In matters of morality, not all our heroes are equal

[annice22]

The is just a excerpt of the article: The full text is http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/...4d30e3&k=27281

In matters of morality, not all our heroes are equal
Bruce Dowbiggin, Calgary Herald
Published: Thursday, December 08, 2005

Much is made of character-building in sports. If you believed even half the PR churned out by pro sports teams, you'd think every top jock was a step removed from sainthood.

Sports Illustrated, for instance, invariably prints a cosy family picture whenever it does a feature on the latest phenom.

But even a cursory peek at the record will show many sports heroes have fallen short of eagle scout status. (As do many of us in other fields.) Especially in the realm of sexual assault, the list of star athletes either accused or convicted of rape is lengthy.

From Babe Ruth to Kobe Bryant, there have been accusations of sexual impropriety for decades -- more so now that sports reporting has become diligent in describing the real world of pro athletes, not an imagined paradise of superheroes.

Among hockey players, Ed Jovanovski (charges dropped), Dan Quinn (dropped), Todd Harvey (dropped), Grant Marshall (dropped), Scott Stevens (dropped), Dino Ciccarelli (convicted) and Billy Tibbetts (convicted) were either accused or convicted of sexual assaults.

The topic of athletes having sexual relations with their fans is a subject too large and contentious for a single column. But how should sport, which preaches wholesome family values, deal with players who've been either accused or convicted of crimes, sexual or otherwise? Does the mere allegation of misbehaviour, let alone a guilty plea, disqualify an athlete from pursuing a living in pro sports leagues?

The questions are fresh again in the wake of the Calgary Flames acquiring forward Kristian Huselius from the Florida Panthers last week. Huselius and fellow Swedes Henrik Tallinder and Andreas Lilja were accused of raping a woman in Sweden while playing in their homeland during the National Hockey League lockout.

While charges against the trio were eventually dropped for lack of evidence, the Swedish Ice Hockey Federation disqualified them from representing Sweden for a year, including the 2006 Olympics. (The NHL has not addressed the matter.)

The mixed result thus left Huselius only partly vindicated. He has said he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and that he wishes to move on.

So how should pro sports teams treat athletes who've been publicly accused of a sexual assault? Are they still liabilities even when cleared of the charges? When should the statute of limitations on such notoriety expire for someone such as Huselius?
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My question is:

Should a team check out a player's life style/actions before they sign them or should their signing only be about their sports contributions?

I was thinking about this because I was bored so I decided to google a Andreas Lilja of the Red Wings. I was just thinking why would they want to sign this guy, yeah he's good on the ice but what about off the ice. Even though he was cleared of the rape accusations he still brings along with him bad PR.

[hoosier]

It amazes me, when a high school recruit is profiled, that often he has a child or two while still in high school. Pretty common among college jocks too.

[honeychile]

To answer your question, I think that, if I owned or in any way managed a team, I'd want to know that my team wouldn't be hit with a lawsuit in the near future, or suffer from PR damage. So, yes, I'd want to make sure that the athletes on my team know the difference between consensual sex and rape; borrowing and stealing; and any other such realities of life.

And if it took having each athlete post X amount towards future bail or whatever prior to playing professionally, I'd think that's what signing fees are made for.

[annice22]

I really think the teams should really take into consideration the overrall package of the player before giving them tons of money.

I also, feel that the police should not easily drop a case because someone is famous. Which is another reason why women don't want to speak up about sexual assaults on them. Because they figure the case would be dropped.

Look at what happened to Kobe Bryant, which make me a little upset is that Nike signed him to endorse their products. Which to me contradict their "women power" campaign.

[valkyrie]

I'll admit that I'm biased, but to me, being accused of a crime doesn't mean jack -- innocent until proven guilty and all.

As for people who are actually convicted, honestly, I don't care. I watch sports for entertainment, and I'm not going to conduct a background check on every member of every team I like. What's the point?

BTW, the Kobe Bryant case wasn't dropped because he was famous. The accuser "declined to participate in the case" after getting a big chunk of $$$ from a settlement of the civil case.

