superpunk
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http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/7052158
The other night, Bud Selig showed up to watch his Brewers play the Giants in Miller Park. Considering the confluence of circumstances — Hank Aaron's glorious history in Milwaukee, and Barry Bonds being just two home runs shy of Aaron's record — this had long been anticipated as baseball's Perfect Storm. Still, the commissioner sought to minimize the occasion, declining even his broadcast partners' request for an on-camera interview. Instead, he held an informal eight-minute press conference, managing to not use the words "Barry" or "Bonds." He spent the rest of the time behind tinted glass.It seems to me that this episode epitomizes Selig's greatest talent: ignoring the obvious. It's also an example of what a commissioner should not do — after all, ignoring the steroid problem for years only made it that much worse.
One imagines these lessons have not been lost on Roger Goodell, who ordered Michael Vick to stay away from Falcons training camp. The story — first reported by FOXSports.com's Jay Glazer — makes you wonder how Vick will ever play this season. He's not Roger Clemens. A team needs its starting quarterback to be in camp.
Then again, that had to be exactly what Goodell had in mind. I don't know if it's right, certainly not after the Duke lacrosse players charged with sexual assault were exonerated. But that's the way it is. For better or worse, Goodell is changing the rules.
There has never been a worse time to be a commissioner of a major American sport. Baseball has its steroid scandal. Basketball has its scandalous referee (let us assume, at least for now, that Tim Donaghy acted alone). And football, which for years has gone easy on some of its worst guys, now has Michael Vick.
Vick, who was supposed to be the face of pro football, is a huge problem for the Falcons and the league. The outrage incited by dogfighting runs very, very deep. The PETA people love a good protest. Still more complicated and potentially divisive is the idea — raised best over the weekend in an excellent ESPN piece — that attitudes on Vick may divide along racial lines. But no one will be able to accuse Goodell of doing too little too late. No one can say he took a pass.
Unlike Selig, who might have convened a blue ribbon panel to study dogfighting, Goodell understands that scandals are born in the waiting. So he didn't wait on the union. He didn't wait on a verdict. Rather, he seized an opportunity to draw a distinction between right and privilege.
In a letter to the quarterback, he explained that due process is a constitutional right for the accused, not a privilege accorded to those with a roster spot: "While it is for the criminal justice system to determine your guilt or innocence, it is my responsibility as commissioner of the National Football league to determine whether your conduct, even if not criminal, nonetheless violated league policies, including the Personal Conduct Policy."
Pacman Jones, who keeps getting arrested before he can even go to trial, no longer seems an anomaly. Goodell is less concerned with individual rights than the greater good, the league's image. At least he's consistent. The message is clear: conviction is no prerequisite to punishment. The guys in your crew aren't an excuse anymore. Bad behavior won't be ignored.
The other night, Bud Selig showed up to watch his Brewers play the Giants in Miller Park. Considering the confluence of circumstances — Hank Aaron's glorious history in Milwaukee, and Barry Bonds being just two home runs shy of Aaron's record — this had long been anticipated as baseball's Perfect Storm. Still, the commissioner sought to minimize the occasion, declining even his broadcast partners' request for an on-camera interview. Instead, he held an informal eight-minute press conference, managing to not use the words "Barry" or "Bonds." He spent the rest of the time behind tinted glass.It seems to me that this episode epitomizes Selig's greatest talent: ignoring the obvious. It's also an example of what a commissioner should not do — after all, ignoring the steroid problem for years only made it that much worse.
One imagines these lessons have not been lost on Roger Goodell, who ordered Michael Vick to stay away from Falcons training camp. The story — first reported by FOXSports.com's Jay Glazer — makes you wonder how Vick will ever play this season. He's not Roger Clemens. A team needs its starting quarterback to be in camp.
Then again, that had to be exactly what Goodell had in mind. I don't know if it's right, certainly not after the Duke lacrosse players charged with sexual assault were exonerated. But that's the way it is. For better or worse, Goodell is changing the rules.
There has never been a worse time to be a commissioner of a major American sport. Baseball has its steroid scandal. Basketball has its scandalous referee (let us assume, at least for now, that Tim Donaghy acted alone). And football, which for years has gone easy on some of its worst guys, now has Michael Vick.
Vick, who was supposed to be the face of pro football, is a huge problem for the Falcons and the league. The outrage incited by dogfighting runs very, very deep. The PETA people love a good protest. Still more complicated and potentially divisive is the idea — raised best over the weekend in an excellent ESPN piece — that attitudes on Vick may divide along racial lines. But no one will be able to accuse Goodell of doing too little too late. No one can say he took a pass.
Unlike Selig, who might have convened a blue ribbon panel to study dogfighting, Goodell understands that scandals are born in the waiting. So he didn't wait on the union. He didn't wait on a verdict. Rather, he seized an opportunity to draw a distinction between right and privilege.
In a letter to the quarterback, he explained that due process is a constitutional right for the accused, not a privilege accorded to those with a roster spot: "While it is for the criminal justice system to determine your guilt or innocence, it is my responsibility as commissioner of the National Football league to determine whether your conduct, even if not criminal, nonetheless violated league policies, including the Personal Conduct Policy."
Pacman Jones, who keeps getting arrested before he can even go to trial, no longer seems an anomaly. Goodell is less concerned with individual rights than the greater good, the league's image. At least he's consistent. The message is clear: conviction is no prerequisite to punishment. The guys in your crew aren't an excuse anymore. Bad behavior won't be ignored.
