Archive for the ‘Social’ Category

Careers in Jeopardy – Who Controls That?

Wednesday, November 16th, 2022

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by B. Austin

 

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Tolerance in sports is directly correlated to the cost of production and the return a franchise or club receives. Meyers Leonard commands about $10,000,000 per season for 6 ppg, 4rpg, and I’m not sure what his defensive production looks like.  He shoots over 36% from three, which gives him a slight bump in value.  But, at $10 million he becomes expendable.  Can’t tolerate the market/masses’ response for that production, at that cost.  Kyrie Irving IS a superstar.  At $15,000,000 per season, Kyrie will have 20 teams interested.  Kyrie, by talent and on court ability is looking for a max deal that would go from 4-years/$192,000,000 to 5-years/$240,000,000.  Based on who feels insulted, Willie becomes correct because Kyrie, based on pride, ability, and talent, won’t consider playing for much less than a max deal, considering the production he is putting out.  And the group he insulted are woven into the fabric of American sports, media, and banking.  If Kyrie won’t accept a number underneath $20,000,000 per season (maybe less), he won’t get a job.  Their power is that they control and manipulate the institutional power structures – they perceive that you insult them, your net worth can go from $6 billion to $400 million in a week.
I believe said community is well-positioned within American business and financial infrastructure.  I say that with no malice or hatred.  I say that being completely open to dialog and discourse on whether or not that is factual or fallacy.  As a black person, an African diaspora – a descendant of slaves, I am well aware of the impact of racism, bigotry, and the derogatory words that come with that.  Hell, I am insulted by the Star-Spangled Banner when it plays.  I am insulted by a system that can rob a man of a job based on him kneeling as a sign of protest against systemic racism.  If the Semitic community has the ability to lead the charge and punish people who they feel insult, demean, or harm them – using the tools afforded them – I am not mad.  I wish Black people in America had that power to exercise that retribution in tandem with reparations.
Personally, I feel as though Kyrie’s post was irresponsible and without context surrounding the specific thoughts and feelings he had on the content posted.  The backlash received is understandable.  A messenger is responsible for clear, effective, efficient articulation – or, suffer consequences.
Meyers Leonard used a racial epithet.  The consequences are, whether he is a bigot, racist, or “innocently” using a derogatory term, the consequences of his actions are his NBA career is in jeopardy.  Kyrie, may be in the same boat, as far as his career is concerned.  Not for using a slur, but posting something that he didn’t take the time to provide context on, research, or ask questions about.

I have not yet watched the movie or read the book.  If it denies the Holocaust, celebrates a certain German dictator, or quotes KKK members, then at best it is historically inaccurate and demeaning.  At worst it IS perpetuating something hurtful.  I will also say this; Because something “HAS SOME TRUTH to it”, doesn’t make it right or righteous as a whole.  Three or four drops of mercury contaminates a million gallons of water.

 

B. Austin, of War Room Sports

We’ve Been Fighting for the Wrong Things

Saturday, July 4th, 2020

by B. Austin

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Image courtesy of MentalFloss.com

Image courtesy of MentalFloss.com

So… People in America who are descended from African Slaves; let me share with you why the USA will NEVER REALLY change…and how we have been duped or bamboozled, if you will.

We (Black People) fight for INCLUSION and ACCEPTANCE, and it is labeled “EQUALITY”. What should we have been fighting for? EQUITY.  We are rewarded for ASSIMILATION into society and ACCEPTING, or even promoting the American ideals of “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness”. Notice, there is no mention of “equal” in these so-called inalienable rights.  Thomas Jefferson penned the words: “All men are created equal”, but CLEARLY he wasn’t intending those words for me.

Plessy vs. Ferguson: “Separate but Equal”…when there was no equal, only separate, our fight and focus was misguided onto being “equal”.

Never is there a mention of equity or equitable compensation, so how can we be equal, if the experiences are not equal?  Equal could and should be recognized as EQUITY in the America built on the backs of a free labor force.

Think back if you will, to hearing or reading the “insult”, “Go Back to Africa”. The reason it may have bothered you is two-fold: 1) You have no sense of cultural or ethnic belonging.  You AIN’T American (no one that looked like you wrote the Constitution or Declaration) and you are not REALLY African, and may have taken your information and learnings about Africa from someone who might have even been a member of a group of people who wanted you to head on back to where you originated.  ‘You were a slave and before a slave, you came from some undeveloped, God-forsaken place that ultimately, though slavery was bad, at least you ended up here in “Murica”’.  Be grateful.  2) You were always taught that the civil rights struggle was able to somehow make you “equal”…but how could people tell you to leave, if you really belonged and you identified that within your history lies people who helped (more than others) to build America. Yet, equity and wealth are seemingly beyond our grasp, save for a few who entertain.

