I’ve learned something interesting about myself: If I leave more time between columns, I have more comprehensive thoughts to put together. Granted, I don’t enjoy going an entire month without writing a column, but sometimes some time away helps the mind percolate better, and the way my brain struggles to work these days, a little extra percolation perhaps makes for a better brew?
So, this is what’s on my mind:
I’m still processing the news that Osama Bin Laden is dead. I really have no reaction whatsoever beyond “Really? Who knew he was still alive?” I never really believed he was hiding in a cave on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, as common theory was. I frankly figured he was living comfortably with access to the internet and all major news networks, or perhaps he was dead all along and kept propped up in a “Weekend at Bernie’s” fashion by his al Qaeda stooges. As a child of the 1960s, I could certainly be cynical about anything and everything heard or read regarding his demise, but I’m willing to trust our President and military leadership on this. There are things we’re simply not supposed to know when it comes to operations within the bowels of the White House and Pentagon, which is why running this country is hands down the toughest job in the world.
Just like countless others, I have my own personal 9-11 memories and stories, and Sunday night’s news of Bin Laden’s death brought those memories and stories back in numbing fashion. As I flipped my television back and forth between the Mets-Phillies game on ESPN and NBC News, I became quietly reflective listening to Brian Williams on NBC and Bobby Valentine on ESPN. I can honestly say I was in a mental fog through the eleventh and twelfth innings of the game and didn’t even know how to feel after the Mets finally stopped a three-game losing streak with their 2-1 14-inning win. Think about it... How does any intelligent or rationally thinking adult react or feel after such an unusual intersection of events?
This is what makes Monday’s tweets by Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall so troubling, so stunning. In case you haven’t heard — and I’m slowly catching up on the story myself — Mendenhall made the following tweets:
What kind of person celebrates death? It's amazing how people can HATE a man they have never even heard speak. We've only heard one side...
I believe in God. I believe we're ALL his children. And I believe HE is the ONE and ONLY judge.
Those who judge others, will also be judged themselves.
For those of you who said you want to see Bin Laden burn in hell and piss on his ashes, I ask how would God feel about your heart?
There is not an ignorant bone in my body. I just encourage you to #think
The Steelers immediately distanced themselves from Mendenhall’s comments, and the media — including social media -- backlash is clearly understandable. I personally subscribe to the theory that you don’t dance on your enemy’s grave, but each individual has the right to react and believe as they wish. I also subscribe to the concept of Freedom of Speech. But I also subscribe to the theory that free speech does have limits.
Let’s face it; Osama Bin Laden and 9-11 bring out incredible and understandable emotion from Americans. I’ve said it since 9-11, and I’ve said it since the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq began: Americans have been whipped into a nationalistic frenzy, sometimes bordering on jingoism. I’m not saying this is good or bad, but it’s always struck me as odd and a bit troubling. The “USA” chants seem of a strangely different tone compared to the Cold War days, when an Olympic hockey team of kids stunned the Soviets one February day in 1980. The chants and attitudes seem strangely different compared to the stories I heard from older family members about World War II. The “American Pride” of past decades and global conflicts seemed more genuine than what we have today. In a strange way, I sometimes wonder if the “American Pride” we hear on streets today has the sincerity of drunk Dodgers fans beating that Giants fan into a coma in the parking lot at Chez Ravine. Sure, that sounds harsh, but do you ever ask why some folks are proud to be American, or what America represents for them?
But Mendenhall’s comments leave me to wonder if he actually understands what 9-11 and the war on terror are all about. After all, he’ll be 24 years old in June, meaning he was 14 in September 2001. Is it possible Mendenhall was an oblivious teenager living under a proverbial rock? Is it possible he’s genetically wired to simply never get it? Consider that only mere weeks ago Mendenhall equated the NFL CBA owner-player relationship with slavery prior to the Civil War. Is it possible Mendenhall has never read a legitimate newspaper, much less a history book? Does he ever bother to watch the news?
Oh sure, there are plenty of nut jobs in this country who believe our government orchestrated 9-11, murdering nearly 3,000 of its own citizens in the name of oil or economic benefit, or some other whacko conspiracy theory or hyper-religious doctrine, and these whackos come from all different segments of society. That Rashard Mendenhall is African-American is merely coincidental to the context of this story. However, Mendenhall being a professional football player is very relevant, because once again we see another semi-educated blockhead personifying the very stereotype of the dumb jock having no clue about the real world or the context of information, and having zero ability to verbally express himself without raising questions about his IQ.
