In this post, I want to drive home a point about the current controversy regarding Rush Limbaugh’s bid to buy the St. Louis Rams. I made a comment on FaceBook that I think Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton’s opposition to Rush’s potential purchase was one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard of (okay, I did exaggerate a bit). A friend responded to my post and asked why I was so upset: if it was because of the source, or if I was defending Rush. I want to be unequivocal in stating that it was entirely because of the source. I am a conservative, and I do listen to Rush occasionally because he has exhibited brilliance in explaining what the conservative cause is about, though obviously, he sometimes puts his foot in his mouth because he doesn’t have much of a working governor between his thoughts and his mouth. And of course, I completely disagree with his assessment of Donovan McNabb several years ago as a quarterback. I honestly don’t believe Rush is a racist. But I do strongly believe he calls things as he sees them, and being human, he has been wrong on a number of occasions (and I’m certain some of a more liberal bent would say on most if not all occasions).
My point is this is really none of Sharpton’s or Jackson’s business, so I would suggest they take their race card and play it elsewhere. Here we have two race-baiting shakedown artists who are always looking for opportunities to promote themselves by ginning up racial controversy where there is none, usually for status or profit. They can’t seem to focus on the real issues blacks face today, but generally go around provoking trouble as if they speak for the entire black population, making it look as if we’re all victims waiting with baited breath for the slightest racial injustice. This cheapens the cases where there is true racial prejudice. It is still out there, so let’s not kid ourselves. Let’s just be prudent and sure before playing the race card so when it must be used, it will be meaningful and justified. Now this may be a bit controversial, but frankly, I don’t care if Rush were a racist (and as I stated above, I don’t believe he is). If a racist wants to buy a team, then that is their prerogative if they can afford it. In fact, I’m quite certain there are racists that own sports teams, but we just don’t know they’re racists. And last I checked, it wasn’t against the law to be one. However, in this day and age, there is, thankfully, a price to pay. If a business owner is a known racist, he or she will not only lose minority patrons (self included), but will also lose white patrons who don’t want to be associated with such backward thinking. So times have changed, even though that fact may be wholly lost on Sharpton and Jackson.
In essence, the market will take care of this situation in terms of fan and advertiser reactions, so it doesn’t require two self-promoting con men to voice their opposition in order to create headlines for themselves (and who knows, they may be looking for a way to profit). I am certain Commissioner Goodell, team owners (of whom 24 of the 32 must approve), and advisors that will include men of color, will make an appropriate determination as to the suitability of Rush as an NFL team owner, taking into account any historical contexts as well as behavior moving forward that might reflect negatively on the NFL if it were to allow him to become a team owner. In any event, an NFL team owner is not directly involved in team operations, unless he’s a Jerry Jones type (which I believe is a really bad idea). From the perspective of the fans, their foremost concern is that the owner put the best possible product on the field and ensure a memorable game experience. However, if Rush is allowed to become an owner of the team, which will be an uphill battle, any perceived elements of racism or other sort of bigotry on his part will be noticed quickly by the fans as well as the team, causing ticket sales to suffer and a loss of morale that will most likely make the team a loser. So Rush had better have the right attitude and the best of intentions, which I believe he does. Being an NFL owner is not compatible with being a sometimes incendiary figure, so he may consider measuring his words more carefully moving forward.
Update (10/14/2009):
Well, Goodell has caved and Rush was kicked out of the group looking to buy the St. Louis Rams. All of this based on unsubstantiated allegations of racism. Here is a man who wants to make a hapless team better, who has the brains and the finances to make it so, yet he’s being denied his right as an American citizen to own a football team. What has this country become?
Check out the following video that sheds truth on the racist smear campaign against Rush (I lifted this from Verum Serum , a blog known for digging deep to get the story):
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