How does one have equal rights and equal claim without equal equity?  Black people’s fight in the USA was for the wrong thing.  Never chase equality, as that is GOD-given.  Chase equity, build wealth, invest in the purchase of policy.  Shout Out to #MuhammadAli

#WeWillNot #ShutUpAndDribble #RunNiggaRun #DanceNiggaDance

 

 

B. Austin, of War Room Sports

Why Did America Reject Colin Kaepernick?: How it Will Continue to Get Black Men and Women Murdered by Police

Friday, June 5th, 2020

by B. Austin

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#CauseAndEffect

Colin Kaepernick’s protest really is a noble and amazing footnote in history. The media commentary (social and terrestrial) told a tale of a country staunchly committed to its modern, diet-soda version of systemic bigotry and racism. How? Because there is little to no empathy (or at least an attempt at empathy) for those who must mentally, emotionally, and spiritually dwell inside of being Black in America.  So, there can be very limited compassion (if any at all), and ultimately, the effects far outweigh the cause for these people; People who look like me.  Fathers, mothers, grandfathers, grandmothers, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, strangers are dying in the streets at disproportionate numbers, at the hands of institutions which are said to protect and serve. But who or what are they protecting and serving?  The African American community shares its pain, but it falls on deaf ears.  When we entertain society; when we adhere to being “good assimilated black folks”, allowed to live middle class, we are non-threatening, and our culture (and art) can easily be consumed for its entertainment value, then we are at our very best to White America.

Minneapolis-Minnesota-protest-kneeledBut I digress.  Kaepernick was to be one of those “good black boys”, but it didn’t work out that way.  Somewhere, in his soul, the warrior spirit took hold.  Somewhere, his thirst for justice and righteousness may have come to the forefront of his consciousness.  So, an NFL player consults a former serviceman on how to best approach protesting in an environment meant to celebrate servicemen and women.  Said soldier prays with Kaep and goes on to advise him of the best way to serve his cause and share his patriotism (civil disobedience, protest, etc – all examples of activities which purchase INTO the conceptual foundations of “America”).  Kaep takes a knee on a world stage to show his support to victims of police brutality and systemic racism at the hands of law enforcement.  Rather than have that dialog, White America (by and large) tells Kaepernick and the others joining him that this is wrong, disrespectful, and an affront to their patriotic sensibilities.  Nevermind what you are protesting (the cause).  We, the gentry of America…the people this great nation was formed for, and those that subscribe to our way of thinking, are going to dictate to you what WE find offensive, and it isn’t Black men and women dying at the hands of police.  We are going to ignore that and make this about the flag, the troops, the president, right versus left, “Black on Black crime”, any and everything EXCEPT the cause of your protest and your intended effect.  “Shut up and enjoy your millions, Kaepernick!”  “Stop disrespecting OUR flag!”  “You should be honored to live here.”  “Aren’t you a millionaire?”   “Why are you complaining?”  “Those men and women should have complied with police instructions.”  Never for one moment do these people stop and think about Kaepernick’s cause or the people for which he champions.  Just whining Black folks who should be thankful to reside in this “Land of the ‘FREE’” and “Home of the Brave”.

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So, here we are, Spring of 2020.  NYC is under curfew with rumors of pending martial law (though there have been reassurances that it WON’T happen), 77 years after the last time NYC was under curfew in 1943, which was also due to a white police officer murdering an unarmed African American man.

The cause is plain to see.  It isn’t important enough until it makes them uncomfortable, as it may indict their morals.  The effect: white America is far more comfortable focusing on the effects and assigning their own narrative to said effects.

 

B. Austin, of War Room Sports

Patriotism

Monday, April 27th, 2020

by B. Austin

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So…interesting thing I observed:

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The New England Patriots took very talented Kicker Justin Rohrwasser (Marshall University) in the 5th round of the 2020 NFL Draft. As is his right, he has expressed himself via tattoo with the markings of a neoconservative, right-wing, militia group co-founded by the late Michael Brian Vanderboegh, called The 3 Percenters (referring back to the three percent of people who took up arms against the British during the American Revolution).

