This was copy and pasted to give credit to the author. I love how people who have never met a person are so quick to draw judgement on someone they have never met and know nothing about except what they read on the Internet. This guy has a heart of gold and frankly is way better than all of you haters (insert SEC GROUPIES here) the lights are bright when you have a perfect season, a national title, and a Heisman trophy. If any one of us had every movement recorded at 20, none of us us would look so pretty. Get off your high horse and put down the remote. You will proudly post Facebook pictures of yourself with people that HAVE been indicted by a grand jury, which we all know is a one sided event, but draw judgment on someone who hasnt. If you can read lips, every coach in the nation has said far worse on national television roaming the side lines, especially the Ole Ball Coach. This is right on point! The consensus seems to be that Jameis Winston is an immature young man, who isnt learning from his mistakes, and is possibly headed down the wrong road. This is a conclusion I really have trouble understanding. The notion is that doing immature, stupid, or even criminal activities in your youth preclude you from being an upstanding or even outstanding citizen. In 1996, at the University of Tennessee, Peyton Manning pulled his shorts down and pressed his bare backside against the head and face of a female trainer. Later on, at Mississippi, his younger brother was arrested for public drunkenness at age 19. Mark May was arrested for various reasons as a student, and later as a professional athlete was arrested twice for DUI. In the twilight of Brett Favres career, it was discovered that he was texting pictures of his genitalia to a member of the Jets organization. Now I know the first instinct is to think So its ok for Jameis to do all these things because all these other guys did bad stuff too? but that couldnt be further off the point I am trying to make. Peyton and Eli Manning are Football royalty, and deservedly so; as professional athletes they have led their teams to the ultimate goal of winning a Super Bowl, while being the face of their respective franchise. Mark May was a very successful professional athlete, and is a prominent figure in ESPNs College Football coverage. Brett Favre is one of the all-time greatest quarterbacks to play the game, and in spite of the end of his career, is firmly planted on the Mt Rushmore of Green Bay Packer Football (Full disclosure, Im also a GB Packer fan). The point is, doing some stupid stuff in college, or even as a professional doesnt preclude you from being an upstanding or even outstanding member of society. Also, is it fair to expect Jameis Winston to be the next 38 year old Peyton Manning at age 20; especially when the Peyton Manning we know now wasnt even that Peyton Manning at age 20? Would anyone honestly expect him to be, at age 20, as physically talented or adept at the game of football as 38 year old Peyton Manning either? Condemning Jameis and demanding he grow up, be suspended or punished further isnt going to make his maturation process go any faster; especially considering how public the previous examples condemnation was. Most of us heard little to nothing about the Mannings or Mark Mays indiscretions, (we all heard plenty about Brett Favre), and to some degree that is a good thing. The vast majority of the world makes mistakes, learn and grow without the condemnation from the public, and we mature just fine; why should these people be any different, just because theyre good at football? This brings me to another issue, our media today. Again, I know the first thought will be oh, so it is the medias fault now? and again, that couldnt be further from the point I am going to make. It is time the media stop having it both ways. Back in October of 2013 America got a glimpse into the kind of person Jameis Winston is when cameras caught him firing up his teammates in the locker room before their big game with Clemson. Jameis Winston famously chanted If we gonna do it then, we do it big then! The game announcers ate it up, as did fans, and journalists alike. Nike even turned it into a shirt. But do you know what those words are from? Theyre from a song called Do it big by Lil Boosie. Im assuming you also dont know the lyrics to that song; which include several words and phrases that would be far more offensive to you, if you found the phrase he yelled this week offensive too. But, if youre a fan of the genre, and/or the musician, the words probably dont bother you at all. The thing is, the media loved Do it big Jameis, but they sure didnt like the Jameis yelling in the student union. This is weird to me, because they’re the exact same Jameis. The same Jameis that was trying to keep his teammates loose, while getting them pumped and focused on the game they were about to play by referencing a rap song they were all familiar with; is the same one that was trying to have a good time, and make his friends and fellow students laugh in the student union by referencing an internet meme they were all familiar with. This brings me back to the rape accusation. Many members of the media have viewed Jameis’ actions through the rape accusation lens; could this be any more unfair? Have we learned nothing from the Duke Lacrosse incident? Somehow guilty until proven innocent became acceptable in our public discourse. When I don’t think any of us would want to be treated that way if the roles were reversed, nor would we want our own children treated that way. This is a trend that needs to reverse in our society, and especially our media. If you’re guilty of a crime, there will be plenty of time to vilify and ruin your name after the trial is over, we don’t need to get a head start before charges are even brought. I can understand if someone were to be accused multiple times of the same crime, it would be hard not to recognize the pattern. But even still, we all have agreed to the terms and conditions under which we live under in this country. It’s time we start respecting those, and stop punishing people for crimes they haven’t even been charged with.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Sep 2014 00:57:39 +0000
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