Ever get the feeling that your opinion doesn't really matter? That no one cares what you think about today's pressing issues? That you're not being heard? Get a blankie and soother, baby—but first, take the SLY.com public opinion poll.

Canada Games Friday Night Mascot Smackdown Poll

We’ve all heard sad tales about mascot abuse. Some of you may even be familiar with celebrity-powered efforts to end this deplorable practice. Then again, there are two sides to every coin. On occasion, mascots themselves have been known to turn ugly. The shocking truth is, it almost happened right here in Whitehorse.

Start with one hung over mascot performer. Add one drunk “fan” wobbling down Main Street on the tail end of an all-night binge. Combine with one lucky whiplash-inducing blow against the mascot’s giant head…. In this case, the only thing that prevented a public relations disaster for the 2000 Arctic Winter Games was a swift-thinking handler who managed to restrain the mascot, whose paw was balled into a fist, arm fully cocked to deliver a retaliatory blow.

But times have changed. These days, all Yukoners (and hopefully visitors) surely find the idea of mascot-related violence in any form—human on mascot, mascot on human, mascot on mascot—completely abhorrent. Yet, the fact remains that if there was ever a breeding ground for aggression, it has to be the interior of the mobile sweat lodge known as a mascot costume. As a general rule, those suits are heavy, awkward-fitting, confining, smelly… and if wearing one for twenty minutes wouldn’t make you want to hit someone, step right up for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Yes, the risk of an aggressive mascot incident during the 2007 Canada Winter Games is extremely low. All the same, SLY.com is curious to know how you’d respond.

(Poll first posted February 20, 2007)

Poll results accurate within a ballpark the size of Kluane, umpteen times out of many.

Suggest a Poll

Got a great idea for an online poll? Sometimes, even a lousy one will do. Send them both here.