by Kent Sterling
Robert Mathis has been suspended by the MFL for trying to turn his sperm into rampaging beasts who seek an eggs just as he hunts quarterbacks.
Indianapolis Colts all-time sacks lead Robert Mathis used Clomid under a doctor’s supervision to try to get his boys to swim stronger and truer, his wife became pregnant, and in a ridiculous overreach by the NFL he has been suspended for the first four games of the 2014 season.
And a lot of people think it’s fair because players understand – or should understand – the rules and potential consequences concerning PEDs. The intent and advantage gained in their use is meaningless to the NFL and to those evaluating the use of their terrible swift sword.
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What happened to the disdain for authority that used to be a hallmark of Americans? When did we decide to embrace the notion that pedantic buffoons enforcing rules are reasonable men? Doesn’t anyone remember Nixon?
Mathis and his wife wanted to have a another baby prior to the ultimate toll being exacted on his mother, who is bravely fighting stage four esophageal cancer. For that, he earns a four-game rip, and people applaud because the rule and consequence are clear.
A lack of gray area makes for lousy justice, and that’s where the NFL is in enforcing its rules on PED use, but that’s not the sentiment being expressed by the media or fans.
“He should have known better!” is the overwhelming opinion, and it reflects a miserable acquiescence to guys wearing fancy suits and using law school words to espouse wrongheadedness.
Without examining intent and advantage gained, there can be no justice. Grabbing our ankles and allowing authority figures to operate without a serious level of skepticism is a terrible crime, especially for the young who are unencumbered by giant bills and responsibilities for others that tend to turn men into yammering pussies.
It is their societal requirement to stand up, make a fist, and demand reason, but what we are getting from these pests is noting more than blind acquiescence. Even in the mostly anonymous world of social media, I am being shouted down by those youthful line-toers who refuse to question the supremacy of those who have been trusted to wield power.
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While the bottom line is that Mathis should be allowed to play, the more troubling issue is that twenty-somethings are allowing idiots in their 50s, 60s, and 70s do whatever the hell they like without the possible consequence that can only be brought to bear by the young and angry.
When the young have only respect for authority, a society is doomed.
I agree with you Kent.
This is why Judges hate mandated sentences…they do not have the latitude to do justice in individual cases.
A “zero tolerance” policy that turns a blind eye to the specific facts and circumstances of each case is inherently unjust.
Kent, your rant is a little ridiculous. I am a big Colts homer and love Robert too, but you don’t know the truth just like we didn’t with Lance Armstrong. Taking this drug in November and December of a record breaking season at the age of 32 raises significant questions. He has let his team and his fans down.
We don’t know the truth – that is correct – but we do know that the NFL is refusing to assess mitigating circumstance that might explain the use of the drug in a realm beyond PEDs. That equates to zero tolerance, which equates to abuse of authority. I am always wary of boobs who run around shooting houseflies with a shotgun. That so many aren’t is troubling.
True story.
I was a Federal government lawyer for a few years, specializing in employment law (i.e. firing people).
The Feds have several “zero tolerance” policies…but everyone in management and legal was forbidden ever from using that term because the Courts would often overturn removals based on zero tolerance due to a lack of individual due process.
Zero tolerance is a substitute for hard thinking.
Roger gets paid $44M per year…he ought to be able to make hard and fair decisions.
As always, you have infused our debate with welcome logic and skepticism for mainstream intractability. Thank you.
How far does the questioning of authority have to go? Mathis DID question authority (albeit, after the fact), appealing his suspension. He even had his say to the public. To which the league publicly responded. It seems that people have heard both sides and are predominantly still coming down on the side that the league was right. Or at the very least, that Mathis should have known better. And he should have. When you’re a professional athlete working under a specific anti-doping policy, it is absolutely YOUR responsibility to ask about ANYTHING you put in your body beyond Ibuprofen. Just because a doctor says, “Take this,” – whether it’s for fertility, hemorrhoids, gout, or baldness – doesn’t mean you say, “Thank you, sir, may I have another.” How about questioning THAT authority? Is this a free pass to every professional athlete to take whatever a “doctor” prescribes, then argue your case to the league later?
‘Stupidity should always be assumed.’ Robert Mathis was the stupid one in this case for blindly taken a drug when he, yes, should have known better.
If I had to make the choice that Mathis made – ostensibly to roll the dice on bringing another life into the world or adhere to an NFL edict that is wrongheaded and foolish, I would do exactly what Mathis did. But that’s beside the point.
To enact the consequences of a rule without regard to the circumstance is how to train a dog, not sensibly discipline human beings. The intent of the PED rules is to keep players from gaining a competitive advantage through chemistry. Mathis gained no on-field advantage, so no discipline is warranted – unless I’m wrong and the rule was enacted to reduce population growth.
$705,000 is too much for taking 12 pills.