As a native New Yorker and former football player myself, I take Mendenhall’s to heart and with great offense. Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon of ESPN’s Pardon the Interruption both raised the concern about Mendenhall using Twitter as a public venue to espouse his ignorance. To be a public figure and be labeled ignorant is not a good combination. Ask Sarah Palin, or Glenn Back, or Rush Limbaugh. When does Charlie Sheen cease becoming entertaining and say just enough to become a pariah like Mel Gibson?
On the other hand, consider what Chris Douglas-Roberts of the Milwaukee Bucks had to say to the New York Daily News:
“Was the search for Bin Laden truly worth so many American military deaths, over so many years? It’s just been very costly for us. When I say us, I mean the United States. We still have people over there. It took 919,967 deaths [and] $1,188,263,000,000 to kill that one guy.”
Maybe hearing my thoughts, and Mendenhall’s thoughts and Douglas-Roberts’ thoughts make us uncomfortable, but when we see our national economy still a mess, unemployment still very high, and the cost of everything skyrocketing while wages remain stagnant for most Americans, you can’t help but wonder why we’re cheering and jumping up and down. While Bin Laden is gone, it’s not like his death was any bargain of the century for us. But as we know, there’s rational thought and then there’s inflammatory rhetoric.
I’m not a public figure, although my 25-year teaching career did impress upon me the importance of watching what I say when I serve a community and earn my salary from taxpayers. I never enjoyed a professional football career like Mendenhall does, but I know the stigma of presumed stupidity because I did spend several years wearing helmet and shoulder pads while pursuing my education. I still remember being told by professors and classmates at the University of South Florida that I didn’t have the smarts to pursue a graduate degree in chemistry when I traded in my playbook for incredibly thick textbooks.
Playing football didn’t make me a dumb person, and I’ll stack my masters degree, doctorate, and 25 years of teaching chemistry and physics against anyone else as proof, thank you very much. But the presumption of stupidity all those years ago put a chip on my shoulder the size of Antarctica that’s never gone away. When members of the National Football League, past and present, demonstrate how ignorant and uneducated they are, it’s a personal affront and embarrassment to me, because I take great pride in my football past, no matter how mediocre I played, just as I take great pride in my educational training and academic career. I don’t believe athletics is an alternative or barrier to becoming an educated person, I’m sick of hearing half-baked insights by members of our sports world, and even sicker of hearing society’s response as “what do you expect from a jock?”
Mendenhall is hardly the only blockhead sharing thoughts while the brain’s disengaged. A couple of weeks ago, former New York Giants wide receiver and current ESPN analyst Amani Toomer called NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s player conduct policies “Gestapo tactics.” Although Toomer eventually apologized, once again we’re hearing a member of the NFL family use inappropriate, insulting and miscontextualized terms. Again, did Toomer ever attend a history class or read about World War II? My girlfriend and I both had family members subjected to the horrors of the Nazi regime. We know what it’s like to grow up around people with numbers tattooed on their forearms and emotional scars to last a lifetime. Are Goodell’s policies a bit heavy handed? Perhaps they are, but given the non-stop off-field problems players continue to get into, such policies are a necessary evil. However, under no circumstances — including the contentious rhetoric related to ongoing CBA negotiations — should we ever confuse a league commissioner with the likes of Hitler, Eichmann, Goering, Himmler or Goebbels, and if Amani Toomer couldn’t comprehend that before he opened his big mouth on television, then the NFL has a more serious image issue to worry about than this ongoing lockout mess.
For good measure, another former Giant, George Martin, the head of the Retired Players Association, recently characterized his meeting with NFLPA leadership like “Nuremberg.” Again, what the hell is this man thinking, and when’s the last time he’s read a history textbook? I think the world of George Martin. He walked from the George Washington Bridge to San Diego a few years ago to raise money for ill 9-11 rescue workers and their families. But a tense meeting between former and current union members comes nowhere near the venue for the Nuremberg trials. I visited the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington in 1996. I sat for over an hour watching and listening to archived footage of the Nuremberg trials, listening to high-level Nazi war criminals read off lists of murdered Jews like accountants would summarize business expenditures. George Martin’s a reasonably well educated and thoughtful man, yet reverted into blockhead mode as he searched his brain for an extreme metaphor to accelerate the rhetoric.
