Wow, passionate emails on my post re: the Patriots*. In the last year I've posted more than 800 (?!?!) different items but this one got a lot of people plenty ticked off.
I'll summarize the complaints:
- I was being very unChristian and judgmental.
- I need to learn forgiveness.
- Other teams cheat, including Shula's Miami Dolphins.
- I am a bitter, angry, resentful Steelers fan jealous of Brady, Belichek, etc.
Let me be clear about what I wrote. When I labeled the Patriots* "cheaters", I was not being judgmental. I was stating a fact. The NFL levied the harshest punishment against any NFL team in memory by fining them and taking away their first round draft pick. Love the Patriots, hate the Patriots, that is a big deal. That they cheat isn't an opinion. It is a fact, much like saying the Boston Red Sox won the World Series. They are cheaters.
To say that I need to learn forgiveness - or that a "Christian" shouldn't judge them - is silly. That would be like saying I shouldn't "judge" Exxon for spilling millions of gallons of oil in Alaska in the 80s. Or saying I shouldn't judge Enron or Arthur Anderson for their fiascos. Corporations aren't people and don't have souls or feelings. The Patriots* are a corporation, that's it.
I agree that any team caught cheating should have an asterisk by its name just like players found to have cheated should return their medals, be stripped of their titles or have **** by their name. The irony here, of course, is that there is a huge debate about whether Barry Bonds should have an asterisk by his name for breaking the home run record when he hasn't been accused or found guilty of anything.
Finally, I do love my Steelers. I really do. I've loved the black and gold since I was a kid. But they've won five Super Bowls in my lifetime, including one just a couple years ago, and they field competitive teams and that makes my love for them easy.
My point here is a broader, societal point. It is scary when we excuse cheating or we say that "everyone is doing it" or it is OK because it is just a game. It isn't OK.
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I wouldn't label the whole Patriots team as cheaters. The coach was responsible for what happened and he deserves what he got. The team works and plays hard. They are making their point and should score as many points as possible. Why shouldn't they be entitled to set records? When the Colts did it last year it was great and Peyton is the best...
Shula is just a bitter old man. When Spygate first broke he didn't have a problem with the pats methods. Bellicheck is doing what any coach would try to do...now that the undefeated season may be matched he is bitter....go figure
Maybe they are mad that you label them cheaters, as opposed to saying they cheated. Will they forever deserve the label "cheaters" in your opinion or do they at some point just become the team that cheated?
In sports, there is a distinction between gamesmanship and cheating. It's the reason Gaylord Perry is in the Hall of Fame, and Mark McGwire is not. Some rules are sacrosanct, even if they aren't written down (like baseball's steroid policy before 2002). Other rules are less weighty, even if they're written in black-and-white (like the rule that says pitchers can't doctor the baseball).
I don't know enough about football to say whether the Patriots cheated, or just engaged in a bit of gamesmanship. The division of opinion within the sport suggests that even the experts don't know where the line falls on this issue.
There is no such thing as "gamesmanship" when it comes to preparing SEC disclosure documents, or running a charitable organization that is entrusted with substantial assets. Therefore, I don't think we should compare wrongdoing on the sports field to what happened at Enron, Worldcom, or Oral Roberts University.
Peace.
The "perfect season", the "perfect team", all began with the fact that they were cheating. Count me in on the asterisk! Just like the home run record holders who have turned baseball into a sport of cheaters. Feel all the history you want, I just feel sick. Take a lesson from baseball's failure. The punishment was a minor slap. Now we are faced with "perfection" springing from the well of cheating. The message is clear, to win, you cheat. Is that really what we want to tell our kids? And they get to keep the second pick of next year's draft? This is a team without honor, and should NOT be celebrated or emulated. They are "perfectly" disgraceful!
Perfect Patriots? NO WAY! They cheated! They got caught cheating. Period. Is this the sign that we are teaching our kids? Everyone is saying Perfect Patriots! Perfect Patriots! So, did everyone suddenly get amnesia on ESPN and not mention they were cheating????? Their coach was named Coach of the Year, I think.. He was honored for his cheating. WoW! Go figure... The Quarterback does what the coach says or else he's grounded or traded.. so of course, the QB knew about the cheating.. I will never ever watch another Patriots game again. I hope they don't make it to the Superbowl... Cheaters never win... Remember it.
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