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His tattoo is prevalent on his left arm, I believe. And now…he is being pressured to cover it up or remove it. This is SOOOOOOO wrong to me. He chose to tattoo this on his body and express himself. Why do we force people to hide who and what they are? We create a place for dishonesty, disingenuousness, and ambiguity to fester. People can hide in plain sight and not have to own what they claim to stand for. A HUGE part of the history and legacy of this nation is what these neoconservative, right-wing, white organizations stand for and believe in. It makes us uncomfortable to see and know this truth. It is unhealthy for us to force it “underground”. Allow this young man the opportunity to keep his tattoos intact. Allow Nick Bosa to continue sharing his thoughts and commentary. Don’t hide who and what you are!

 

B. Austin of War Room Sports

(Shout Out To Kyree, WRS Operation Battle Rap)

The Coach and the Police Chief

Thursday, December 5th, 2019

by Gus Griffin

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The Washington football team has now won two in a row and yet a co-worker and die-hard life-long fan of the team is furious!

Understanding her thought process can be very useful beyond sports.

Her thinking is something like this: such glimmers of better football are sure to be exploited by the team’s CEO, Bruce Allen, to convince the owner Dan Snyder that he need not make the radical changes that she is convinced must happen before the team can return to its glory days as a model franchise. Allen, of course, has a vested interest in selling such snake oil, since most fans, like her, are convinced that his head should be the first to roll in an organizational shake-up.  In other words, short-range success would add credence to the delusion that mere reform around the edges is all that is needed.

One of the primary aspects of the delusion is that it makes no distinction between possibility and probability. In this case, the NFC East is so bad that Washington, at 3-9, can still “possibly” win the division. This possibility is bolstered by the fact that Dallas hasn’t beaten a winning team and Philadelphia just lost to Miami. So as of today, if Dallas and Philadelphia go a collective 1-7, with the one win being Philadelphia beating Dallas, and Washington wins its last 4 games, it would win the division. On top of that, it would be the number 4 seed in the NFC, ahead of either Seattle or San Francisco, and host a playoff game.

A win this Sunday in Green Bay over a 9-3 Packers team would be the weekly lotto ticket hitting for $50. That is to say it would be just enough reinforcement to convince many to stay the course.

It is mathematically “possible”.

If you believe it is probable, you likely also believe in Santa Claus.

The delusional grasp at straws in a desperate attempt to either maintain a status quo or rationalize an aspiration.

My friend and co-worker has no such delusions, nor did she about the former coach Jay Gruden.

Washington finally gave the arrogant Gruden his walking papers earlier this year. He absolutely deserved to be fired. He was 35-49-1, with no playoff wins. As if one needed more reason, this genius deactivated future Hall of Fame running back Adrian Peterson, who at 34 years old, was still arguably their most dependable offensive weapon.

And yet as justified as Gruden’s dismissal was and as justified as Allen’s dismissal would be, non-delusional Washington fans understand that there will be no significant difference until the entire organization is changed.

When I said that there are lessons beyond sports, I especially had in mind the police chief in my and the Washington football team’s home of Prince George’s County.

There is a grassroots effort to remove Chief Stawinski as the police chief and the case is solid:

 

  • Citizen filed complaints about excessive force are increasing under his tenure, with little to no accountability;
  • Stawinski opposes the immediate release of all video footage audio and other recorded evidence of police misconduct;
  • Black and Latino Prince George’s police are currently suing the department for discrimination;
Chief Hank Stawinski

Chief Hank Stawinski

I am confident that eventually, the chief will be forced out. The value of that would be a win for those more interested in justice, rather than maintaining cozy relationships with the establishment. The foreseeable response to his ouster would be for the Prince George’s Black leadership to appoint a Black or Latino replacement as police chief… possibly even a female to appease the masses. He or she will be better at the PR aspects of being a police chief than Stawinski. However, the fundamental systemic factors that shield Prince George’s County Police from accountability will not change one bit. One such factor is the Law Enforcement Officer’s Bill of Rights (LEBOR). A version of this exists in every state, in some form or another, all over the country, and essentially provides police with an additional layer of due process rights that you and I simply do not have. As a result, it makes holding police accountable much less likely and is supported by the Fraternal Order of Police, which is the only organized labor faction supported by the Republican party. LEBOR needs to be abolished in its entirety.

The hope for both Washington football fans and Prince George’s County residents is that we have seen this story before and are wising up. The fans were as dissatisfied with CEO Vinny Serrato and coach Jim Zorn as they are with the current and most recent CEO and coach. Police brutality in Prince George’s County goes back decades and even as Black folks have pierced the county’s power structure, the outcomes have not significantly changed. The only rational conclusion that one can arrive at in both situations is that the primary issue is not the coach or the police chief. The primary issue is the organization and system. Until that is addressed, there is no reason to expect any meaningful change in the results.

Both factions see this and know, even if justified, that the removal of a coach, police chief, or even a president, will not be enough. Only the radical transformation of both entities will bring about the change needed.

