“Jovan, Jason and Jumping to Conclusions” by Derryck Green

Note: photo and link to Jason Whitlock article was added by administrator.

Op-ed submission by Project 21

Jason Whitlock started it, and Jason Whitlock can end it.

On December 1, the Fox Sports columnist penned a column about what happened earlier that morning when Jovan Belcher — the starting linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs — murdered his girlfriend, Kasandra Perkins (the mother of his three-month-old daughter), and then drove to Arrowhead Stadium and killed himself.

In his piece, Whitlock questioned and lamented how the NFL and the Chiefs decided to play their scheduled game against the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. He argued the appropriate thing to do was cancel the game.

So far, no harm no foul.

But, instead of questioning the unjustified reasons why Jovan Belcher would kill the mother of his daughter and then turn the gun on himself (or sticking just to the sporting angle), Whitlock took the opportunity to lament gun violence — as if the gun was used independently and without cooperation of Jovan Belcher’s hands and mind.

Whitlock also lamented America’s “gun culture” — a culture he never thoroughly explained yet passively blamed them for “more and more domestic disputes [ending] in the ultimate tragedy, and that more convenience store confrontations over loud music coming from a car will leave more teenage boys bloodied and dead.” Again, Whitlock acted as if guns kill people independently of their owners.

On December 3, Whitlock doubled-down on his politically correct, logically-deficient and morally-deficient position and further exposed his lack of intellectual credibility for all to see. During CNN-contributor Roland Martin’s podcast, Whitlock likened the National Rifle Association to… the KKK.

That’s right, the Ku Klux Klan. Telling Martin “I did not go as far as I’d like to go” with his column, Whitlock unload — implying the NRA is responsible for arming black youths with guns used to kill other black youths. He also seemed to blame the NRA for not only gifting black kids with guns, but also supplying them with drugs.

Aside from the embarrassing and unadulterated stupidity of Whitlock’s comments, he proceeded to take illogical leaps with absolutely no connected dots to verify his recklessness. He unjustly made racist and conspiratorial accusations about an organization that advocates gun safety and responsible use as well as protects gun rights.

What Whitlock claimed about the NRA was morally indefensible. It stripped him of any remaining credibility after an already-shaky opening salvo. The irony is that Whitlock is the one thinking in racial terms when he assumed only whites are, or can be, members of the NRA.

That said, where’s his proof the NRA is arming black youths? Has he read it? If so, where and when did he read it? Are these incidents in the police reports of gun crimes committed by black youth? If so, publish these police reports.

I’m willing to bet that the black youths on Chicago’s South Side, who are doing their best at contributing to the city’s sky-high black murder rate, aren’t card-carrying members of the NRA. How can they be? They’re black!

Furthermore, as he did in his original piece, Whitlock turns those who would use guns to settle disputes into victims as opposed to willing participants who chose guns over knives, clubs or bare hands in their acts of violence, terror and destruction.

Once again, guns don’t kill people without human participation. Belcher wasn’t a victim. He intentionally used his gun to kill his girlfriend and himself. And, as much as Whitlock would try and paint the picture, the drug-addled and armed black youths he laments aren’t victims of racist white gun-club members bent on destroying black communities.

Criminals consciously make decisions to use guns illegally, and — as a result — are responsible for their own actions.

Jason Whitlock should apologize to the families of Kasandra Perkins and Jovan Belcher — in that order — for using them as political pawns to advocate more gun control. He should then apologize to the NRA for his baseless, deliberate and absurd smear of the NRA’s credibility.

The consequence of Jason Whitlock’s thinking inevitably disarms law-abiding citizens, ensuring more gun violence. This is the exact opposite of what Whitlock claims he wants, and would ensure there will be more victims like Kasandra Perkins.

Derryck Green, a member of the national advisory council of the Project 21 black leadership network, received a M.A. in Theological Studies from Fuller Theological Seminary and is currently pursuing his doctorate in ministry at Azusa Pacific University.

