Some Are More Equal Than Others
When I was in the eighth grade there was nothing more important to me than the school basketball team. Our small team would practice twice a week with the hopes of upsetting the better teams in our league. However, our dreams turned into a nightmare season when my co-captain failed off of the team. He failed by only one point, but any effort to have him reinstated was met by a swift “no.” My team continued to lobby for him throughout the long, tough season until we lost in the second round of the playoffs. Back then I couldn’t understand how the administration could “embarrass” itself by playing a team that didn’t really represent the best of our school. I felt that athletes should receive special treatment simply because of who they were. However, that was my thought process when I was 14 years old, but I have since realized that when society gives special privileges to a specific group of people it often leads to those privileges being abused. The problem with voicing my opinion so loudly is that I am, in effect, accusing most Americans of dismissing this rule. Yes, too many people in this country tolerate sexism, favoritism, and racism in today’s athletes. Every Joe Knicks Fan would rather see Latrell Sprewell help their team go to the NBA Finals than to see him banned from the National Basketball Association. Sprewell, if you recall, choked his coach, P.J. Carlissimo, in 1997. His punishment was to sit out the remainder of the season, after which he was welcomed with open arms to New York via a trade. Eventually he did lead the Knicks to the NBA Finals where there was nary a mention of his past iniquities. This neglect, shown to all too many “heroes” of American society, is allowing these athletes to practically get away with murder. For example, Notah Begay, a moderately famous golfer, recently received his second DWI conviction, a prerequisite for a work release program in prison.