So, in an odd way, the best thing for Washington football fans would be for the Cowboys to win tonight or for the team to lose to Green Bay, 57-4, to erase any illusions that the team is “close” to being a viable competitor. The phoenix bird rises from ashes. What is inescapable is that at some point, it had to be burned. No less will do for the entities of NFL Washington football or Prince George’s County Police.

 

Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports

Beware: The 5 Traits of a Sports Troll

Thursday, November 7th, 2019

by Gus Griffin

gus

 

 

 

 

Photo courtesy of Comic Vine

Photo courtesy of Comic Vine

 

Sports trolling is on the rise!

Like another certain element of society, lately these people, like cockroaches, are coming out of the woodworks more than ever. The usual suspect of Social Media is only part of the reason why. The simple thing is to dismiss them. That can be done at one’s own peril, which is why the word “beware” precedes my thoughts on this matter. But first, we need to be able to recognize the traits of these people, so in no particular order, here they are:

 

  • THE INVOLUNTARILY CELIBATE: This is the sanitized trendy way of saying, “they ain’t getting none”. People who have the company and intimacy of a significant other to look forward to do not spend their time lurking in the weeds of cyberspace for the specific purpose of arguing. Only those with a significant void in their lives would engage in such activity;
  • THE GOD AGREES WITH ME MENTALITY: Being right is not merely preferred, after all, we all want to be right, it is life and death to the sports troll. Therefore, it is the ultimate validation of one’s position. The ironic thing about this trait is that one need not be religious. In fact, I know several atheists who cling to this mentality as well as or stronger than so-called believers. The common trait is not religious ideology but being obsessively argumentative for the objective of being right. Coming to a better collective understanding is not a sought-after objective;
  • ATTACK TO DISTRACT: A very common tactic by these types. If one does not recognize when it is happening, you can end up being put on the defensive for something that the troll himself is guilty of. He also is prone to dismiss or trivialize the issue with false equivalencies expressed as, “that happens on both sides”;
  • BAIT POST SPECIALIST: A ridiculous and provocative post is made…in some cases one that even the troll himself doesn’t believe, just to get your goat; and
  • SOCIAL MISFITS: This type often struggles in basic human relations and is therefore often emboldened behind a laptop via the internet. Simply put, he will engage in ways in these venues that he never would consider face to face.

Another irony of the sports troll is that he really is not even a core sports fan. He merely uses the sports platform to promote larger society ideas, much like the comedian and drunk does. In either scenario, one can default to “I was just joking” or “I was drunk” or “it’s just sports”.

While I have used only the “he” pronoun, by no means are these types restricted to the male gender. There are a number of women with deep-seeded anger and mistrust of men, likely a result of traumatic experiences at the hands of men, who lie in wait to debate as well. Then there is the drama addict element, which has no gender boundaries.

How best is it to deal with a sports troll? That can be tricky, so first let’s discuss what does not work.

Engaging them with the objective of having a rational discussion is a complete waste of time and even somewhat hubris to think that you are going to make any headway. The sports troll has little to no interest in facts or truth.

There is a reason I used the term “beware”.

These people are not well.

This does not necessarily mean from a mental health standpoint, which has become the default explanation to dismiss the obviously increasing level of toxicity in society.

It does mean that there is an imbalance in their humanity, be it psychological, spiritual, or emotional. They lack the minimal emotional maturity to effectively engage people as adults. They closely overlap personality types that resort to the most extreme actions when the world does not stop to revolve around them or whenever anyone has the audacity to disagree with them. Therefore, our reactions to them should certainly not exacerbate those tendencies.

This personality type is easily identified beyond the sports world. It is highly likely to endorse misogynistic, homophobic, xenophobic, and/or racist attitudes. It is equally as likely to engage in class bashing.

I wish I had suggestions for how best to deal with such types, short of the unsustainable tactic of merely validating their ego and delusional notions of themselves and the world.

But I don’t.

In the larger scheme of things, the only effective response that comes to mind is to give some serious thought to the root toxicity in the world that produces such types.

They are not created overnight, and thus, nor will a remedy for their ailment.

In the meantime, until we can establish a “Troll Patrol” to summon, the next time you find yourself confronted by this type, I can only come up with two suggestions, both totally counter to our instincts in the sports debate culture: Either ignore them or respond with a smile to whatever they propose with a simple: “You are right!” :-)

 

Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports

Football and Imperialism

Wednesday, October 23rd, 2019

by Gus Griffin

gus

 

 

 

 

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San Francisco Forty Niners Defensive End Nick Bosa has come up with a thing that is sure to catch on with football fans. During the team’s “conquering” of the Cleveland Browns, he symbolized planting a flag after sacking QB Baker Mayfield. He described it as payback for what Mayfield had done in college when the Oklahoma Sooners went into Columbus to beat Bosa’s Ohio State Buckeyes.