The Tebow Phenomenon

The Tebow Phenomenon isn’t really a phenomenon at all, if you understand the dynamics of his upbringing. Here’s an enlightening and insightful article by sports columnist Jason Whitlock from December 11, 2011:

If this works, if Tim Tebow  keeps winning games, keeps getting better, keeps forcing John Elway and John Fox to consider an alternative quarterback route to the Super Bowl, it won’t be some impossible-to-believe miracle, an act of a higher power.

Tim Tebow is not a religious symbol. He’s a shrine to the power of a strong, committed, passionate two-parent upbringing. Tebow’s birth, a product of his mother’s faith and refusal to listen to doctors advising her to abort, might very well have been a religious miracle. Tebow’s performance on the football field is testament to Bob and Pam Tebow and what they instilled in their youngest child.

At this moment, no one knows whether the Tebow experiment Elway and Fox have been pressured into undertaking will result in anything more sustainable than Tennessee’s Vince Young experience or Atlanta’s Michael Vick roller coaster.

What should be dawning on us, especially those of us who greeted Tebow’s Broncos career with scepticism, is that thanks to a rock-solid, two-parent upbringing, Tebow is quite different from Young and Vick in terms of mental and emotional makeup. Those differences raise the real possibility that Tebow is the athletic-freak quarterback an NFL franchise should embrace with a revolutionary offensive approach.

What do I mean?

NFL quarterback is a 24/7-365-day job that Vick and Young were unprepared for coming out of college. NFL quarterback is a position best played by young men who were raised by strong fathers. Quarterback is the ultimate leadership position. You have to be taught how to lead. You have to be taught how to prepare.

Vick and Young, athletic freaks on par with Tebow, do not have Tebow’s nuclear-family foundation. Vick and Young entered the league emotionally immature and with a set of values inconsistent with the values that lead to consistent, strong QB play. You can wing it in college and get by on sheer athleticism and talent. You can’t do that at the quarterback position in the NFL.

Tebow is the first super-athletic quarterback we’ve seen who also has the discipline to prepare as if he’s Peyton Manning. That’s a huge advantage. Tebow is winning because he curtails his mental errors. He’s thrown one interception and lost two fumbles since taking over as the starter this season. Denver’s winning formula is basic and old school. The Broncos stop the run, run the football and win the turnover battle. Young threw 30 interceptions in his first two seasons. Vick accounted for 53 turnovers in his last three seasons in Atlanta.

You can’t build a revolutionary offense around a quarterback who lacks the discipline or maturity to prepare. The Houston Oilers tried the run-and-shoot because they had Warren Moon, who was in his early 30s at the time.

Can Tebow withstand the beating he’ll absorb running the football? He’s 236 pounds and spends enough time in the weight room to be as yoked as a fullback.

Unlike Tebow worshippers, I’ve had no problem with Fox’s and Elway’s handling of Tebow. They didn’t draft him. He doesn’t fit their image of a Super Bowl quarterback. The Baltimore Ravens won a Super Bowl with Trent Dilfer, and general manager Ozzie Newsome thought so little of Dilfer the Ravens acquired Elvis Grbac. The NFL is a tough, transparent business. It’s also a copycat league. There is evidence from 40-plus years of history that you win the Super Bowl with classic, pocket-passing quarterbacks. Can’t blame Fox and Elway for wanting one.

What we can blame them for starting today in the aftermath of Denver’s fifth straight victory, a 35-32 shootout with the Vikings, is a reluctance to even consider the possibility that Tebow might be a game-changer, a new invention, reason to reevaluate traditional thought.

Tim Tebow might be Magic Johnson. Before Magic, no one imagined that a point guard could be 6-feet-9, not all that athletic and a mediocre jump shooter. Skeptics thought Magic might eventually move to the frontcourt. He became the gold standard at point guard, a five-time NBA champion, a three-time MVP and one of the five greatest players of all time.

