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If He Did It

There's a lot about Barry Bonds we may not know, but we do know he's good for provocative pictures and juicy newspaper headlines. And now it seems his run is coming to an end. Not long after we learned that another aging black athlete, O.J. Simpson, will have to stand trial in Las Vegas for kidnapping and robbery charges, word came that Barry Bonds had been indicted for federal criminal charges of lying to a grand jury.

I have said before that Bonds, like any other suspect or defendant, is entitled to the law's presumption of innocence. But Bonds is such a well known and polarizing public figure that it's hard to imagine how he, or O.J. for that matter, will be able to find an impartial jury to try his case. As if to prove that point, the New York Post ran a banner headline this morning calling Bonds a "LIAR." And it's a safe bet that a lot of other Americans made up their minds yesterday as well.

Posted in sports on November 16 2007, 12:35PM | Read More | Comments (35)

The Rise and Fall of Marion Jones

There's something about Marion Jones that I've always liked. For all her success on the running track, she still came across as humble and normal. Maybe I was wrong all along, but I always got the impression that she was a nice person. Maybe she was and still is, but Jones's announcement last week that she used illegal steroids before winning 5 medals in the 2000 Olympics stunned many observers in the sports world.

In just over a week, Jones dropped from legend to fallen hero as she pleaded guilty to federal charges and agreed to forfeit all results and prizes dating back to Sept. 1, 2000. The final blow came yesterday when the U.S. Olympic Committee announced that Jones had returned her medals, which will now will returned to the International Olympic Committee. That had to hurt.

Posted in sports on October 9 2007, 10:39AM | Read More | Comments (32)

Not Again OJ

Denver, CO -- The news of O.J. Simpson's arrest this weekend came as a shock. When I first heard the story, and the numerous conflicting accounts, I didn't know what to believe. Simpson, according to some accounts, flew all the way from Florida to Las Vegas to get back what he calls some stolen merchandise that he believes was taken from him. Then Simpson and a group of cohorts stormed into (or was escorted into, depending on who you believe) a Vegas hotel room to confront a sports memorabilia dealer who was supposedly trying to sell Simpson's things.

On day one of the story, the alleged victim accused O.J. and a group of gun-wielding thugs, of attacking him and stealing property. On day two, the alleged victim seemed to deny the accusations and said he wasn't planning to press charges. Then on day three, O.J. was behind bars, locked up for attempted robbery and other crimes. And finally on day four an audiotape emerges implicating O.J. at the scene in a confrontational encounter.

Posted in sports on September 17 2007, 1:26PM | Read More | Comments (30)

Yep, He Did It

A few weeks ago I tried to defend Michael Vick's right to a fair hearing. In America, all suspects are innocent until proven guilty, I said. Then yesterday the Atlanta Falcons quarterback finally admitted what everyone else had already suspected or believed. Vick was involved in an illegal dog fighting ring. And now, the NFL star with a $130 million contract will be going to prison for a likely sentence of 12 to 18 months.

All of this leads me to one very obvious question. What the hell was he thinking? Six years ago, Michael Vick was the first pick in the 2001 NFL draft. To become a black quarterback in the NFL is already a major achievement, but to be picked first in the draft as well is a huge deal. Now this successful young black athlete with a promising future and a fat contract has squandered it all for what? A criminal dogfighting enterprise? Was it really worth it?

Posted in sports on August 21 2007, 9:42AM | Read More | Comments (102)

Barry Bonds Makes History

It's official. Barry Bonds made history last night when he hit his 756th home run, making him the new home run king in Major League Baseball. (See the video.) With the swing of his bat in the fifth inning of a game against Washington, Bonds eclipsed Hank Aaron's longstanding record and earned a place as a baseball legend.

I don't care what anybody else says about Barry Bonds, he's still the champ. And until somebody can prove that he actually did something wrong, I'm not going to abandon him. As I recall, a lot of baseball fans stood by Pete Rose when he was accused of gambling on the game, and it wasn't until he actually got caught and admitted his crime that people finally gave up on Rose. I think Barry Bonds deserves the same benefit of the doubt.

Posted in sports on August 8 2007, 12:39AM | Read More | Comments (21)

Don't Bet On Sports Heroes

Michael Vick Michael Rasmussen

I just got back from Las Vegas and it seems a lot of the news from the past week has focused on sports. While I was walking past the sports betting complex at Caesar's Palace last week, America was busy talking about Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick, allegedly involved in a dogfighting scandal. And while I slipped past hundreds of gamblers pulling the levers on the slot machines and rolling the dice at the crap tables, the FBI was investigating former NBA referee Tim Donaghy, accused of gambling on the very sport he officiated.

And it wasn't just football and basketball in the mix. Sitting in a sports bar at Bally's Paris Casino last week, I noticed on a TV screen that the major league baseball commissioner was trying to figure out what to do if scandal-plagued slugger Barry Bonds should hit his 756th home run anytime soon. And then from across the pond there were pictures of Tour de France biker Michael Rasmussen embroiled in a widening doping scandal that threatened the credibility of the entire race. Almost everywhere you look, professional sports were under siege this past week. Almost.

Posted in sports on July 30 2007, 9:47AM | Read More | Comments (11)

Tim Hardaway: "I Hate Gay People"

Just a week after former NBA player John Amaechi came out of the closet as the league's first openly gay player, another NBA player is making news for his words on homosexuality. Retired Miami Heat guard Tim Hardaway told a radio show that he hates gay people and that he would never want a gay player like Amaechi on his team.

Hardaway said: "First of all, I wouldn't want him on my team. And second of all, if he was on my team I would really distance myself from him. I don't think that he should be in the locker room while we're in the locker room...I hate gay people, so I let it be known. I don't like gay people and I don't like to be around gay people. Yeah, I'm homophobic. I don't like it. There shouldn't be a [place] in the world for that or in the United States for it. So I don't like it."

Hardaway made the comments while he was a guest on Sports Talk 790 The Ticket. Hardaway even said if he did find out that a teammate was gay, he would ask for the player to be traded or to be bought out of his contract because it would make other players feel uncomfortable in the locker room. He later apologized for the remarks during a live telephone interview with WSVN Channel 7. "Yes, I regret it. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said I hate gay people or anything like that. That was my mistake."

Mistake? That's no mistake, Tim Hardaway. That's your pure unadulterated homophobia coming out. It's one thing to slip up and use a word like "fag" or "faggot," but it's quite another thing to say in public that you "hate" an entire group of people. That is inexcusable. I am not the least bit sorry to say this. Tim Hardaway's broadcasting career should come to a screeching halt. No apologies, no excuses, no rehab. Just fire his ass anywhere and everywhere he works with the media. Then maybe he'll remember what it's like to be a member of a discriminated minority group.

Posted in sports on February 15 2007, 8:54AM | Read More | Comments (138)

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