Unfiltered Opinion

Sports And Politics Will Never Mix

I am what the pundits call an independent voter, swing voter, undecided voter, or whatever the new term is for this election.  It's no secret that I think both of these candidates are guilty of lying to the public just to get elected.  When I think of John McCain, I think of a man who has served his country for a long time.  McCain sees the presidency as the crowning achievement of his political career.

When I think of Barack Obama, I think of an intelligent opportunist who knows when to run for President.  Obama reminds me of a guy I went to junior high school with.  He really wanted to be president of the Student Council, but he knew that there was no way he could garner enough support to win the election.  However, the perfect storm of events happened that allowed him to enter the election and win before any one realized what happened.  The next day when the principal read the election results over the intercom system, everyone was shocked that he won. 

I don't have anything against Obama and I respect his life journey as he tells it. However, I cannot help but to think of "The Omen" and its main character, Damien, when I see him and his supporters.  I'm not saying that he's the Anti-Christ, but the man has shown the ability to convince millions of people that he represents revolutionary "change" and can solve the country's economic and social woes.

Maybe he can. Fox and Major League Baseball have agreed to start Game 6 of the World Series a few minutes later to accommodate Obama's expensive infomercial.  That's good for Obama, but he better hopes the Series does not go to a Game 6 because there will be a lot of people who will take the delay in a negative way.  Trust me when I say that no politician wants to be seen as the one who made the game start at a later time so he could browbeat you one more time with the same tired message.

Just Because You Return It Does Not Mean That You Did Not Steal It

School districts across the country are financially strapped as they continue to try and educate the nation's children. Imagine the concern, Mesquite High School had when their cameras and computers started disappearing for no reason. The equipment was disappearing because the school's athletic coordinator and football coach was stealing it. Police say Steve Halpin would take the stolen items to a pawn shop and later buy them back to replace at the school. Halpin is lucky that the school district allowed him to slither into retirement instead of prosecuting him. However the district is now coming under intense scrutiny and pressure for their handling of the episode.

It's obvious that Halpin was obviously was having some financial issues that pushed him to do what he did. There are a lot of people in this country like Halpin who have made decisions that have put them and their families in tight financial situations. Nevertheless, there is no excuse to ever steal school equipment. I'm sure Halpin is a good man who found himself on the brink for some reason. He probably did not think he was stealing because he always intended to return the equipment. Financial stress has caused plenty of people to lie to themselves and commit irrational acts that they would not usually do. Unfortunately, Halpin is no different.

Is Bob Johnson Jealous Of Obama?

Bob Johnson is a rich man, but that does not necessarily mean that Johnson is an intelligent man.  Johnson made millions when he found Black Entertainment Television (BET) and sold it years later to Viacom for 3 billion dollars.  He is currently the owner of the Charlotte Bobcats of the NBA.  Johnson is also friends (translation - campaign contributor) with Bill and Hillary Clinton.  Naturally since he is a Clinton supporter, he is upset that Barack Obama is on the verge of becoming the Democratic nominee for president.

I don't have a problem with Johnson supporting Clinton - that's his choice.  My problem with Johnson is that for a man who is going around the Charlotte area and whining about how much money he is losing with the Bobcats franchise, he sure has a strange way of trying to attract fans to support the team.  Most owners keep their politics out of public view because they do not want to offend members of their ticket buying public.  Some owners will donate money to various political causes and candidates, but none of them make the front page of the newspaper every time they open their mouth.

Every time Johnson talks about Obama, something stupid comes out of his mouth.  A few months ago, he made dumb comments about Obama and his use of drugs.  Now Johnson feels like he needs to expound on the comments Geraldine Ferraro made a few weeks ago about Obama.

"What I believe Geraldine Ferraro meant is that if you take a freshman senator from Illinois called `Jerry Smith' and he says I'm going to run for president, would he start off with 90 percent of the black vote?" Johnson said. "And the answer is, probably not... ."

"Geraldine Ferraro said it right. The problem is, Geraldine Ferraro is white. This campaign has such a hair-trigger on anything racial ... it is almost impossible for anybody to say anything."

If Johnson is truly supports Clinton then he needs to keep his thoughts on Obama to himself.  Why on earth would you want to remind any undecided voter about the comments that Ferraro made.  Don't get me wrong, Johnson is not entirely wrong with what he said.  It's just that when Johnson comments on Obama he always sounds like he's jealous of Obama's success. 

However this jealous or resentful behavior is something that Johnson has common with many older and successful blacks in regards to Obama.  They don't think he has paid his dues yet to be in the position that he is in.  They believe his road to success has been easier than theirs.  I believe Obama has traveled a different road than most blacks, but that does not make his road traveled any easier.  It may have been more difficult.  You would be hard pressed to find a black person who can talk about being discriminated against by black and white people.  This is what some biracial people have to experience during the course of their lives. 

Sorry Johnson - this is 2008.  Obama has paid his dues - he  just had to do it in a different way.

He Could Run The Football, But Should He Run For Office?

Article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch about former University of Missouri football star, Brock Olivo, caught my attention today. Olivo is running for Congress as a Republican, so it will be interesting to see how his star power translates into the political arena and how he handles it. I felt like this article is trying to make him look like a "dumb jock".   I'm sure some people will have a problem with the fact that the 31 year old Olivo has never voted in an election.  His lack of a voting record would raise a red flag with me and cause me to carefully scrutinize what his platform is.  However, I would not eliminate him from consideration based only on the fact that he has never voted.

Jesse Jackson Is Talking Baseball

Poor Jesse Jackson and his massive ego needs to be stroked - again.  No one is listening to him as much and he no longer has a captivated audience.  I guess this is why he felt compelled to offer his assessment of the controversy involving Major League Baseball (MLB) and its umpires.  Am I missing something here?  Surely, as a civil rights activist, he has more important things to worry about than meddling in MLB affairs.  Jackson should go to Houston and try helping their citizens remove the crackpot Harris County District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal from office.

However, I do understand that the MLB story was controversial and a national story in the sports world. There is no other reason Jackson would try and get involved in it.