Tagging Up

I blundered in my post criticing the use of the "touchback" metaphor by misstating what a touchback is. A safety is when you get tackled in your endzone. A touchback is when the other team punts or kicks it into your endzone and you choose to take the ball on the twenty yard line rather than attempt a return.

Either way, my main point stands. The so-called "touchback" provision of the immigration bill requiring illegals to return to their country of origin before applying for one or another form of legal status bears very little resemblance to a touchback in football. It does, however, seem to have a lot in common with tagging up in baseball.

Photo by Flickr user banker12 used under a Creative Commons license

Comments

Of course "touch back" also makes sense as a more or less literal description of what was required- returning home to re-apply (especially if there is no durational requirement other than the application processing time.) Not everything must be a sports metaphor. I know that's sometimes hard for us Americans to remember, but nonetheless it's true.

Posted by Matt (not the famous one) | June 27, 2007 8:24 AM

I'm impressed, a sports related item dealing with something outside of the NBA! I think you'll find baseball has a rich wealth of cliches to draw upon; all the better for coming up with spurious political analogies, natch.

Posted by Tim P. | June 27, 2007 8:27 AM

When was it that the term "illegals" came into popular usage? This seems like a derogatory straight-out-of-rightwing-radio term to me. Illegal what?

Posted by Illegality | June 27, 2007 9:20 AM

Actually, there is a good basketball metaphor, maybe better than tagging up. It's in half court, when you have to bring the ball back after a missed shot. However, there's no pithy way to say that.

Posted by Dave | June 27, 2007 9:51 AM

I'm sure I'm not the only one who's thought that the terms safety and touchback are reversed somehow. There's nothing safe about being tackled in your end zone. In many ways this is kind of a backwards touchdown for the other team. But allowing a kicked ball to roll into your endzone so you get free 20 yards out of it? Now that's a safe move.

Posted by Rob Mac | June 27, 2007 10:07 AM

In street basketball with only one hoop, if a player from the team that wasn't in possession gets the ball, she needs to go back to whatever the back of the court is, not just play the ball in front of the hoop. I don't know if that's ever called a touchback, my experience with street basketball being fairly limited, but it would make a bit of sense. And it seems a reasonable analogy if we're going to insist on polluting our political discourse with sports references.

Posted by Sam L. | June 27, 2007 10:12 AM

It's that Harvard education that's not focusing on the important things. Just kidding. When they attack you for what college you went to or when, say, they attack John Edwards for having a lot of money, it means one's attacks are working. You've drawn blood, they're just reacting.

"This seems like a derogatory straight-out-of-rightwing-radio term to me. Illegal what?"

Shorthand for meaning they're in the country illegally? Am I missing something?

Posted by Peter K. | June 27, 2007 10:16 AM

30. Touchback: When a ball is dead on or behind a team’s own goal line, provided the impetus came from an opponent and provided it is not a touchdown or a missed field goal.

http://www.nfl.com/fans/rules/definitions

But your point does stand.

The problem with "illegals" is that, as immigrant groups are quick to point out, people are not illegal even if they have commmitted an illegal act (which, in the case of immigration, we should also note is a civil and not a criminal violation).

Posted by Daddy Love | June 27, 2007 10:21 AM

Touchback is a perfect metaphor. People are getting kicked around like political footballs

(if they get kicked all the way back then they get put in a position where it's technically closer but still hard to reach their destination.)

Posted by dbt | June 27, 2007 12:28 PM

As DL's comment points out, you can be tackled for a touchback. Typically it happens on turnovers. For example, defender intercepts a pass in the endzone and is tackled immediately. Touchback, defense takes over the ball at their own 20.

Posted by JB | June 27, 2007 1:17 PM