Division I football recruit Roger Lewis is facing rape charges instead of attending his signing day ceremony where he was to chose from the many teams that wanted him as their wide receiver. It seems too often that in sports, more so in the NFL, that athletes face criminal charges or are accused of rape and most of them dont see the repercussions of their actions. Most of us can remember the many accusations against the Steelers Ben Roethlisburger, and how they always seemed to disappear or get settled out of court. What is alarming about these accusations is this player is still in high school! Even if the charges are dropped or he isn't convicted I bet all the schools that are lined up waiting for him still go after him. It seems accusations against athletes don't get held over their head like they do coaches and teachers, as discussed in my last post. Why is it we don't hold the athletes responsible for their actions?
You can read the full story at the following link: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/highschool-prep-rally/wr-recruit-roger-lewis-facing-rape-charges-instead-124158285.html
You are right, athletes are held on a higher pedastool than coaches and are often not punished like they should be. Although there are some who have paid the consequences and have spent more years in prison than someone who has killed an individual. For instance, Michael Vick and Plaxico Burress each spent more than 2 years in jail while Dante Stallworth only spent a few months in jail for running over a person and killing him. I feel the reason that athletes get away with most crimes is because of their fame, money, and power while coaches usually are not as famous, wealthy, and do not have as much power. The only exception to this would be coaches in the NFL. What would happen if Bill Belichick was caught doing something illegal when compared to the manager of the Kansas City Royals? Belichick would get off free while the manager of the Royals would most likely have a harsher punishment. It is all about the fame, power, and money.
ReplyDeleteYou are absolutely correct! A lot of people forget about real life when a great athlete is involved. People think of them as heros or something of the sort. People think that these athletes must have had a reason to do what they did, or it wasn't their fault. These people don't actually think about what really happened, or what the athlete really did. Sometimes, they don't want to post blame on athletes that are great. They feel that the game is bigger than life.
ReplyDeleteI agree as well. Kevin said it best I think when he said it is "all about the fame, power, and money." I remember that there were a few Penn State football players that were charged with things (2005ish) and they got off without hardly any consequences. I also had class with lot of athletes, namely football players, and some of them were complete jerks and felt like they were better than everyone else. They also seem like they feel above the law (which is maybe why they feel like they can get away with things? -- which they do!).
ReplyDeleteThe unfortunate thing is that a few "bad eggs" make the other people in the profession look bad. For example, I am very good friends with a couple of past PSU Football players and they are the nicest, most helpful people I have met. In addition, there are a lot of physical education teachers who have done terrible things that give all the rest of us a bad reputation or stereotype.
Ps. Kelly -- I love the fish gadget. I added it to my blog and it is my favorite!
DeleteI also agree with your posting! I feel that athletes and people who are the "faces" of athlets (coaches, presidents, etc) are more closely watched for their actions, but I also feel that they are not held to the same standards that the general public. I sometimes wonder though, are we hearing about more of these stories because the media is so ready to report on all of the "bad" things in our society and forget to report about the good? Or is it because we have access to media/social networking at our fingertips at all times that we see more of it?
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