Martin eventually apologized, as did Mendenhall, but it’s often too-little, too-late. The damage is already done, and claiming your words were taken out of context or you’re sorry if you offended anyone simply rings hollow for the average citizen and fan. If you’re worried about your words coming back to haunt you, perhaps you shouldn’t be posting them in the first place.
There’s a reason why generations of Jews say “Never Again” as we recall and commemorate the Holocaust every spring: the further away from that darkest period of humanity we get, then more we see people forget the events, or worse, misapply buzzwords from that era to describe very comparatively trivial matters as if there’s historical equivalence. There’s not, and never will be during the worst debates on how to divvy up $9 billion in league revenue. Fans shouldn’t have booed Roger Goodell at last week’s draft because the lockout seems stupid and denies everyone their football fix. He should’ve been booed because this lockout brings out the stupidity in all parties of this multibillion dollar industry. The lockout is a battle over money, greed, ego and common sense. It’s not a battle over good-versus-evil, or global persecution, or human dignity.
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I personally have no problem with the lockout by NFL owners. As I’ve said on a few occasions, I side with both the owners and players on several issues with the ongoing CBA negotiations. However, there’s one thing we all need to keep in mind: The NFLPA is not the business partner of the NFL. The players are the employees to the owners, and to demand opening all the financial books for the past ten years as the flash point for decertifying the union and filing class action suits is ridiculous. Let’s not forget the majority of NFL players do not have a college education to fall back on when their playing careers end. These men are going to need some means of income, remaining in the public eye, and maintaining a very inflated and materialistic lifestyle. That money not only comes from television revenue, it comes from ticket sales by wealthy corporations and individuals who can afford luxury suites and PSLs. These wealthy people aren’t necessarily coming to a stadium to watch a football game as much as they’re coming for an experience. Owners like Jerry Jones, Woody Johnson and John Mara have to cater to these folks with new stadiums, new stadiums that cost major money. When these folks come to the stadium and get their money’s worth, they invest back into their favorite teams and players, providing endorsement contracts and other opportunities to help players enhance their “brand” and stay relevant long after they leave the field. We have no idea how much debt these owners are carrying in order to maintain a grand scheme that keeps rich people happy and financially endowed. So, before the NFLPA starts looking through those books, assuming a federal judge orders the books open, DeMaurice Smith and his Executive Board members might want to prepare themselves for just how much they’re responsible for this fiscal house of cards. Don’t be surprised when we finally find out the Emperors on both sides all have no clothes.
Oh, you thought the owners were building stadiums for regular folks like us? Really? If that’s true, ask yourself when’s the last time you heard of a sporting event that didn’t serve sushi, nachos, pizza, and a million other foods not peanuts, popcorn, cotton candy, hot dogs, and pretzels. Seriously, are fans coming to watch a game or eat at Bennigans?
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The late Dave Duerson knew CTE was slowly taking hold of his brain when he committed suicide in February. Neurological researchers at Boston University confirmed what Duerson feared. I cried a little upon hearing the news. I love football and always will. I also know football will ultimately kill me, as if merely crippling me wasn’t enough.
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I was so blessed to visit the Pro Football Hall of Fame this past weekend with my girlfriend. We were in Cleveland for a bat mitzvah and took advantage of free time to drive south to Canton. I wish we had more time to spend there and absorb the history of this sport, especially the room with all the inductee busts, but I’m grateful for the time we did spend and sharing the experience together. If you ever take a trip to Ohio, I highly recommend scheduling time to visit Canton and take in a little history for yourself. It truly was inspirational for me.
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So we’ve endured the three-day NFL Draft, Roger Goodell’s televised extravaganza, and what have we learned, besides the NFL can run a draft during a lockout? First, we’ve learned that Cam Newton, the Heisman Trophy quarterback from Auburn and top pick by the Carolina Panthers, is annoyed at all the doubters and scrutiny. I guess one doesn’t require a thick skin in order to be an “icon and entertainer” at 21 years old. I hope young Mr. Newton’s arm is as prolific as his mouth. He’ll need it while scrambling for his life behind a rebuilding Panthers offensive line.
