Archive for the ‘Race’ 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

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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

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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

BA

 

 

 

 

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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”.

minnesoata-protest

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

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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

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It’s Just About Selling Shoes, Folks

Thursday, September 6th, 2018

by Gus Griffin

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CK

I am happy for Colin Kaepernick. He has clearly been blackballed from the NFL, even if there is no smoking gun paper trail to prove such in a court. So, if he can recoup some of the money he has lost for taking a principled stand, good for him. He has earned every dime.

I am also happy that his many detractors are mad. Of all the things that actually warrant a protest, they choose this? To them I say, go ahead and burn your already paid for property.

I am not happy about the narrative some are painting of Nike becoming some corporate ally of social justice. It makes about as much sense as believing that Exxon is going to be a partner in combating climate change.

How do I know? You are what your record says you are and Nike’s record is the polar opposite of a corporation interested in social and economic justice.

For years, it oversaw what amounted to sweat shops and facilitated, or at the very least, ignored child slave labor. Nike was the posterchild for international corporate exploitation of populations that had little other choice but to participate in their own oppression. So bad was Nike that at one point, reporters pressed Michael Jordan about the issues.

Reportedly, it has improved its wages and working conditions, but it is hard to tell by how much. About 80% of its production factories are in Cambodia, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Some of the workers are paid as little as $102 per month. Do the math on a 40-hour week (though many routinely work more), and it amounts to 63 cents an hour. Regardless of context or where it operates in the world, I am not patting a multi-billion-dollar corporation on the back for raising its wages for workers to 63 cents an hour, and I damn sure will not be hoodwinked into thinking it is in anyway an ally for social justice.

For those who contend that Nike has changed, as recently as July of this year, it raised the wages of about ten percent of its employees. There is a catch. Most view this as a sort of internal settlement for widespread workplace misconduct and discrimination against women.

It is not that Nike cannot afford to care. The corporation that is paying some of its workers in Asia 63 cents an hour reported 2017 revenues in the range of $34.4 billion dollars up 8%.

There are a few things that Nike could do to become an ally:

  • Pay all employees worldwide a living wage, not minimum wage, but a living wage, plus full benefits;
  • Allow its employees to organize and collectively bargain around wages, working conditions, etc.;
  • Build a factory in the top 10 urban areas of America, which are where the majority of police brutality takes place, and give residential credit in the application process for jobs;
  • Finance the renovation and (where needed) rebuilding of athletic facilities at the high schools in those same areas

If they did any of the above, it would put some substance behind the symbolism of endorsing Kaepernick. Of course, they will not do any of them because it is not what Nike is about.

When in a battle, it is important to understand how to make a distinction between a “ride or die” ally and an opportunist. Nike is an opportunist.

So let us keep everything in perspective. Nike could not care less about the cause that Kaepernick has championed. For Nike, it is just about selling shoes, folks.

 

Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports

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Where Jemele Hill Went Wrong

Friday, September 15th, 2017

by Gus Griffin

gus

 

 

 

 

JH

“Trump is the most ignorant, offensive president of my lifetime.”

“His rise is a direct result of white supremacy. Period.”

“He is unqualified and unfit to be president. He is not a leader. And if he were not white, he never would have been elected.”

“Donald Trump is a white supremacist who has largely surrounded himself w/ other white supremacists.”

“The height of white privilege is being able to ignore his white supremacy, because it’s of no threat to you.”

“Well, it’s a threat to me.”

“Donald Trump is a bigot. Glad you could live with voting for him. I couldn’t, because I cared about more than just myself.”

“I hate a lot of things but not enough to jeopardize my fellow citizens with an unfit, bigoted, incompetent moron. But hey, that’s just me.”

These are the tweets that landed ESPN commentator Jemele Hill into hot water.

Every last word is true!  

At the very least, it’s much easier to support what she says about the current president of the “Divided” States of America than it would be to refute them.  

And still yet often in America, truth is not the point! The denial of truth is.

Hill’s comments addressed the truth.  They did not address the denial of the truth, which is a prerequisite.  

It’s like trying to administer treatment or medicine to someone that does not acknowledge being sick.

