meet that was giving medals and t-shirts supporting any politician. It doesn't matter to me which politician it is (the one I am supporting or not), it's bad policy and bad form to mix the two together. Besides the t-shirt issue...who the heck wants medals with a politician on it? Did he do anything to get you that medal? I think not.

I think the big thing now is will USMS take any steps to censure the promoters of Big Shoulders? Will wait and see.