The hypocrisy circumventing the Ryan Braun-Tony Bosch scandal is scintillating. While his reputation will be forever tainted in lieu of his dim-witted actions, the general public should be scolded as well. We point the finger at Braun for being a “liar” and a “cheat,” we should turn the finger around and blame ourselves for the fracas.
Crimes are happening every minute of the day, there’s probably some going on at this very moment. I’ve been exposed as a liar and done many things in my life I would rather not discuss, so who am I to look down on an athlete who cheated to get ahead? As the saying goes, “you shouldn’t throw stones when you live in a glass house.” It’s disappointing to see Braun was cheating the game and the fans but what else is new?
As Frank “The Big Hurt” Thomas stated; guys are playing to get max contracts not to get into the Hall of Fame. Cheating, lying, or other wrongdoings may taint their reputations, but it will not affect their bank account. Just because guys such as Braun are able to hit a baseball a long way, does that mean he is infallible of committing a mistake or telling a lie? Our society holds athletes to standards that we ourselves cannot uphold.
The great John Morano (former college professor) said, “dog bites man is not news, man bites dog is.” An athlete cheating does not surprise me, nor should it surprise anyone. These individuals are trying to cash in before the window closes, that window isn’t open very long. By whatever means necessary, that’s the line that the modern athlete lives by. I guess it would surprise fans to hear that most professional athletes cheat on their wives or have children out of wedlock.
My thought process of whether or not I can support an athlete follows these guidelines: don’t hit women, don’t hurt children, don’t hurt animals, and don’t kill someone. Michael Vick, Aaron Hernandez, and Rae Carruth will not find me in their cheering section. I still would list Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens as my favorite baseball players, despite the reports of PED usage and other banned substances.
We live in an imperfect world, I may only be 24 years of age but I’ve seen a lot. Priests molesting children, the former President of the United States acting too friendly with a woman not named Hillary, and the “Terminator” having a child with his maid. What constitutes an athlete from being free of mistakes or wrongdoings?
Courtesy: Washington Post
Braun was vindicated of previous allegations after his 2011 MVP performance when he became the first Major League Baseball player to successfully challenge a drug-related penalty handed down from the MLB. The comical side to this appeal was Braun’s argument for appeal. It wasn’t because he disagreed with the test results it was because he felt “protocol was not followed.” The “protocol” called for the sample to be shipped for testing as soon as it was received, but, it was not and instead was left as the sample collector’s home for two-days. In a statement, Braun said, “”It is the first step in restoring my good name and reputation. We were able to get through this because I am innocent and the truth is on our side.”
As hastily as his reputation was restored, it was buried to the point of no return. Braun accepted a 65-game suspension from Bud Selig’s office due to his involvement with Biogenesis, Bosch’s former clinic located in Miami. The suspension spells that the Milwaukee Brewers will be without its best player for the remainder of the season. But, the maligned Brewers are not in the hunt for the pennant so this suspension is really affecting his bank account as reports announced Braun will lose out on $3.85 million of the $9.61 million he was slated to earn this season. Braun committed a penalty and has to face the ramifications of his actions. As unfortunate as it is, considering how many children in the area and around the globe look up to Braun, the fact of the matter is we are the ones at fault.
We have created this epidemic of athletes “being” superior human beings. Adding to the persona that because they are tremendous athletes that they cannot commit wrong. Some athletes do great things with their star-power; others abuse it. Athlete or not, human beings have the mindset to differentiate right from wrong, whether or not they are able to dunk a basketball or smash a home run.