I realize that this is a hard thing for truth loving people to stomach, especially those of us who are either more likely to be vulnerable to the adverse effects of the current president’s mindset and policies.  It is equally troubling for those who thought that they could find refuge from political commentary in sports.  

The point is that in America we have tacitly understood sacred cow subjects around which we are required to steer clear of under all circumstances, and race in sports is right at the top of that list.  

Full disclosure: Jemele Hill, along with Bomani Jones, Tim Kurkjian, and Jay Bilas, are my favorite ESPN commentators. Unlike Erin Andrews of Fox (throw a nickel out the window and you could hit 20 others who can do what Andrews does), she actually knows sports. She is insightful beyond sports, which is why she had to know that she was violating the code. What code you ask? The code that says as a sports commentator you are to, above all and foremost, insure that your white audience is comfortable with your commentary. Calling a man that more than a few of them voted for, a white supremacist, though absolutely true, is a violation of the code. One of the requirements to maintain a position such as the one Hill occupies is self-censorship.  

Now the other end of this is Jason Whitlock, who either consciously or subconsciously talks about race all the time, but in a way that placates the very element that is currently outraged about Hill’s comments.

As a result, his place in the mainstream sports media is secure.

I am not saying that she should not have said what she did. I am actually always happy to hear “insiders” rock the boat.  I am saying that when you do, understand that the pushback will be fierce and swift, and if one is not prepared to absorb such pushback without apologizing, why say it at all?  

My first degree from Howard University was in Journalism. My desire was to be what Hill is today, which is part of why I am a fan and have such great respect for her. I actually wrote for a Washington Black weekly paper upon graduating and was offered an internship with ABC News under Sam Donaldson. I turned it down and have no regrets. My thinking even then, over 20 years ago, was that to progress in such an environment would require I engage in the type of self-censorship that would have kept Hill out of the hot water she is currently in, and I knew that I simply could not adhere to “the code”.  

In the end, the issue is not Jemele Hill or even ESPN. The issue is the delusional notion that sports is some isolated haven, free of political commentary, or even that it should be. History proves this to be a fallacy.  Be it the influence of Jackie Robinson’s breaking the color line in baseball, or the civil rights movement, or Muhammad Ali’s stand against the Vietnam War, sports has always been a platform to address larger issues to include politics as well it should be. But until the contrary myth is debunked, the likes of Jemele Hill and others of her valuable consciousness have a decision to make: is it best to maintain her current platform and speak truth to power from within the existing mainstream system or leave it and all of its perks and restraints to do so from the outside?  Neither you nor I can make that decision for her. If she leaves on principle, I’ll miss her on ESPN but respect her decision.  If she remains, she will surely have to understand that the push-back she is receiving is indeed the price of the party.

Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports

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Tactics vs. Objectives and the End Game of Protesting the NFL

Friday, August 18th, 2017

by Gus Griffin

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CK

Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the National Anthem to protest the unwarranted state-sponsored killings, primarily of Black men.

He did not protest for the right or even the privilege to continue to have a job as a professional football player.

This is obvious to most and an unnecessary reminder for some.  However, when one listens to this current discussion about protesting the NFL over the obvious blackballing of him, it’s clear that many are thinking about the two issues as one.

They are not the same thing.

At best, protesting the NFL will provide the pressure for Commissioner Roger Goodell to do what he should have already done and that would be to call in a favor from an owner to sign Kaepernick.  This would relieve the pressure and “protect the shield” from the bad optics this drama has created.  If that were to happen, all too many of those insisting on this protest, would then retreat to their normally unengaged lives.  Those in danger at the hands of the police by the mere virtue of their skin color will still be in the same danger.

A protest is a tactic and not an objective.  Kaepernick’s objective was to bring attention to the injustice of police brutality.  Therefore, if the tactic of protesting the NFL will not address the above noted objective, what would be the point?

Protest works best when tied to a larger movement.  The Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955 was tied to the larger Civil Rights movement.  Curt Flood challenging baseball’s reserve clause, which basically declared that a player, even when not under contract, was controlled by one team for his entire career, was tied to the larger struggle for free agency for baseball players and professional athletes in general.

Colin Kaepernick will be fine, even if he doesn’t play another down in the NFL.  The cause he has courageously taken up will now allow him to pretty much name his price on the speaking circuit, should he choose to do so, all around the country.  In fact, a case could be made that Kaepernick would be even of greater value to the movement if he does not play another down in the NFL.  That would then make him a martyr of sorts and few things are more inspiring to get others to take action than martyrdom.

