Greed however, caught up with the the NFL in a big way, greed and a notion that because they were so popular they could do no wrong. Television contracts caught up with the NFL in a big way, television contracts and the idea splitting up a bigger pie in smaller pieces was more important than serving a better pie to more people. Football is still a great sport, but the leadership of the game’s highest expression have lost their way.
Posts filed under Sports
Weekly Sports Media Failures: Part I
With the NFL’s version of “labor strife” soon to be settled, our democracy can soon return its full attention to more important matters. For example, without the business of sports hogging the headlines, we the people can focus on the villainous fiends who, apparently, comprise our professional athletic class. Far be it for us to blame the crooks on Wall Street for our tanking economy when we have Big Bird, teacher’s unions, and criminal athletes to take the blame.
An Open Letter To Frank McCourt
Dear Mr. McCourt:
It is time for you to go away. You are an embarrasment and a fraud, but there is some time still left on the clock. Use that time to salvage what is left of your dignity, and your reputation as both businessperson and baseball fan. Use that time to make the correct decision for the franchise you have claimed to love. Use that time to make the correct decision for the fans you claim to serve.
The Real Welfare Queens
We love our major league entertainment in America; I am a long-suffering fan of the Cleveland Browns, and a rabid supporter of the Los Angeles Dodgers. I am a believer in the value of sport. I am also, however, a believer in prioritization. To paraphrase a favorite quote from Mr. Holland’s Opus, “If I must choose between football and long division, I choose long division.” In the movie, the principal is canceling the music and drama programs to close a budget gap, the football program he leaves untouched. That is an example of Hollywood reflecting life, but our high schools are just following the trend we the people have established at the big league level. At a time of teacher layoffs and wholesale attacks on the idea of public education, our nation continues to spend public money at a rate of $1 billion per year on stadiums for professional sports.
The Great Vick Controversy of 2010
We the people should be asking what this story is really about. What does this say about our views of crime and punishment? Are we, as a society, still able to practice forgiveness and encourage redemption? Does this story, as Fox News asked, say anything about ours or the Eagles’ collective approach to reemploying felons (i.e. if Vick wasn’t a phenomenal talent, would he have received the same opportunity)? Many of these questions are being explored in candid and forceful conversations throughout the web and on networks like Facebook. Why are those conversations not being reflected in the mass media?
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