Speaking of college football, one of its fastest growing media components in popularity is something called “College Football Imperialism”. It began in 2017 and almost overnight became one of the most anticipated sports-related posts on the internet. The rules for the “Imperialism” map are pretty simple: each team is given the counties that they are closest to at the beginning of the season. If a team beats a team who was on the map the previous week, they take over all land that the team owned on the previous map.

Make no mistake about it, we football fans love the concept of Imperialism. This has long made me ponder a question that I am not sure many other sports fans consider:

Can a nation as obsessed with football as America ever reject its Imperialist foreign policies?

To ensure understanding, let’s look at the definition of Imperialism:

Imperialism is a policy or ideology of extending a country’s rule over foreign nations, often by military force or by gaining political and economic control of other areas.

Football versions of this would be anytime a team wins on the other team’s home turf. One such very memorable example was in 1983. Washington was the defending Super Bowl champions and opened the season on Monday Night Football against their long-time hated rival, the Dallas Cowboys. Washington jumped out to a 23-3 halftime lead, only to eventually lose the game 31-30.

The Cowboys had planted a flag at RFK Stadium.

Later that season in December, Washington traveled to Dallas with many of the players literally dressed in military fatigues to symbolize the pending war. The game was essentially for first place in the NFC East and likely the top seed in the playoffs. Washington crushed Dallas 31-10 and the baton for conference supremacy was officially passed from Dallas to Washington.

Washington had planted a flag in Dallas.

Washington Hall of Fame offensive lineman Russ Grimm best summarizes the idea of football domination in his Hall of Fame acceptance speech when he said, “there is no greater feeling than to be able to move a man from point A to point B, against his will”. He made this statement with the familiar intoxicating aura of power, and rightfully so, because Grimm and that whole era of Washington football, like Imperialism, was all about power.

America’s history, particularly since World War II, is riddled with examples of Imperialism. When the former Soviet Union collapsed in 1989, it marked the end of the only viable military check on US hegemony. As a result, Imperialist policy was accelerated, usually with a pretext of “spreading democracy” or “confronting terrorism” or “defending human rights”, and of course, disarming “weapons of mass destruction”. Long before World War II and the fall of the Soviet Union, the U.S. drew from the Monroe Doctrine, which essentially declared all of the Western Hemisphere to be the domain of the United States. Since the two aforementioned events, this mindset of American Exceptionalism has been extended all around the word. If that history does not convince you, consider that the U.S. maintains over 800 military bases in over 70 foreign countries and/or territories…the latter being a term in and of itself that derives from Imperialism.

One can learn as much from the fate of those who have resisted Imperialism, be it Haiti, North Korea, the Congo, Vietnam, Cuba, Iran, Grenada, Nicaragua, and this list is by no means complete. The best current example is Venezuela.

Some of you may be asking why is what happens in a foreign country important to me here? A good friend of mine suggested, with good reason, that people largely have an ALAINIMBY (as long as it’s not in my back yard) attitude toward such issues. That is the precise attitude toward the environment that has led to global warming and today’s crisis. The fact is that the current immigration issues at the U.S. border cannot be correctly understood without understanding U.S. foreign policy and its underlying corporate business interests in the country of origin of the migrants. Specifically, in Mexico and Central America, a direct line can be drawn between NAFTA, adopted in the 1990s, and today’s immigration from those regions.

Martin Luther King came to ponder the same question about U.S. Imperialism. He concluded resources being used to try to suppress the self-determination of the Vietnamese people was taking away from what could be used to combat poverty in the U.S. That was the selfish truth. The broader humanity truth is as he said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”.

Today, even though a critical mass of the American public has been convinced and “outraged” about Soviet interference in the 2016 elections, there is not anywhere near as much outrage over continued U.S. Imperialistic policies abroad. Even if one believes completely in the Soviet interference narrative, can you honestly say it wasn’t anything that the U.S. has not done all over the world on a routine basis?

Why use football as the platform to discuss this? Because the best way to engage people is to tap into that for which they already have passionate vestige. It is a huge part of how the current occupant of the White House got to where he is. If we can raise awareness about such issues, then we would have a chance to convince fans to invest a fraction of their passion for football toward informed critical thinking about our imperialist foreign policy. At that point, there is at least the chance of making some positive changes for the betterment of the world collective.

