Weekend Links: Rooting for Arlen Specter Edition |
2 Comments |
Some of you who follow this site know that I’m a big football fan. Beyond that I’m also a Patriots fan. I grew up that way, sat through 1-15 seasons and truly horrible behavior which has followed the name Lisa Olsen for years. Earlier this week, a lot has come out from the Patriots videotaping of games. Pennsylvania politician Arlen Specter went about as far as saying that Congress should concern itself with how the NFL governs itself. I found this humorous. Doesn’t Congress have it’s hands full with the Iraqi war, high oil prices, and sub-prime mess? I suppose not.
The other thing that came out this week is the distinct possibility that the Patriots didn’t break the NFLs at all. For the first time we finally heard Bill Belichick’s side of the story and though I recognize that I’m completely biased, it seems that the Patriots’ actions were within the rules.
Here are a few facts that I found had been overlooked:
- Ambiguous Rule - The rule the Patriots are accused of breaking is detailed in the 4th paragraph here. I can see how Bill Belichick interpreted the “during the playing of a game” to mean the same game. This is clearly a bad modifier leading to an unclear rule in the NFL Constitution.
- Rules vs. Memos - I don’t buy the NFL’s explanation that sending a memo can change the NFL Constitution (and it seems that neither did Bill Belichick). Maybe I’m not interpreting constitution right, but it would seem to me that you’d have to amend it if you want to change what it means. I think the NFL took a shortcut here because we know it’s easier to send out a memo than get representatives of all teams and league officials together to change the Constitution.
- Practical Matter of Taping Signals - It’s worth noting that the signals are relayed in the open without expectation of privacy. This is why teams use wristbands and change signals. Stealing of signals and using them is not illegal in sports. The Patriots could have accomplished the same record keeping quite legally with a good dictator and stenographer. The Patriots simply thought it was legal to do it an easier way. In the end, the same information would have been gathered (and is by all teams).
- Nothing to Hide - I’ve never heard of anyone trying to purposely break rules or laws in front of 55,000 fans and a few dozen television cameras. No one would go to the movies with a five course meal and start chomping away - they’d sneak in a candy bar. If you do see such a think it’s because they are not aware of the rule. The proper course of action is to give a warning, explain the issue to the violator, and sanction them on further violations. It’s clear that the NFL never explained the issue to Bill Belichick.
- Admitting to Wrong Doing - Bill Belichick admitted to the wrong-doing in the end. Some may say that this closes the book and proves that he was guilty. I think it proves that he’s smart enough to know that a long-drawn out legal battle against the organization that keeps him employed (the NFL) is not in his, his team’s, or the NFL’s, best interest. So while I believe it’s a terrible waste of our nation’s resources for Congress to look into the matter further, I hope they do. I think the NFL’s ambiguous rules and shortcut memos will be picked apart to the point where they find that Bill Belichick just took what the league gave him license to do. I wouldn’t be surprised for a Patriots fan to put together a class action lawsuit against the NFL.
Enough of my billion word rant, let’s get to some links that I liked this week:
- Getting Ahead of Myself: The Consequences of Trying Too Much at Once - J.D. gets a little down on himself for not following his diet more often. Maybe he needs to plan a cheat day in or keep around five healthy snacks.
- Don’t Eat Outback’s Aussie Cheese Fries w/ Ranch - I was at Outback this past week and not only are these fries bad, the blooming onion is extremely unhealthy as well.
- NCN is Fully Back On Track - It’s great to have you back… Remember that getting out of debt wasn’t easy either.
- One Month and 34 Pounds Lost - If NCN hasn’t been inspired, he should read WeightLadder. That’s an amazing amount of weight to lose in a month.
- Health Magazines Sorta Suck: Video Blog - I disagree and think that Health magazines are pretty good. They often have too many ads - I’m talking about you Men’s Health.
- I would like to thank FitBuff for including me in his mind and body fitness carnival.
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May 18th, 2008 at 6:42 pm
I think Specter is out to make a name for himself, he is ofcourse out to gain something from this. Maybe spin it off into something for himself so he can run for some other office, etc. You get my point I hope.
May 19th, 2008 at 1:45 am
*sigh*
I wont comment on Arlen except to veer off onto the high road and say that I WISH HIM THE BEST WITH HIS HEALTH.
he can not catch a break there!