Magic was a force of nature. He loved the game and the competition. He improved every aspect of his game and revolutionized point-guard play. He dumped his first coach and teamed with Pat Riley to build the “Showtime” Lakers, a dynasty that reflected Magic’s flamboyant personality, willingness to prepare and style of play.

Is Tebow the next Magic? It’s unlikely. But I now want to find out. I want to see the Broncos build an offense that caters to Tebow’s unique set of skills. If that’s an NFL version of the spread, then find an offensive coordinator familiar with the strategy and implement it.

As it relates to Tebow’s on-field performance, we should quit focusing on his “Tebowing” and spend more time celebrating his two-parent upbringing. Bob and Pam Tebow are far more responsible for Denver’s winning streak than any higher power.

Real Niggazz are Wannaa-bee Gangstazz

Football is a violent sport. No doubt it plays into the gladiator blood sport mythos of days gone by. It’s also BIG business. I’ve heard that the current labour dispute between the owners and players is at the root, really about how to divvy up $9 billion is yearly revenue… basically the owners want a larger share of that pie!

Anywayzz, I like many others, mainly watch the NFL on Sundays to see the BIG hit… and, I like many others, watch our local sportscast to see the BIG hits in the other games we didn’t/couldn’t watch… and, there’s no BIGGER hitter in my (our) beloved NFL than James Harrison, linebacker with the Pittsburg Steelers.

James has created some controversy with his interview in the upcoming August Men’s Journal magazine (see here). People are “up in arms” (is this a bad pun I wonder?… lol!) about comments he made about racism in the league, comments about the commissioner Roger Goodell, including referring to him as a “faggot”, comments about his teammates, as well as levelling accusations against other players. The truth of the matter is that we live in the “age of instant but fleeting celebrity”… and the more outrageous and controversial you can be, the longer you can stretch out your allotted 15 minutes of fame… maybe to 30 minutes… and if you’re really luckily, a couple of news cycles!

As a football fan, I found the article to be interesting. No better or worse than most that I have read. However, what made me “shake my head” in disgust was the above photo, with the caption, James Harrison: Confessions of an NFL Hitman. What troubles me most, is as a police officer, that image only re-enforces a stereotype that places Black men is danger… and as a conscious and conscientious Black man (also bald with a little muscle) and father of a young Black son, that image only re-enforces a stereotype that places my son and I in danger… primarily from my gun-toting police brethren!

As Black men, we need to move beyond this gangster mentality… and I don’t just mean rappers, reggae dancehall artists and sports figures… and I’m not only talking to the our young Black men. I’m talking about and to all of us! This fascination of being (seen as) the hardest and wickedest, the Al Pacino “baad guy” persona is not only self-destructive, more significantly, it’s childish!

Also if you are so baad as you want people to believe , then why all the whining the next day that you were misquoted, your comments were taken out of context, making clarifications, apologies and statements that your comments and slurs weren’t meant to be derogatory against “whatever” group (see here).

Bad Up and Man Up! Stand By What You Say or Shut The Fuck Up! You can’t be misquoted and taken out of context if you keep your mouth shut! And you certainly can’t be a gangster and a whiner at the same time!

The only “real niggazz” I know are “wannaa-bee gangstazz”.

“The Vick Comeback: More Than Just On The Field” by Coby W. Dillard

Op-ed submission by Project 21 

Stories of redemption are common. Drug addicts kick their habits to rejoin civil society; corrupt investors become charitable. But rarely is there a story of someone overcoming their demons in which people not only want to watch, but want to cheer. Michael Vick’s path to redemption could be such an occasion.

From becoming the first black number-one overall quarterback pick in NFL draft history to starting for the Atlanta Falcons, Vick then descended to national pariah after being sentenced to 23 months in jail in 2007 for his role in a dogfighting operation involving illegal gambling and Vick’s participation in the cruel deaths of underperforming dogs.