Another reason to compare and contrast football with imperialism is football’s built in anti-imperialist policy skewed toward the less developed team called the draft. The weakest teams get to pick first because they have the greatest needs. It is the polar opposite under Imperialism, where greed takes priority over need. The rich get richer, the strong get stronger, under a might makes right anti-humane endorsement of Darwinism.

To embrace America’s Imperialist foreign policy is like proposing that the New England Patriots should get the first 10 picks in the NFL Draft.

So, can American football fans reject the nation’s Imperialist foreign policy? The answer is yes.

The following two things can start the process:

  • Commit to constant independent education about world matters and the source for such education cannot be corporate media; and
  • Join an organization committed to pushing back against Imperialistic policies and pro-Imperial narratives

The wonderful part about this, is that it is not an either/or proposition. I am going to be giddy when my Steelers roll into Baltimore in December and plant a flag at M&T Bank Stadium. No one will die, nor will the human right to self-determination of those who live in the Baltimore area be usurped. In football, a visiting team can conquer with none of the real-life collateral damage of Imperialism. In world affairs, this is not the case. Our humanity moves forward when we can recognize the similarities and differences and take action accordingly.

 

Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports

Charlie Brown and Those Who Believe in the Jay-Z, NFL Partnership

Friday, August 23rd, 2019

by Gus Griffin

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Over the past 3 years, I have written 6 different columns related to Colin Kaepernick.

My guess is that anyone who wanted my view could go to War Room Sports to read them and get a pretty good idea about my thoughts on the matter. Simply put, I am not sure that I have anything new to add to the discussion about the recently announced Jay-Z partnership with the NFL. Ironically, the column that most reflects my thoughts about this union wasn’t actually written about Colin Kaepernick.

CBIt was about Charlie Brown and Lucy.

Essentially, I compared sports fans of Washington DC teams to Charlie Brown trying to kick the football held by Lucy. No matter how much history and evidence that she would always pull the ball away just as old Chuck approached, the fans believed this time would be different.

Those who believe in the Jay-Z and NFL partnership are like Charlie Brown.

They go through intellectual contortions to rationalize embracing it as a substantive response to the issues raised by Kaepernick. Contortions that the great gymnast Simone Biles could not reproduce.

The most common tropes are as follows:

  • This is chess not checkers; as if Jay-Z has some Machiavellian strategy that will secure the elimination of police brutality and other forms of oppression;
  • If you are not at the table you are on the menu; which makes merely being in the presence of power the goal rather than wielding power toward the elimination of cannibalism; or
  • Let’s give it a chance and wait and see; which sounds like a form of faith described in the book of Hebrews. The problem with this is that there is no substance of what is hoped for, nor evidence of things not seen.

Then there are those who espouse that maybe Jay-Z will secure some business set asides. To that I ask, for whom? The other Black folks who are among the 1 percent, which are not as impacted by the issues Kaepernick raised? Or maybe preferential hiring of Black folks for seasonal minimum wage jobs with no benefits in stadiums, that essentially codify the working poor?

Upon what track record are these hopes based? It seems above question that Jay-Z has been very supportive of the families directly impacted by police brutality. That is a positive contribution that should not be dismissed.

It is also on the back end of the oppressive process.

JZ

To the extent that poverty has been criminalized in America, gentrification and the displacement that accompanies it is one of those foundational issues. Any analysis of the construction of the Barclays center in Brooklyn must conclude that Jay-Z was the primary pitchman for the project to the community and little to none of the promises made to sell the project were kept. In the process, a whole bunch of Black people were moved out. They are no less homeless or otherwise displaced just because a Black face was central in the causing their exodus.

Jay-Z’s take away: less than 1% percent ownership in the Nets plus whatever profit he gained from its eventual sale. Should we be hopeful because it amounts to more than 30 pieces of silver?

I just don’t understand what about this warrants hope. In fact, this partnership is about as organic as an arranged marriage. I would go as far as saying it was foreseeable and straight out of the textbook on Sedating an Uprising 101. In chapter 1, it is clearly outlined that the ruling class throw the masses one whom they like to quell the revolt. That person discourages any further radical descent suggesting that any and all solutions must come from the very systems that are at the root of the problems to begin with.

In the end, the only people to benefit will be Jay-Z, his class comrades, who will be the only ones to make out from any business goodies secured, and the NFL shield, which provides cover for the “owners”.

