By now, everyone’s heard of Kane’s alleged attack of a Buffalo cabbie last weekend and the blowout from it is bound to keep grabbing headlines for some time to come – especially with the US Olympic hockey team’s training camp coming up.
Here’s the thing. I don’t care if Kane is found guilty – in my eyes, if he’s not in prison during the Olympics and he’s good enough to make the team, then he should be an Olympian. Same goes for guys like Vick who have paid their price in jail, and guys like Lewis who are found innocent.
What I don’t get is why these people put themselves in such bonehead situations.
Here’s what I’m thinking… Ricky Williams – you wanna smoke dope? You know what, it’s none of my business. But you know it’s against NFL rules. Like it or not, whatever Ben Harper says, it’s a rule and you are fully aware of the rule. A career for a guy of your calibre is what, five-10 years? So dude, drop the doob for a few trips around the calendar and then smoke to your heart’s content after your career.
Showing the world that you’re daring enough to challenge Paul Tagliabue or Roger Goodell does not make you a hero, it makes you a bozo who clearly has a priorities issue.
Strawberry? It’s one thing to be a deadbeat dad, but while you’re a member of a professional organization and are one of the best players in your sport, it might not be a great idea to draw negative attention to yourself and your team for the sake of sheer stupidity. Screw off after your career – in the mean time, give the fans and your PR staff a break and just pay your bills, bro.
And I won’t even get started on Lawrence Phillips. Which brings us to Kane.
Picture this – you’re 20 years old and one of the biggest stars on one of the most exciting young teams in the National Hockey League, in an Olympic year to boot. And the Olympics are in your backyard for a change.
So what’s the best thing to do? Lay low in the off-season, go into the Olympic camp and put on a show, then lead your team hard out of the gates when the NHL season starts and run the ink dry on a few scorekeepers’ pens.
No, apparently, the smart thing to do is to hop in a cab at 4 a.m. and beat the crap out of the driver with your cousin ‘cause he’s short 20 cents change. Honestly. Kane’s move in Buffalo last weekend might not be on the scale of the Vick’s dog fighting ring, but it comes from the same realm of hubris-fueled stupidity.
Seriously folks, someone needs to turn on the lights.
On a way more positive note, we’re happy to report that the Girls Summer Softball League’s second annual All-Star game was another huge success, with close to $20,000 raised for cancer research.
Event co-organizer Lindsay Sacks, an All-Star herself, was thrilled. "Staring into the bleachers from the dugout, I was touched as I watched fans hold signs up high which they bought to support their favourite player," she said. "With close to 500 people, the attendance surpassed last year's, the enthusiasm in the crowd was sincere, and we all left the field that night with smiles on our faces."
For those of you keeping score, the Western All-Stars were 17-14 winners with Knockouts pitcher Karen Sinnett chosen as the game MVP.
You can always reach me at noahsidel@gmail.com
