"Boo This Man" Moment of the Week: Mike Rice & Tim Pernetti

(Yeah yeah yeah, I know this all unfolded last week, but you have yet to hear my take and I know that you've been waiting for it because my opinion means soooooo much to you.  Besides, I needed a week to really get my thoughts in order about this mess.  So buckle your seat belts, ladies and gents...)

Imagine sending your 18-year-old son to Rutgers University to play college basketball.  You're excited to see him take his talent to the next level and get a good education while he's at it, whether he decides to go pro or simply wants the experience of playing at a Division I school.  You leave him in the hands of an adult that you assume will not only teach him how to improve upon his game, but will also have your child's best interest at heart overall.  Never would you think that this same adult would utter words like this to your child: "You're a f*ck*ng fairy...you're a f*ck*ng f*gg*t."  Okay...so maybe you didn't make such an assumption because you've heard about coaches cursing out their players.  I'll give you that one concession.  However, I'm sure that you never thought that a supposed leader of young men would shove, kick or punch them; hurl basketballs at their heads, feet or groin areas; or beat them with pads because they didn't perfectly execute a play as it was drawn.  What would you do if you knew that former Rutgers Scarlet Knights Head Coach Mike Rice was verbally and physically abusing your son and other kids over a span of 2-3 years?  Not days...not weeks...not months...years.  I'd put money on your reaction mirroring LeBron James' tweet: "If my son played for Rutgers or a coach like that he would have some real explaining to do and I'm still gone whoop on him afterwards!"

Hail to the [Fill In The Blank]: Fight For New D.C.

At the "Racist Stereotypes and Cultural Appropriation in American Sports" Symposium at the Smithsonian's Museum of the American Indian on February 7th, one of the top issues was the nickname attributed to the team that has been in my hometown of Washington, D.C. since 1937: "Redskins".  Apparently, there were many people who walked into this symposium donning team apparel with a sense of pride in their local pro football team.  However, many of those people walked out with heavy hearts and regret once they realized just how "racist" and "demeaning" the term is to the Native American culture.  Furthermore, not one person in the audience stood up to defend the name--including any member of the franchise because no one answered the Smithsonian's invitation to participate.  I would have not only attended the symposium if I knew about it beforehand, but more important, I would've been in the majority of those who had nothing positive to say about this long-standing nickname.