What is it with athletes? Do they think that because of who they are they are able to do whatever they want without any consequences? It seems like more and more athletes are running into trouble with the law or doing things that most people could never dream of getting away with.
It seems that no matter where we look there is some big name athlete doing something to get in trouble, whether it is taking illegal drugs, vandalizing something or even writing hate messages on their eye black. Most of the athletes get away with a slap on the wrist and continue on with their careers with little backlash.
Just last week Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Yunel Escobar wrote a gay slur on his eye black in Spanish during a game against the Boston Red Sox. Did he not think that people would figure out what the saying meant? It’s not like he mistakenly wrote it not knowing the full meaning. He has to use a translator just to talk to the media.
So what punishment does he get? The only thing that happened to him was that he was suspended for three games without pay. This is going to cost him around $92,000 which is chump change considering that he will make about $5 million this season alone.
Another recent incident that has me scratching my head is when I heard that Shaun White, Olympic gold medalist and X-Games champion, was arrested last week at a hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. He was arrested with the charges of public intoxication and vandalism.
White was staying at the Loews Vanderbilt Hotel where he reportedly pulled a fire alarm, causing everyone in the building to evacuate. When White tried to flee in a cab he was stopped by another hotel guest. He then decided to try and flee on foot, falling and hitting his head on a fence post. I’m guessing it takes a lot of alcoholic beverages to cause one of the most coordinated athletes to hit his head on a fence while trying to run away.
Who knows what the consequences are going to be for White, but I am pretty sure that he is not going to suffer from any serious charges.
One athlete who will certainly not suffer from serious charges is NFL wide receiver Chad Johnson. Johnson was arrested a couple of weeks ago because his wife, Evelyn Lozada, said that he head-butted her in an argument. Instead of being sentenced to jail time for domestic battery, Johnson will face a one year probation where he will not be allowed to contact his now ex-wife through any medium and is required to attend an anger management class. When did it become possible to get away with a domestic battery charge with nothing more than probation?
Why is it that athletes can get away with these kinds of acts? The country will talk about their acts for a couple of weeks but will continue to cheer on these athletes the next time they compete.
If any average citizen were to write or say a gay slur at work he would not be able to get away as easily. Most companies would either reprimand harshly or even terminate employment. Same goes with anyone who is arrested for public intoxication or vandalism. Most companies have a zero tolerance for their employees getting arrested.
It seems to come down to the question of what is the limit on what an athlete can do before he completely falls from the spotlight and no longer has the support that he did as a superstar?
