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Hardly a day goes by without my mind at least considering briefly the decline of NASCAR, which has dominated my life as a journalist.

A Democratic presidential primary debate may seem like an odd time to ponder stock car racing, but this is what occurred to me as I watched Joe Biden blubbering in the face of Kamala Harris’s withering assault.

This country has too many sports. Politics has become one of them. That debate was a Talladega draft. I watched it, and I knew an ARCA race was on another channel from Joliet. The debate didn’t have too many commercials. Few were the opportunities to check on the race. I saw on Twitter that Ty Majeski won.

Passion for NASCAR seems to have evaporated. Passion for politics has become a flood, and it’s not a bone of contention that climate change has occurred. Social media is partly responsible. Around-the-clock news plays a role. I’ve succumbed. Republicans versus Democrats, a.k.a, Trump versus the world, gets more attention in these parts than Clemson vs. South Carolina.

This may change shortly when the pads start popping.

Who’s going to go to Bristol and spend an extended weekend in the campgrounds? Hell, that means he (or she) might miss Hannity.

I’ve said for years that one race driver might say exactly the same words as another. A fan of the first will say he’s telling it like it is. The other is a whiner, and vice-versa.

Sound familiar?

I was sort of hoping Larry McReynolds would show up at debate central and discuss whether or not Biden should change two tires or four. When the ubiquitous spectacle finally ended, I was expecting a green-white-checkered and wondering why Kirsten Gillibrand hadn’t taken a wave-around during the debris caution.

I saw a tweet comparing Denny Hamlin to Marianne Williamson. Admittedly, I missed that.

And the ARCA race. I missed that, too.

Politics has become a sport. It’s entertaining. I laugh uproariously, right up to the point where I mysteriously start to weep.

If only Larry Mac worked for NBC ...