As sobering as it is to come to the reality of how little this partnership will make a difference, it is as important to understand those who espouse the aforementioned tropes. They are as follows:

  • Affinity cheerleaders are those who think that Jay-Z will advocate for them just because he is
    Black….the demographic disproportionately adversely affected by the issues raised by Kaepernick. If you believe that you are engaging in willful naivety. Same skin is not always kin. It should be remembered that affinity is broader than just race. It can include gender, religion, etc.;
  • Cult of personality followers are those who are so obsessed with the person that they refuse to engage in any critical analysis of the person’s behavior and record. Anytime the word cult is used to describe a group, it is not good;
  • Opportunists are those who know nothing of substance will come from the partnership but see the platform as an opportunity to advance their own individualistic agenda. In this sense they are not Charlie Brown. Such are among the least trustworthy personalities in that they are not driven by any set of principles or have any interests in changing the systems of oppression, but only advancing their own place within such systems;

An underlying factor in all of the above is a lack of class analysis, which explains why poor Black folks think a billionaire rapper is on their side.

There is a hope.

Within 2 months of writing the Charlie Brown piece about the futility of Washington sports fans rooting for their teams, the Capitals won their first Stanley Cup title. So maybe I don’t know what the hell I am talking about! So, to all of those who believe that this partnership is something positive, go ahead take a run and try to kick the damn ball yet again. Lucy represents Jay-Z and the NFL. Charlie Brown represents you!

 

Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports

Why LeBron James and Walmart Do Not Make a Winning Team

Wednesday, June 5th, 2019

by Gus Griffin

gus

 

 

 

 

LBJ

I am a huge LeBron James fan, both for his on-court play and off-court efforts. I have long believed that most of the criticism of him has been spiked “hater-ade” with little substantive basis.

Having said that, if James’ haters have been waiting for something with a little more meat on which to chew, he has given it to them on a silver platter. I am speaking of his collaboration with Walmart to “combat hunger”.

On the surface, it looks like a laudable effort. It is certainly a public relations coup for Walmart. Folks are indeed hungry in the wealthiest country on Earth and they do not have the luxury to be picky about from where their next meal comes.

I get that.

We all should get that it is important to look at root causes and when we do that with Walmart and hunger in America, as the great sport writer Dave Zirin points out, “it is more of the problem than the solution”.

We should be clear about what Walmart is. The heir to the founder, Sam Walton, is worth about $145 billion. It is the largest private employer in the United States, with 1.3 million employees. Its 2018 revenue was over $500 billion and is projected to clear that number in 2019, in no small part due to the corporate tax rate being cut from 35% to 21%. We should also understand that thanks to other corporate loopholes, Walmart is unlikely to even pay the 21%.

We should be just as clear about what Walmart is. It is fanatically anti-union (Click HERE to view Walmart’s anti-union employee training video). It pays its average cashier about $8.48 per hour. These meager wages, in addition to the fact that some 600 thousand of its employees are part-time, are the principle reasons that about half of Walmart employees experience food insecurity. How insecure: a significant number of Walmart employees actually have to access public assistance in the way of food stamps just to get by.

Think about that the next time a “supply side” tax cut advocate promotes this nonsense: Walmart got a 14% tax cut and still will not raise wages to keep its employees from having to access food stamps.

This type of “corporate welfare” is the primary motivation behind the recent bill introduced by Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, targeting some of America’s largest corporations. It is called the Stop Bad Employers by Zeroing out Subsidies Act (or the “Stop BEZOS” Act). The bill would tax companies like Amazon and Walmart for money their employees receive in federal benefits.

So essentially, what LeBron is doing is aligning with the fox to guard the hen house.

Now, Walmart would respond by likely saying that they in fact are raising their floor for salaries.

That is true. It will be raising its minimum wage to $11 per hour this year.

The raises will be financed by the recent closing of 10% of their Sam’s Clubs, which amounted to about 11 thousand jobs. So essentially, it was a shell game or Ponzi scheme. Given its tax breaks and poverty wages to begin with, Walmart deserves no more credit for this than my mugger would for bringing me a get-well card in the hospital.

Walmart is certainly not alone. Such corporations facilitate yet another shell game when one looks at the unemployment number being at 4%. How? By suppressing wages and hours, it insures that a number of people must take a second and sometimes third job.

Some may be asking now, why this is your or my business how LeBron attempts to address a need as pressing as hunger.  He has a right to donate his time and money in any way he sees fit. To that, I say that the issue is not what he does or does not have a right to do with his money and time. It is clear he has such a right. The issue is how effective are such efforts when allied with an entity so culpable in exasperating the problem he is trying to address. That is to say, between its employees having to rely on public assistance and the sizeable tax cut, Walmart is essentially being subsidized by our tax dollars.

