Letters to the Editor
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To Mikes Pace
Anyone who believes in Capitalism (as I know you do) knows that almost NOBODY is judged on the content of their character--they are judged on how much money they can make for you. When Bonds and McGuire (along with Sosa) had the turnstiles swirling, all was right with the world. When the steroid issue threatened to turn the audience off, then it became a big problem. Black people very likely reject criticism of a guy like Bonds because guys like you are endlessly waiting around to wag your fingers at blacks and tell them who to follow, which of them you approve of, and why they are bad and disfunctional. You don't want to listen to Jesse Jackson complain about racism? Fine. How about contributing to the well-being of the nation and keep your disengenuous mouth shut about the issue, too?
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What Makes a Poll "Scientific"
The thing that makes a poll "scientific" is the degree to which it is random, that is, everyone in a specific group has an equal chance of being picked to take the poll.
Quote: "Now here comes the ESPN-ABC News poll, a scientific telephone survey of 799 adult baseball fans, 203 of them black..."
Therefore, any results from this poll can only be applied to ADULT FANS of baseball. Not children, not people who don't follow baseball, not people who have never heard of Barry Bonds. You cannot (as King has frequently and annoyingly been doing lately) extrapolate from the results of a poll like this that EVERYONE feels one way or the other about an issue that was not even asked. If I went out to Wrigley field and asked everyone there if they like broccoli then used the overwhelming "no" to state with confidence that Americans hate vegetables, I would not be taken seriously. The same situation applies here.
If you want to know what people think about race, do it right. Ask a truly random sample of the entire 300 million person population in this country, and ask questions about racial groups, not about specific people. Only then will I be prepared to concede that “it’s all about race.”
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The MLK shield
"I guess we just need to wait for another generation to die before we can judge each other solely on the content of our character. Sad thing is: I thought we already had."
Boo hoo. We who? Not on this planet or this country.
"If Martin Luther King were around, he would urge African Americans to judge Barry by the content of his character. Instead, tragically, the African American community has lost their moral leaders. They turn to hypocrites like Sharpton and Jesse Jackson for guidance and they get bile and flames throw back at them (and they think these are the tools with which to combat racism).
Well I'm sure you know exactly what MLK would say and I love how you speak in such absurd generalities about the AA community. The really funny thing is "content of character" platitudes aside, when he was alive, MLK was considered 1000 times more of a "troublemaker" than the easily caricatured Jackson or Sharpton ever will be, but now that he's safely dead, it's easy to use his iconic status to patronize blacks.
"Of course race will always be an issue if black leaders are offense-mongers instead of benevolent visionaries."
Yes, of course race is only an issue because black offense mongers keep bringing it up. If not for them, we'd all be holding hands and singing and racial issues would just disappear. Uh huh. They, and only they, are responsible for keeping race and racism alive as an issue. Right. Though, I do love the notion that black leaders must be either offense mongers or benevolent visionaries.
Anyway about Barry, the seeming black/white difference of opinion is not surprising, but to me, the galling thing is the hypocrisy. The McGwire point is not that he didn't eventually get his comeuppance. It's that he didn't get it when it mattered - when he was playing and getting all the accolades. Everybody looked the other way. Sammy Sosa is still playing and is about to hit 600 home runs and I don't hear a lot of hand wringing. Where's the hue and cry to put asteriks on Rafel Palmero's numbers?
And, as others have pointed out, don't give me any "gamesmanship" crap about guys like Gaylord Perry and don't give me any character nonsense when assholes like Cobb and Williams are enshrined in the Hall and don't pretend you're in high dungeon about PEDs like steroids when greenies were routinely accepted for decades to the point that some teams even had "leaded" and "unleaded" coffee pots. The media and MLB want to make Bonds the poster boy because he's an ass and it will allow them to shove their failures under the rug. I call bullshit.
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No, it is not all about race:
1. I have found that black people are far more racist and intolerant than white people.
2. Bonds was proven to have used the "clear and the cream".
3. There is not 1 professional athlete who does not know exactly what they are putting in their bodies, whether supplements, food or performance enhancing drugs.
4. He knew he was using steroids.
5. Men DO NOT increase their muscle mass, shoe size or hat size as much as his did after the age of 35 without steriods. Bonds had gone from a size 42 to a size 52 jersey; from size 10 ½ to size 13 cleats; and from a size 7 1/8 to size 7 ¼ cap, even though he had taken to shaving his head. He has gained over 40 lbs of muscle mass after the age of 35.
He is using. He knows it. He is a liar.
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actions speaking louder than words
this year so far the astounding thing is a nearly 43 year old man nearly leading the league in home runs. What do the history books have to say about that? To me, Bonds is in the same league as Nolan Ryan - just what he's doing this year should be the final nail in the coffin of the Hall-of-Fame naysayers.
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Does anyone not believe
At around run 750 that MLB will pull a 'rule' out its ass that will either make Bonds ineligible to play ball or will state definitely that any of his runs past some arbitrary limit (less than Willy Mays) will not be counted? Because I bet that's what will happen. And from here on in all 'suspect' records will be up to MLB to allow or not.
I love watching a sport die.