The NBA blame game starts. A sample:
Chris Mannix: it's Artest's fault.
Mike Lupica: it's not Artest's fault.
Tim Legler: it's the fans' fault.
Ray Ratto: it's testosterone's fault.
Board Junkies: it's ESPN's fault.
Mike Kahn: it's everyone's fault.
Timber: it's everyone's fault.
Eric McErlain: it's everyone's fault but Rasheed's.
Marc Stein: who cares? It's good for the game.
Yes, there's plenty of blame to go around.
Ben Wallace -- you completely overreacted to a hard but clean foul. And then you wouldn't calm down. I know you're a good guy, but you screwed up here. 5 games.
Ron Artest -- you showed admirable restraint in backing down from Wallace. But you lost your head when you got hit with a beverage -- I know it sucks, but that doesn't give you the right to go into the stands. And don't give me any crap about self-defense. The principle of self-defense is limited by the concept of proportionality. You don't get to defend yourself from the possibility of minor injury by inflicting serious bodily harm. Plus, there's a difference between self-defense and retaliation. Then, in the third incident, you threw punches at fans on the court. I don't know if those guys were about to hit you, but you threw the first punch. 25 games.
Stephen Jackson -- you are the secret villain. After the initial incident, when everyone else was trying to cool down, you kept stoking the fire. Then you followed Artest into the stands and started indiscriminately throwing punches at anyone you could reach. You've always been a damn nutcase, which has caused you to get shipped around despite your talent, 4 teams in 5 years. 30 games.
Jermaine O'Neal -- you sucker-punched a guy and sent him off on a stretcher. Even if that guy did go after Artest, by the time you hit him, he was on his knees surrounded, posing no threat to you or anyone else. 25 games and a criminal assault charge.
Detroit police -- you are incompetent fools. Haven't you ever trained for this? When the hallway to the lockerroom is lined with fans waiting to throw chairs and everything else at players, you did nothing. What the hell is that pepper spray doing in your pocket?
Detroit fans -- you are drunken jackasses. Don't give me any "a few bad apples" nonsense. This involved hundreds of you. Anyone who threw anything at a player should be banned from the arena. And anyone who hit anyone -- especially the fat thug who sucker-punched Fred Jones -- should face charges.
Detroit Pistons -- so far, you have responded as cowardly shills, barely criticizing your fans and placing all the blame on the Pacers. You deserve to have a few home games with no fans at all, and many more without beer revenue.
Chris Mannix: it's Artest's fault.
Mike Lupica: it's not Artest's fault.
Tim Legler: it's the fans' fault.
Ray Ratto: it's testosterone's fault.
Board Junkies: it's ESPN's fault.
Mike Kahn: it's everyone's fault.
Timber: it's everyone's fault.
Eric McErlain: it's everyone's fault but Rasheed's.
Marc Stein: who cares? It's good for the game.
Yes, there's plenty of blame to go around.
Ben Wallace -- you completely overreacted to a hard but clean foul. And then you wouldn't calm down. I know you're a good guy, but you screwed up here. 5 games.
Ron Artest -- you showed admirable restraint in backing down from Wallace. But you lost your head when you got hit with a beverage -- I know it sucks, but that doesn't give you the right to go into the stands. And don't give me any crap about self-defense. The principle of self-defense is limited by the concept of proportionality. You don't get to defend yourself from the possibility of minor injury by inflicting serious bodily harm. Plus, there's a difference between self-defense and retaliation. Then, in the third incident, you threw punches at fans on the court. I don't know if those guys were about to hit you, but you threw the first punch. 25 games.
Stephen Jackson -- you are the secret villain. After the initial incident, when everyone else was trying to cool down, you kept stoking the fire. Then you followed Artest into the stands and started indiscriminately throwing punches at anyone you could reach. You've always been a damn nutcase, which has caused you to get shipped around despite your talent, 4 teams in 5 years. 30 games.
Jermaine O'Neal -- you sucker-punched a guy and sent him off on a stretcher. Even if that guy did go after Artest, by the time you hit him, he was on his knees surrounded, posing no threat to you or anyone else. 25 games and a criminal assault charge.
Detroit police -- you are incompetent fools. Haven't you ever trained for this? When the hallway to the lockerroom is lined with fans waiting to throw chairs and everything else at players, you did nothing. What the hell is that pepper spray doing in your pocket?
Detroit fans -- you are drunken jackasses. Don't give me any "a few bad apples" nonsense. This involved hundreds of you. Anyone who threw anything at a player should be banned from the arena. And anyone who hit anyone -- especially the fat thug who sucker-punched Fred Jones -- should face charges.
Detroit Pistons -- so far, you have responded as cowardly shills, barely criticizing your fans and placing all the blame on the Pacers. You deserve to have a few home games with no fans at all, and many more without beer revenue.
posted by Ted at 11:20 AM
