Vick isn't the athlete we need to worry about

One could make the argument that Michael Vick is among the most hated people in America right now. 72 percent of sports fans dislike him and I guarantee that number would be even higher among non-sports fans if the question were posed like this: “How do you feel about a man who pleaded guilty to funding a dog fighting ring and killing at least 6-8 dogs?” Considering the typical Americans’ affection for animals, it’s safe to say Vick might be up there with Bernie Madoff.

In this case, hate is probably okay. I mean, it would be far more alarming if the majority of Americans supported a puppy-killing felon. But anyone who believes Vick is all that’s wrong with today’s athletes clearly hasn’t been paying enough attention to all the wrong in today’s athletes. What Vick did was evil, no doubt, but let’s make this clear: For all the influence he may have once had, it’s not as though a whole new segment of the population has decided that dog fighting might be a cool thing to try.

The same can’t be said for guys like J.R. Smith and Plaxico Burress, who not only represent the worst part of American culture; they embrace it. Since entering the NBA, Smith has made more news for his affiliation with the Bloods street gang than he ever has for his performance on the basketball court. During this year’s playoffs he was seen flashing gang signs and recently, he decided to replace the letter “C” with “K” in all of his tweets, which is what Bloods are known to do. Burress , of course, was recently indicted on weapons charges for shooting himself in the foot with an unregistered gun in a crowded night club last year.

Smith and Burress’ situations are unrelated, but not uncommon. Unlike Vick, whose heinous crimes and harsh punishment did everything but glamorize dog fighting, there are still hundreds of thousands of young people who think gangs are an outlet and carrying a gun is the only way to stay safe.

My point isn’t that we should be letting Vick off the hook. It’s just that we should be focusing on the more-pressing and far more-common issues that affect our young people. Issues, like you know, gangs and guns, which claim thousands of lives each year. Instead, Smith’s decision to rep his gang got less than ten seconds on PTI and the Burress indictment coverage focused more on whether or not he will get to play in the NFL this season than the fact that he is going to end up in prison.

No one wants to look at the larger picture with these guys. Vick is never going to be looked at the same again, but Smith is probably more popular today than he’s ever been. There are Bloods all over the country embracing him. And Burress is looked at as a guy who needed a gun because he felt like a target. Sadly, there are thousands of people who identify with that feeling.

Vick may have committed the worst crime, but it’s people like Smith and Burress that carry the most influence. And those are the guys we should really be worrying about.

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Random Rumblings

• I’ll start this edition of the rumblings with a question: Why is that black athletes are criticized for leaving college early while the best white athletes are called fools for not making the jump?
  
  The question comes to mind after watching everyone in the sports media voice their opinion on the decision of Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford to remain in school for his final year of eligibility. Most projections had him being the first quarterback taken in the NFL draft, and possibly the first player picked overall.
  
  The consensus was that Bradford had lost his mind, that no one can pass up the type of guaranteed money he would have received in the NFL. But for some reason, that’s not what happens when an African-American chooses to enter the NFL or NBA draft. When it’s a black player, we hear the words selfish, irresponsible and immature. We hear that he has no values, that education means nothing and that all he cares about is getting rich.
  
  With Bradford, we heard that he’s crazy for not chasing the money and that he had nothing left to prove in college – the same arguments the media criticizes black athletes for making.
  
  It seems to me there is an obvious double standard here. The media likes to believe it knows what’s best for everyone –which is fine- but why, in the case of athletes leaving school early, does race play such a huge factor?
  
  
• For the record, the color of skin should mean nothing in that argument. The truth is if it was me or you, we would almost definitely leave school early for the chance at the type of money first round picks get. A college degree is quite valuable, but it’s not invaluable. Somewhere around seven figures, placing school on the back burner becomes the logical decision.
  
  
• The other day, I wrote about how unfair it is that good guys like Donovan McNabb can be given up on so easily when there are so many sleaze balls who always get the benefit of the doubt. Here’s another example: LaDainian Tomlinson is being pushed out in San Diego while the New York Giants are considering welcoming Plaxico Burress back.
  
  Amazing.
  
  
• Memo to UConn’s Stanley Robinson: Those shots you block and send 20 feet into the crowd might pump everyone up, but they also give the ball back to the enemy. Sometimes, simply altering a shot is far more effective.
  
  
• I like to believe that Manny Ramirez operates in a world that is three or four months behind everyone else, kind of like LOST. So if my calculations are correct, he might just now be reading about those European teams who said they’d pay hundreds of millions to players like LeBron James and Kobe Bryant.
  
  And you just know he’s wondering: Is Toronto in Europe?
  
  
• As one of my best friends likes to point out: If you have to debate whether not a player should be in the Hall of Fame, the answer is simple. No. Jim Rice wasn’t worthy 15 years ago and he’s not worthy now.
  
  
• If you’re a New Yorker and you’re upset with the amount of money the Yankees are receiving from the city for their new stadium, you have one thing to be truly thankful for: If Rudy was still running the city, the team might just have ended up in Time’s Square.
  
  
• Conference Championship Picks:
  Pittsburgh 17-10
  Arizona 34-27
  
  

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