[KSig RC]

Sports franchises are businesses - they should care about the athlete's personal life and personality only so far as it affects their business.

The 'output' for a sports team comes in the form of the product - that is, winning and good play. If the guy's a total douche, fine - if the team wins, the owner profits, and all that, there's no 'moral dilemma' here.

The owners aren't really open to very much liability - PR is really the only issue. If the team thinks that the potential for profit and success outweighs potential PR issues, then I can't imagine why they'd care about the player's personal life.

If your tax guy was accused of rape, and cleared, would you stop letting him do your taxes? Would you ever know?

[Rudey]

I like controversy and drama.

When a football team is filled with rapists and guys who rob convenience stores, it's make me love them more.

-Rudey

[annice22]

Originally posted by KSig RC

If your tax guy was accused of rape, and cleared, would you stop letting him do your taxes? Would you ever know?

I read this question earlier (very good question you posed) and had to think about my answer. To be honest I would feel uneasy with the accountant. I would most likely inquire about others who could provide this service. To me even though he was cleared, in the back of my mind I would think did he or didn't he.

To your second question, I would hope that the information is disclosed because I don't think it would be fair for the public not to know.

[33girl]

“Ty Cobb wanted to play, but none of us could stand the son-of-a-bitch when we were alive, so we told him to stick it!” - Field of Dreams.

Just to show that bad behavior has been around in sports for a long time.

Simply put...these teams are businesses. When a part of their business is shown to increase their revenue, they'll keep it. When a part of their business can be directly linked to diminishing returns, they'll bag it.

If a player is accused of rape (or any other crime) and the fans keep coming to the games, they'll keep him. If there's a public outcry against the guy and attendance goes down, they'll get rid of him. Simple as that.

Although as we should all remember on this board, some accusers are Very big nutbags.

[KSigkid]

Originally posted by 33girl
“Ty Cobb wanted to play, but none of us could stand the son-of-a-bitch when we were alive, so we told him to stick it!” - Field of Dreams.

Just to show that bad behavior has been around in sports for a long time.

Nice - I love that movie, and it's a good point. I find it interesting that people think that athlete misbehavior is a recent trend.

The signing should only be about how it will fit in the framework of the business. If it leads to losses, decreased competitiveness and takes away from results, then the signing isn't worth it. The personal life of players just shouldn't be that big of a deal.

[DeltAlum]

I'm making a really big generality here, for which I have no proof except my own personal experience in TV Production over many years.

There are a lot of athletes; pro, college and high school, who are not role models. In fact, they're self centered jerks -- not nice at all. I wouldn't go so far as to say "most," but a lot. More than you would run into in normal, everyday life, percentage wise.

There is an extraordinary number of pampered prima-donnas.

To be fair, there are also some very good ones as well -- including those who volunteer and turn our for community service and/or form their own foundations.

To make a blanket statement that "athletes are role models" is misguided, though.

[KSigkid]

Originally posted by DeltAlum
I'm making a really big generality here, for which I have no proof except my own personal experience in TV Production over many years.

There are a lot of athletes; pro, college and high school, who are not role models. In fact, they're self centered jerks -- not nice at all. I wouldn't go so far as to say "most," but a lot. More than you would run into in normal, everyday life, percentage wise.

There is an extraordinary number of pampered prima-donnas.

To be fair, there are also some very good ones as well -- including those who volunteer and turn our for community service and/or form their own foundations.

To make a blanket statement that "athletes are role models" is misguided, though.

Definitely, and perception isn't always reality. It works both ways; some guys get lauded even though they're not good people, and some get the short end of the stick, even if they're perfectly good people.

Now, (and this is NOT an attack on the media), but a big part of it is how the athletes portray themselves in the media, and how the media portrays them. I've been lucky enough to meet a few pro athletes in different situations, and in at least two situations, the athlete was NOTHING like his public image. They were often portrayed as malcontentd and problems, but I had a perfectly nice interaction with them. One athlete, I had a few interactions, and he was extremely nice and friendly each time.

The truth is, you can't know. You get one nasty columnist, or one unfortunate event, and someone's image is in the toilet.