Four quarterbacks were drafted among the first 12 players taken, including Florida State’s Christian Ponder by the Minnesota Vikings. If you’re wondering why the Vikings chose Ponder as opposed to another name quarterback on the draft board, look no further than his size (6’3”, 227 LBS) and where he played (FSU). As we saw last year for Brett Favre, the Vikings don’t have the best of offensive lines and Vikings quarterbacks were either hitting the deck or running for their lives almost every pass play. It’s clear Tavaris Jackson isn’t the answer and the Vikings believe they need a quarterback who can stand strong and tall in the pocket. Second, no matter how diligent NFL scouts are, the bottom line is that teams are more inclined to draft players from BCS schools, because those players face the stiffest competition leading to the bowl season. In fact, with the exception of the Jets, Bears, Bengals, Dolphins, Colts, Jaguars, Lions, Rams and 49ers, every NFL team drafted at least five players from BCS schools. Notably, 10 of the Redskins 12 draftees were from BCS schools.
As a former Temple Owl, I was quite happy to see the Jets draft defensive tackle Muhammad Wilkerson with the 30th pick and the Eagles draft defensive back Jaiquawn Jarret with the 54th pick.
Of all the quarterbacks drafted, the two I think we should keep the closest eye on are Ricky Stanzi (Iowa), drafted in the fifth round by Kansas City, and Greg McElroy (Alabama), drafted in the seventh round by the Jets. Perhaps neither will be impactful superstars, but they certainly rank high in terms of football intellect and could be very reliable backups and future coaches. So, training camp fans, watch these two young men this summer and think about Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett at the same time.
Speaking of redheaded quarterbacks, Andy Dalton (TCU) was drafted in the second round by the Bengals. The kid’s a winner and will likely be groomed as the heir apparent to Carson Palmer. Maybe Palmer will be forced to stay in Cincinnati; maybe he’ll force the Bengals to trade him elsewhere (Miami? Minnesota? Arizona?). But if I could offer Palmer some advice, I’d recommend he follow through on his threat and retire while he can still walk. Injuries have taken their toll on a once promising career. Bill Parcells used to say that if you’re talking about retirement you’ve already done so in your mind. For Palmer’s sake and the Bengals sake, it’s time to hang up the cleats and move onto adult life.
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Who honestly believes Jim Tressel will return to Ohio State to coach Buckeyes football after his five-game suspension?
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The Dodgers are broke and taken over by MLB, and Frank McCourt seriously expects he’ll get his team back after a legal challenge? To even equate the mess he and his estranged wife made en route to divorce proceedings with the financial strain the Wilpon family is experiencing with the Mets is ludicrous.
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Are Red Sox and Rays fans still panicking about those awful starts? The last I checked of the AL East standings, the Yankees aren’t running away from the pack, the Rays are above .500, and the Red Sox are close behind.
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Okay, okay... I took some cheap shots at the Indians after opening day weekend. Looks like baseball in Cleveland is going to be good this summer, and that’s great for the entire city and MLB. While in Cleveland this past weekend, we noticed fans in healthy numbers walking up to Progressive Field for a Saturday night game with the Tigers. Just seeing the crowd and energy was a positive sign.
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For those fans of teams struggling, I advise you to take a deep breath and relax. We’re not even at the one-quarter mark of the season, so there’s still lots of baseball to go.
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Strange stats of the MLB season so far: In 2010, the Mets and Pirates had the worst road records in the majors. In 2011, the Mets and Pirates play much better on the road than at home. In 2010, the Padres had one of the best home records in the majors. In 2001, the Padres have the worst home record.
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Minnesota’s Francisco Liriano threw the season’s first no-hitter last night, as the Twins beat the White Sox 1-0. It wasn’t one of your classics, as Liriano walked six and struck out only two. I don’t know which was more surprising: Liriano’s stats or that the Rays somehow weren’t involved with another no-no. Then again, when the AL Central standings are dramatically upside-down, anything’s possible so far.
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Have the Rangers Josh Hamilton and his third base coach finally kissed and made up yet?
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