Smith: Funny thing about politics

An election year creates excitement, as it always has, but colorful politicians seem to be a relic of the past.

Sometimes, you wonder why some politicians aren't football coaches.They would make fine defensive coordinators. All they do is attack. All that insult and accusation must work because most politicians seem to always be in attack mode.

Little in politics seems to be amusing these days, although there are plenty of shenanigans to turn our heads.Shenanigans are nothing new in politics, however.There was plenty of underhandedness in the old days.

But where are the politicians like Gene Talmadge, who once was accused of stealing in the state house. When the subject came up at a political rally, Talmadge told his rabid constituency, "I stole for you." That was acceptable. They were pacified.Marvin Griffin - in the days of stump rallies that were accompanied by large spreads of barbecue - said after he was defeated by Carl Sanders, "A lot of people ate my barbecue and voted for somebody else."

One of the staples of John F. Kennedy's presidential career was his humor.When he was invited to speak at Yale on June 11, 1962, at which time he was given an honorary degree, Kennedy offered, "It might be said now that I have the best of both worlds, a Harvard education and a Yale degree." Kennedy's press conferences were spiced with humor, as he enjoyed a stimulating repartee with the media.That was before the climate between the White House and the media became so adversarial.

Red Grange was a celebrated football player - the player who is generally regarded as the one who got pro football established.A superstar with the Chicago Bears, Red spent his sundown years at Indian Lake Estate in Central Florida.Often in the spring, I would go by to see him, enjoying a nice