Prejudice In The NFL

Posted by Larry Miller on October 15, 2009 under How | Be the First to Comment

In what has been called a “high tech lynching”, Rush Limbaugh has been forced out of a group attempting to buy the St. Louis Rams. The man, who is the epitome of the American success story, finds himself being lied about and labeled by members of the media who he has roundly criticized for being lapdogs of the Obama administration, as they prove they have no interest in fact-checking when the victim is one the feel “deserves it”.

He has been quoted, by some media outlets, as saying slavery had its merits, that at least the streets were safe at night. However, when pressed for documentation of the supposed outrage, they became strangely silent. Then they fall back on his comments about Philadelphia Eagles quarterback, Donovan McNabb, who he said was overrated because the media were interested in promoting the success of a black man in the position. Hmmmm, sounds like comments about Barack Hussein Obama.

As a Eagles fan from back in the days when Pete Retzlaff played tight end, and one who enjoys watching McNabb, Westbrook and company pick NFL defenses apart, I have to respectfully disagree with this assessment. However, we are, up to this time, a free country where people are permitted to have their opinions… even if they love the Steelers as Mr. Limbaugh does. There is no accounting for some peoples taste.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell believes having an opinion not complementary to the league and its players is sufficient reason to block his ownership. He is proud, he says, of the diversity of players in the league. This is a diversity that extends far beyond ethnic backgrounds. There are gentlemen and there are thugs. There are intelligent players and those that can only say “I like to hit people” when a microphone is stuck in their face.

Goodell handles all this with a paternal smile. However when professional race merchants like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton begin making noises, based on made up stories, the good commissioner runs and hides like a scared little girl. The charge of racism, it seems, especially when it comes from such an august personality as the Reverend Jackson, has no defense. We are back in the days when the “seriousness of the charge” far outweighs the facts of the case.

So now we have a sport that is supposed to be a real man’s sport yet the league has reduced itself to the wussiness of political correctness. Diversity is proclaimed, but censorship abounds. People are permitted to say anything they want, as long is the league and the commissioner approves.

Whatever happened to the Voltaire’s concept of, “I do not agree with a word you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” We need to forget the idea that we have a right never to be offended. It certainly is nothing that shows up in our constitution, and it’s not one our creator has endowed us with. These voices of censorship only have power because we allow them. It may cost us something, but what we loose is of far less importance than the free speech our creator gave us and our constitution protects.