Protesting the NFL will do nothing to dismantle the police industrial complex which is at the core of the issue Kaepernick raises.  So to suggest that the failure to engage in this particular protest is being unsupportive of Kaepernick really shows a gross misunderstanding of the scope of the issue. The fact is, police brutality, especially against Black men, is and always has been a fundamental part of the American DNA, and who does or does not have a job in the NFL will not change that one iota.  To suggest otherwise would be the same as offering a band-aid to a cancer patient, as if it were a cure.

I would wager that Kaepernick himself would much rather see those of us committed to the issue of police brutality join organizations that have as their missions to address such or related issues.  It might be the NAACP or the ACLU.  Or if you are in the Washington DC area, it might be the Prince George’s People’s Coalition or Pan African Community Action, or in Jackson Mississippi there is Cooperate Jackson.  And if there is no organization that addresses the issue to your satisfaction, then start your own, but be prepared to be in it for the long haul. Drive by social media activists and/or platform pimps will not serve the movement well. As the late, great Kwame Ture (formerly Stokely Carmichael) often said, “The struggle is eternal.”

The seeds of the terrorism that claimed lives in Virginia this past weekend were sown long ago.  Likewise, the oppression Kaepernick seeks to address existed long before he became a professional football player and will not cease whether he is in or out of the NFL.

 

Gus Griffin, for War Room Sports

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Riley Rebel: Champion Athlete for America, Misunderstood Victim of Racist Roots, and Supremacist Upbringing

Wednesday, October 21st, 2015

by B. Austin

BA

 

 

 

RC

It’s time to let “Riley Rebel”, champion of the Confederate Calvary of America, live in peace.  Time to stop judging him for shit we allow others to get away with, because it is less brash…not as overt.  I am absolutely certain his feelings are shared by many, many, many young white males from his background.  Personally, I prefer my racists and supremacists out in the open where I can see them and know their position.  I am not going to church, living near, or associating with Riley Rebel in anyway…so like white people have said for 100’s of years: “Run cracker run! Go run, jump, catch, hit, tackle, and entertain me with a football as you break your body apart for my entertainment”.

What BOTHERS ME THEN YOU ASK?  Well, I am glad you asked. What bothers me is the 7 or 8 other NBA owners that were Donald Sterling’s pals, which we will probably never know about.  What bothers me is the fact that the NFL, whose players are 72% black, have only 3 or 4 black head coaches, a few coordinators, the weakest player’s union, and NO BLACK MAJORITY OWNERS.  No, Riley Rebel doesn’t bother me much.  What bothered me was when 4 St. Louis Rams players decided to take a stand for justice regarding Michael Brown’s death in Ferguson, Police organizations and Policemen took a stand against that, and football fans didn’t rally or stand up against tyranny.  Nah, Riley Cooper didn’t bother me at all…he is entertaining.  I was much more concerned with the sports and athletic community’s lack of presence and silence in the #JusticeOrElse events.  Riley Cooper had no input there.  There are so many truly devious and heinous instances of white supremacy, racism, ethnocentrism, white privilege, white entitlement, Black apathy, Black colorism, self-hate, and overall societal erosion to point at, AND use sports as your landscape with which to do so.  Riley Cooper isn’t worth all the anger and ire he receives.  What Riley is to us and himself is a relatively slow, not-so-talented, overlooked, overpaid white professional athlete, who lives as a minority at his workplace and his true feelings came out on camera.  He probably faces an inferiority complex every day, and in the comfort and confines of his own territory, a Kenny Chesney concert filled with white country music fans (but secured by hulking Black security guards), Riley let that inferiority complex and alcohol get the best of him.  Here were guys that were bigger and stronger than him but making far less money and having far less status…and he was in front of his entourage…he had to let testosterone and frustration blend with the alcohol and racism, to go ahead and let his honest feelings be felt.  I actually feel sorry for dude. He has to live with this and public scorn for the remainder of his career, meanwhile America remains the same and the real problems go unsolved. He is merely an honest product of his environment.

 

B. Austin of War Room Sports

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