Bad-boy sports stars are nothing new, but golfer Tiger Woods had a sport that wanted, even demanded, him back. Vick, however, topped the Forbes magazine list of most-hated sports figures in both 2009 and 2010. He emerged from jail in the midst of bankruptcy proceedings. When Vick was reinstated, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell warned that his “margin of error is extremely limited.” Few wanted Vick. New York Giants CEO John Mara said his team had no interest in Vick “on a lot of levels.” Animal rights activists threatened to picket games.  Owners had to worry about fan desertion and plummeting attendance.

The Philadelphia Eagles taking a chance on Vick brought immense scrutiny. Will he be able to play at the same level? Will he return to play at all? Has he matured? Under any circumstances, Vick’s performance this past season with the Eagles would be another notch in the belt of a great quarterback. Under his circumstances, Vick’s performance was exceptional. Vick the football star returned, evolving into something few would have thought possible when he left prison. Vick changed, from the way he passed in the pocket, to the way he escaped tackles. Vick was a key factor in the Eagles making it to the playoffs.

More important than Vick’s maturation as a quarterback, however, was his maturation as a man. No one condones what Vick did off the field. But that lesson appears to have been learned. There’s nothing like going from the penthouse to the jailhouse to the bankruptcy courthouse to teach it. Vick seems humbled, more mature and more aware of those with whom he keeps company. For most, that lesson comes easily. It was different for the young man from the projects of Newport News.

The Bible says that as a child becomes a man he puts away childish things. Sometimes, those things instead become best friends. It’s a painful thing Vick experienced, but his post-prison behavior seems to indicate he’s learned. Too many black men, all men really, leave prison with what they came in with: nothing. They have no job, no support system, and little to return to except a life of crime. This returns too many to prison, continuing a cycle of shattered lives and broken communities.

Vick now talks to kids, kids growing up like he did, about the mistakes he made. Carolyn Kilborn of Maryland Votes for Animals thinks Vick’s work is valuable, telling the Baltimore Sun: “Kids… are more likely to listen to someone like Michael Vick. He can do a lot of good for troubled kids… He has the power to make a change in kids’ hearts like few other people can.”

If nothing else is taken from Vick’s story, let it be the example of the success of a man determined not to be another recidivist. Let it be of a man determined to show that there’s more to a man than the “felon” label — there’s also  “role model” and “advocate.” In our society, those titles carry a lot more weight than the ones Vick could ever earn on the gridiron.

Each year, there is an award given to the NFL player who improves the most from one season to the next. It’s called the “Comeback Player of the Year” award. Under any circumstances, Michael Vick’s statistics alone would merit his consideration for the award. Under his circumstances, there’s no reason he shouldn’t get it.

Coby W. Dillard is a member of the Project 21 black leadership network and a founder of the Hampton Roads Tea Party in southeastern Virginia.

The decade to come…

And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Matthew 24: 6-8 

In no way do I consider myself a pessimist about the future. I am a pragmatic optimist, for I know in whom my hope lies. However as I look at the current local, national and international events today, I am going to take the liberty to make certain prediction about the decade the come.

Now I don’t consider myself a wannabe Nostradamus, nor do I claim to have any special ability to the see into the future, nor are these predictions based on any interpretations of biblical prophesies. I believe that anyone with a high school knowledge of world history and isn’t blind to recurring trends in history (which always repeats itself), who follows current events and employs a little common sense (which isn’t as common as the term implies), could make similar predictions. Nevertheless, here goes:

1. The U.S. will broker an agreement with certain elements of the Taliban whom they will declare as “moderates”, claim victory and get the hell out of Afghanistan… after losing hundreds, even thousands of troops with nothing to show for their sacrifice.    

 

2. There will be an ever new scramble for Africa, as the U.S. will manufacture reasons to increase military incursions within the continent via AFRICOM, in an effort to secure valuable minerals and oil reserves as well as blunt China’s growing influence. England and France, via the European Union will also attempt to re-establish their influence in some of their former colonies.

                                                                                                                               3. Black males, Muslim or not, will more and more be portrayed as a threat to national and international security. They will be accused of being religious, political, social and economic terrorists. This will lead to more frequent, stringent and intrusive profiling and harassment, which will result in an increase in detention, incarceration and extermination of Black males for “security” reasons.

                                                                                                  

4. The Obama administration will lobby for and get from the Democratic Congress another stimulus package worth billions for the financial and business community and claim it’s required for job creation. This will secure his second term as president. After 2016, he will be voted in as the Secretary General of the United Nations.

                                                                                                                             5. Sarah “Rouge” Palin will become the first woman and 45th President of the United States of America.

 

                                                                                                                                6. Iran will prepare to test a nuclear weapon with the assistance of Russia. Israel will then counter with a pre-emptive strike. The shit will then hit the fan!

7. After the death of Fidel Castro, the U.S. will attempt to regain control of Cuba and start a domino effect to turn back the tide of left wing populist regimes in Latin America, such as in Venezuela and Bolivia.

 

8. The Chinese economy will collapse under the crushing weight of the U.S. debt which it holds and will be exposed as the “paper tiger” which it truly is.

9. Speaking of tiger, Tiger Woods will break all of Jack Nicklaus’s records, regain all and even more sponsors, and become an even bigger merchandising phenom! He will also be arrested for having a loaded gun in his golf bag at the U.S. Open, release a rap albumn called “A Tiger’s Nightmare: Nigga$ in the Woods”, and will date one Black woman (kinda).

10. Al Davis will finally die and the Oakland Raiders will immediately win back to back Super Bowls!

“Why Rush Should Sue” By Bob Parks

Commentary submission by Project 21

After being ousted from a group seeking to buy the St. Louis Rams, Rush Limbaugh has a duty to punch the media in its collective mouth.

Not literally, of course. What Rush must do is sue the mainstream media for damaging his reputation. His earning potential in not being able to buy into the football team was clearly hurt when the media helped create a firestorm of controversy based on out-of-context or completely made-up statements.

By definition, the Merriam-Webster dictionary says “libel” is “a written or oral defamatory statement or representation that conveys an unjustly unfavorable impression… published without just cause and tending to expose another to public contempt.”

That seems to be what happened here.

For example, CNN’s Rick Sanchez and several sports columnists relied on an undocumented quote found on Wikipedia attributed to Limbaugh that allegedly lauded slavery. Rush denies it, and no one can produce evidence to the contrary.  Likewise, football player Mathias Kiwanuka’s assertion that Rush is racist went unchallenged in the New York Daily News.

After failing to filter out untruths or challenge wild assertions – something the media has criticized bloggers for – Rush has reason for redress. And it’s not just for himself.

No one is safe when the media can pull incendiary remarks out of thin air and allow them to be assumed to be true.

Think of the potential damages. The Rams may now be derided as the “St. Louis Lambs,” but they were “The Greatest Show on Turf” not too long ago. It’s cyclical.  Think of the team’s ticket sales, merchandising and broadcasting rights potential.  Even as a minority partner, Limbaugh stood to make a lot of money.

Who’s at fault? CNN’s Sanchez and those who fabricated the slavery quote in the first place, among others, certainly share moral culpability.

In the end, Limbaugh could end up owning portions of the networks that have been on a virtual crusade to destroy him.

Rush also has a bone to pick with non-media types such as NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay for taking the media’s cue and branding Limbaugh an enemy of the league.

Al Sharpton also cannot be allowed to continue dictating public sensibility without effective rebuttal. Just the fact that Sharpton said he was going to talk to Goodell is laughable. Why does he merit an audience? Could it be because Sharpton is a darling of the race-obsessed media?

If Rush doesn’t take the lying slanderers out back once and for all, they will do it again to anyone right-of-center who dares to open his mouth.

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalism professors who moonlight as cable news experts should not go to any old website and use a post with no attribution as the basis for character assassination. Likewise, partisan pundits shouldn’t hide behind freedom of the press to repeat false quotes.

Race hustlers should not be allowed to interject themselves into a false controversy and anoint themselves as speech arbiters.

News anchors similarly should not be allowed back on set after knowingly reading a false quote. And the players, who laughably claim to be victims, shouldn’t just go to the media and repeat false quotes.

The media in general also has to really believe in fairness and equality.

Now’s the time for those who willingly perpetrate smears to find out what it’s like to have their lives destroyed.  It’s time for the message to be sent that the arena of ideas is just that. Should they decide to play fast and loose with the rules, they must suffer the same consequences as the common man.

I believe Rush Limbaugh has an obligation to sue everybody involved in this sham.

Bob Parks is a member of the national advisory council for the Project 21 black leadership network and operates the website: Black and Right.

Another Season Where Hope Springs Eternal

Since the 26th January 2003, I have been dealing with an issue which has recently come to dominate my life. Every year it is my hope that I can get through this season without facing this dilemma, but I have to finally face the facts. This issue has reared it’s ugly head again within the last month and I need to confront it. It is said that the first step to recovery is to admit that you have a problem and need help. So here goes… ahemm… “The Oakland Raiders Suck!” There I said it. I have released my demon.

For those who truly know me, this is no minor announcement on my part. I am not a Raider fan. I am a Raider fan-atic! I am a proud citizen of the Raider Nation. I bleed silver and black. I probably own the most Raider gear, paraphernalia and other crap in Canada… in Ottawa for sure! In December 2001, right after September 11th, when air travel into the USA was a major pain in the azzz, I went through all the indignity and stress of airport security questioning, probes and searches and made the pilgrimage to Oakland California to watch my beloved Raiders play their conference rivals, The Kansas City Chiefs. As I engaged in the tailgate festivities over in the “Black Hole”, as I entered from the light of day into the proverbial darkness of the Oakland Coliseum, as I looked around and saw a ring of silver and black all around me, as I watched people fighting and being dragged out of their seats by the po-po before the teams even took to the field for warmups, I knew I was home. If this wasn’t heaven, then hell ain’t so bad a place.  

Long ago I accepted that my love of the Oakland Raiders is a sickness. However, believe it or not, the sickness isn’t as pronounced as it was a few years ago. Hell not so long ago I regularly ended relationships because of the Raiders! I had more than a few conversations that went something like this:

Girlfriend (Gf): Hey baby, it’s a beautiful Sunday afternoon, let’s go out for a walk and enjoy the day. The leaves look so pretty as they are changing for the Fall.
Me: No can do. The Raider game is about to kickoff.
Gf: The Raider game!? What’s more important, staying in and watching a football game or going out and spending some quality time together.
Me: You know I love spending time with you… but it’s the Raiders! After the game, we’ll see. 
Gf: Well you need to make a decision now… me or the damn Raiders!
Me: Don’t let the door hit your azzz on the way out.

Or like this one:

Gf: Baby, turn off the T.V. for a minute. We need to talk about us.
Me: The Raider game is on and you’re standing in front of the T.V. and your lips are moving!
Gf: We need to talk about our relationship and where it’s going and…
Me: The Raider game is on and you’re standing in front of the T.V. and your lips are moving!
Gf: Fine then. If that’s your attitude… if you care more about your damn Raiders than about us… then I’m outta here!
Me: Don’t let the door hit your azzz on the way out. 

Sick huh?!

Now I’ll admit that I like watching other teams play, such as the Patriots, Steelers, Eagles, Colts, Giants and Ravens. However, I’m not a “fan” of those teams. In fact, I’m a “fan” of no other sports team period! There are only 2 teams a true Raider fan will ever cheer for: the Raiders and whoever is playing the 49ers! My first wife was a 49ers fan… which explains why she became my “first” wife. (nuff said… don’t wanna violate any court orders).

One of the worst days of my life was on 26th January 2003, when the Raiders played the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl 37. Leading up to that game, I was talking smack to anyone with 2 ears about how the Raiders were going to crush their former coach, John Gruden, and his current team, the Buccaneers. I was laying it on thick too for a couple weeks before the big game. I was strutting around like a peacock, wearing my Raider gear everywhere I went. Now I have watched some Super Bowl blowout before, but this was a beat down! The Buccaneers whipped the Raiders like a rented mule. The Raiders quarterback at the time, Rich Gannon, threw a record 5 interceptions, 3 of which were returned for touchdowns. I was stunned for weeks. I can tell you, I was quiet for a couple months when it came to the Raiders… and I took some. I was crucified unmercifully by my colleagues and friends… and I had no retort… especially after all of the smack I had dished out.        

The Raiders have never recovered from that loss. Since then they have had 6 straight losing seasons and became the first team in NFL history to lose at least 11 games in each of those seasons. This year they are well on their way to extend that record. Every Sunday I don my Raider gear… shirt, pants, socks, cap… with hope in my heart and a smile on my lips… and by bedtime I have a headache and red glassy eyes.  

So I have finally had to admit that The Oakland Raiders suck. I have finally come to terms with the fact that they will never get better until the owner Al Davis dies, they get a professional management team in place, they hire a real Head Coach, they get rid of the poser JaMarcus Russell and get a competent QB, and start performing up to their motto: “Commitment to Excellence”. 

Until then, I guess… no… I know that my hope… that same hope which “springs eternal” at the start of every season, that gets grinded down by week 4, will spring up again next year.   

   

Donte’ Stallworth and a dog’s life

Yesterday Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte’ Stallworth received a 30 day jail sentence for killing a pedestrian while driving drunk. That’s right: 30 days!

On March 14th of this year, Stallworth was driving his Bentley when he struck and killed Mario Reyes, a 59 year old construction worker, after a night of drinking at a bar in Miami Beach. His blood alcohol level was .126, considerably above Forida’s .08 limit.

Stallworth was facing 15 years imprisonment for a DUI manslaughter conviction, but made a plea deal which netted him the 30 day jail sentence, plus 2 years house arrest, 8 years probation, undergo mandatory drug and alcohol testing, a lifetime driver’s license suspension and must perform 1,000 hours of community service. It also helped that he had reached a financial settlement with Reyes’s family. Although Stallworth will most likely face a suspension from the NFL for a few games this year, the house arrest provisions will allow him to continue playing football.   

I couldn’t help making a comparison to the punishment Michael Vick, another football player, received for financing a dog fighting operation… where the dogs that lost were killed and Vick apparently took part in some of these killings. Vick plead guilty and was sentenced to 23 months in federal prison, released after serving 19 months, but won’t be released from federal custody until July 20th. Until then he has to wear an electronic monitor, serve 2 months house arrest and is on probation for 3 years. Vick had also received a 3 year suspended sentence for pleading guilty to state dogfighting charges. His 10 year – $130 million contract with the Atlanta Falcons has been voided, he is still facing suspension from the NFL and has filed for bankruptcy. 

There is something about the Stallworth sentence that just doesn’t sit right with me. In fact, I find it reprehensible that he will only serve 30 days in jail for killing another human being… while Vick received close to 2 years for killing dogs. I have no problem with the Vick sentence and would have even supported more jail time. However as I stated in this post when Vick was released from prison in May, “in our society, the way people love their pets, especially white people, it would have been better for him if he was killing people and eating them like a Jeffrey Dahmer”. Stallworth’s sentence in comparison to Vick’s proved my point. Plus I guess with a name like “Mario Reyes”, it’s safe to conclude that Stallworth didn’t kill a white preppy looking coed with blond hair and blue eyes, so the administration of justice has been duly served.