You almost wonder where some of these prominent men in our society get their sense of invulnerability from, don't you?
Everything seems like it is finally caving in on Donald Trump, although let's face it: he got away with a hell of a lot, and for a very long time. Even if he suffers the consequences of what he is facing now, he could still largely get away with it if he wins re-election in 2020, something that mainstream Democrats seem intent on allowing to happen yet again.
There have been others who have gotten away with horrendous behavior, as the recent "Me Too" movement has revealed.
Clearly, this sense of entitlement and privilege pervades in sports, as well. Just look at Tiger Woods, who's brilliant career was completely derailed for many years because of his bizarre behavior towards a love interest, and the ramifications stemming from that. He was well on his way to what seemed to be likely be headed towards the undisputed greatest and most accomplished career in professional golf history. It still will rank as among the greatest of all time, but there likely will be an asterisk attached, not so much focusing on any cheating or anything like that, but rather, what he might have been able to achieve had he not effectively derailed his own career with actions that he took in his own personal life.
We have seen tons of athletes get in all sorts of trouble beyond that, making Tiger's antics look tame. We had Ray Rice throw away his career due to domestic abuse, and Kareem Hunt more recently. Just weeks ago, Hunt was the star running back on a team that many expected would go to the Super Bowl. But again, because of domestic abuse, his entire football career is likely over.
Of course, it does not always wind up like that. Ben Roethlisberger got in serious trouble not once, and not even twice, but three times. He could have killed himself after getting into a serious motorcycle accident shortly after he won his first Super Bowl, when he was not wearing a helmet. He survived, but then he was alleged to have forced himself on a woman. It was settled outside of court, but the charges were serious enough that he had to pay millions of dollars. Then, he did it again, and again, he had to settle out of court for millions of dollars. Sure, he lost some sponsors and the love and adoration of many fans, yet he still remained at quarterback, and it seems that most football fans have largely forgotten his dark history.
Well, yet another prominent - very prominent! - athlete has decided to test the waters of his esteemed career quite unnecessarily, by sharing an anti-Semitic Instagram post that contained references to "getting that Jewish money."
Right on time for the holidays!
James had quoted the song "ASMR" by hip-hop artist 21 Savage in his Instagram message:
"We been getting that Jewish money, Everything is Kosher"
But that clearly did not sit too well with many people. Perhaps LeBron might be surprised to know that some fans - both of him and of the Lakers - are Jewish, and that this might be seen as LeBron both promoting and reinforcing anti-Semitic stereotypes. For his part, LeBron did apologize to ESPN following a loss by his new team, the Los Angeles Lakers, to the Memphis Grizzlies over the weekend:
"Apologies, for sure, if I offended anyone. That's not why I chose to share that lyric. I always [post lyrics]. That's what I do. I ride in my car, I listen to great music and that was the byproduct of it. So, I actually thought it was a compliment and obviously it wasn't through the lens of a lot of people. My apologies. It definitely was not the intent, obviously, to hurt anybody."
Okay, it was not his intent to offend anyone by sharing that specific lyric. But LeBron is a grown man, and presumably understands that literally everything that he says or does is under the microscope. So, why would he figure that nobody would notice, or at least not get offended, when he posts something stupid like that?
Just one more reason, and one more example, of why I feel that Michael Jordan was clearly the greatest basketball player ever. He had some controversies himself, most famously for gambling, as well as the strange circumstances of his father's murder (although no one ever suggested that Jordan was in any way involved). Jordan just carried himself better, both on and off the court, than the self-described "King."
LeBron James apologizes for 'Jewish money' Instagram post by Dave McMenamin ESPN Staff Writer, December 24, 2018:
http://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/25606412/lebron-james-los-angeles-lakers-apologizes-jewish-money-ig-posting
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