That is what makes it not only our business but also our obligation to call out all who allow their platform to be used to provide Walmart cover. Silence would be tacit approval.

Nevertheless, real solutions for these issues of systemic origins require systemic analysis. When one engages in such analysis, it becomes clear: be the issue hunger, homelessness, or student loan debt, there simply will not be a cadre of individual heroes that will come to the rescue. These systemic and structural issues are foreseeable in a capitalistic society. They will, therefore require systemic and structural solutions. These solutions can begin when we decide collectively as a society that food, education, housing, among other needs, are human rights and not mere privileges for those who can pay.

This is not about telling LeBron to “shut up and dribble”. It is about making it clear when he is dribbling out of bounds. Teaming with an entity like Walmart, which compounds hunger in America, is way off the court.

 

Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports

Josh Gordon and Understanding Addiction in America

Thursday, December 27th, 2018

by Gus Griffin

gus

 

 

 

 

Image courtesy of Getty Images

Image courtesy of Getty Images

For the 5th time in his troubled career, Patriots wide receiver Josh Gordon has been suspended for a positive drug test. Understand that for every suspension we hear about, there are other positive test that we never hear about…a function of the NFL’s due process on this matter. As it should be.

He had been productive with the Patriots catching 40 passes for 720 yards, which amounts to an average of 18 yards per catch.  From just a pure talent standpoint, he is on the short list of most feared deep threats in the NFL.

His talent has never been in question. His reliability has always been in question.

To understand Gordon and the larger issue of addiction in America, its’ important to distinguish what addiction is and is not about.

Addiction is not about stupidity or character. These are the two primary responses you get from sports fans. Their response is usually something like, “why would he risk all he has just to get high?” They attempt to apply logic and rational thinking to irrational behavior.  There is so much more to addiction than this. At its core, addiction, regardless of the type, is the manifestation of one attempting to self-medicate. Be the vice drugs, shopping, sex, or gambling, they are all attempts to treat that which has not been treated. Therefore, until one can get to the root of that which one is attempting to treat, the addiction will persist.  While there is a dopamine release in the brain in all cases, none have the biochemical impact of drug abuse, nor are they as socially stigmatized as drug use. This is what makes it more challenging in many ways than the others.

While there must be a desire to be clean, notions that it’s only about will power are overly simplistic as well. This myth was compounded by the former first Lady Nancy Reagan’s “Just Say No” campaign during the so-called “War on Drugs”.

This is what Josh Gordon is dealing with, and the fact that the Patriots literally assigned people to watch a 27-year-old grown man 24/7 and yet he still got away to do what his demons commanded him to do, should tell any thinking person that this is not that simple.

The even larger aspect that one needs to understand about addiction in America is the reality that under Capitalism, treatment, like everything else, is a commodity.

According to federal health and census data, in 2003, for-profit addiction treatment centers reaped $21 Billion in revenues. With the Opioid Epidemic, those revenues are expected to double by 2020. That rate is 3 times faster than the growth of inflation. Now most would say that there is no price that can be put on recovery for a loved one. The problem is, more often than not, they just don’t work. When treatment is a business, not only is there no incentive to truly treat, it’s the very opposite. The revenue stream is maintained and increased by recurring patients.

The 2015 documentary, The Business of Recovery, was made by a former industry insider named Greg Horvath. In it he poses the following:

“There are nonprofit treatment centers that cost $53,000 a month, while good senior care can cost $4,000 a month. What’s the other $49,000 paying for?”, asked Horvath. “It’s not like you’re using an MRI or an X-Ray machine. It’s a bed, food, and usually minimally-educated therapists. I’m really confused. Where’s the money going? No one has been able to show me.”

Of course, at the core of the issue is that addiction needs to be viewed as a health issue, as opposed to a stigmatized criminal issue. Furthermore, health care should be viewed as a human right rather than a commodity to the highest bidder or those fortunate enough to have insurance. Once we get the predatory insurance companies and for-profit treatment entities out of the way, we can begin to look at addiction in an entirely different way, and that paradigm shift will produce far greater results than what we have today. Part of that shift should include “Chasing the Scream”, by Johan Hari, as required reading for treatment professionals. This book provides a radical departure from traditional ideas about addiction and treatment.

There is a reason that the Canadians, the British, and even the Cubans do not have the recidivism among addiction that exist in America. They have greatly reduced the predatory element by adopting universal health care.

These models provide much more hope for recovery for the Josh Gordons of the world and those unable to pay what he can for remedies that have little to no track record of success. But only a continued mass organized demand will bring it about in America, where a Josh Gordon is the perfect customer; he has money and is not of sound mind.

 

Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports