He was off by 30 years, but Mr. Orwell had it right: The thought police have arrived.
I'm thinking of Donald Sterling, of course, the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, a pro basketball team. The media and many players are abuzz with suggestions of suitable consequences for him for uttering racist comments to his girlfriend. Or maybe his ex-girlfriend by now.
"Make him sell his team."
"Make him go out for counseling."
"Fine him."
"...the players trust that the new commissioner, on the job for less than three months, will find the right penalties for Sterling, who has owned the Clippers for almost 30 years"
"They don't think he's
worthy to be an owner..."
First of all, before I get hate mail, note that I find this guy to be reprehensible. He's a fool, and an idiot, and living with racist attitudes that suggest a level of enlightenment that most of us don't run into often. He grew up in the 1940's, which may explain it, but that doesn't excuse him.
But being stupid or racist isn't a crime. And it shouldn't be, any more than saying racist comments should be a crime - no matter what the race of the person being stupid. Thoughts are not criminal. And the First Amendment of the Constitution promises free speech for all of us. Even stupid, bigoted speech.
I suppose this is a natural extension of the bizarre role to which we have elevated athletes. They are supposed to be role models,and to stand up for all that is good and right. Excuse me? These are athletes. I'll find my role models someplace else. There are real heroes out there, some in uniform, some in public service. Some teaching in public schools.
So, what about this guy, running around with a girlfriend who is 49 years younger than him. Is he "qualified" to own a basketball team? Excuse me? Would you ask that about a stockholder of IBM or Westinghouse?
How about Raytheon, McDonnell Douglas, or Lockheed? Those are three of America's largest producers of munitions. Should there be different qualifications to own stock in those companies? Let's see, maybe only mean men should own stock in arms manufacturers, and nice ladies should own things like pet hospitals and stuffed animal companies.
C'mon, people, he's an investor. He's not even - or shouldn't be - the spokesman for the Clippers.
Now, what about consequences? Leave the thought police, I mean, the NBA and the media, out of this. If you find his speech offensive - and I do - what can you do? I suppose you could boycott the Clippers, but be careful. You will end up punishing innocent people, like the players, hot dog vendors, and parking attendants that are part of the Clippers machine. .
I don't have an easy answer. But that's okay. This isn't my problem - or yours. Haven't we each got enough of our own problems without wasting time on this? By my math I may have another 262,656 hours to live, and a third of those will be spent snoring. I won't waste another minute on this bigot.
