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Rush to Judgement
By Tony Romeo
phillypage2 columnist (10 2-2003)
"I don't think he's been that good from the get-go," Limbaugh said. "I think what we've had here is a little social concern in the NFL. The media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well. There is a little hope invested in McNabb and he got a lot of credit for the performance of this team that he didn't deserve. The defense carried this team."
So having examined his word...let's break that down and try to form an objective opinion.
"I don't think he's been that good from the get-go"...
Well folks, that is an opinion. You can agree or disagree, but he is paid to give opinions, and he is entitled to have one, just like you and I. For the record, I don't think any QB is good from the "get-go." It is the nature of the position, it is why QBs languish on the bench for years in some cases before they get a chance to start. So…no harm in that statement. Let’s move on…
" I think what we've had here is a little social concern in the NFL. The media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well."
This part of the statement begins where people have a problem with him, but again, it is an opinion. For the record, I half agree. I do not think the concern is "social" as Rush says...it's economic. Does the NFL want a black poster boy QB to succeed in a way no other black QB has? Of course they do. Why wouldn't they? Diversity sells, period. Be it a black QB, a Japanese baseball player, a woman golfer on the men's tour, a female goaltender...or a white running back. When individuals, or even teams, of people that are different then the norm succeed in ways that others before them have not, everybody wins. The teams/leagues can sell it, the media can cover it, and the fans can revel in it. It's Rocky....it's Ichiro...it's Anika...it's Seabiscuit...it's Doug Williams...it's Cito Gaston...IT'S PHILLYPAGE2!!! People outside the norm, (whatever the norm may be), succeeding where others of their race or creed or religion, or social groups etc., have not yet succeeded, paves the road. Doug Williams might be why a young Donovan McNabb says to himself, " I can do that..." So, again, I am not sure why this statement by Rush is so dangerous? The flip side would be, that the NFL and the media are desirous that a black QB NOT do well? Let's look at the next part...
"There is a little hope invested in McNabb and he got a lot of credit for the performance of this team that he didn't deserve. The defense carried this team."
Okay, now Rush is speaking in declarative statements...no more "I thinks." But still, does he miss the mark, that much? The defense DID carry that team. The defense has ALWAYS carried the Eagles, even back to the "Ultimate Weapon" days, the "Polish Rifle" days, and days before that I am too young to remember. The NFC East has never been a haven for swashbuckling offensive powerhouses. So, 9 times out of 10, you show me a winner in the NFC east, and I'll show you a dominant defense and a QB that does what it takes to win...(Aikman, Collins, Randall, Theisman, Simms, Hostetler. Williams...etc.etc). Sometimes they will get too much credit, sometimes not enough...So, I am not sure why this section is so inflammatory either?
Maybe the person not getting enough credit, is Rush. Whether you like him or not, whether he is a loudmouth or not, whether he is overbearing or not, if you look at his record he does not have a penchant for racial slurring. We all know about the Mt. Rushmore of sports bigots, the Schotts, and Campanis' and Jimmy the Greeks...and sometimes the media is too ready to engrave another face to that mountain of shame. For all his faults, Limbaugh is not like these characters...but we are so sensitive these days that we are sometimes too eager to find the next head to roll in the name of racial quality. Rush’s enormous head can be a target for a lot of things, but racist, or bigot? I think that is a stretch….
We live in a world of races and we always will. But that world gets less racist, all the time. I'd like to think sports may be one of those reasons. Still, hiccups in that progress occur, and this Rush incident is one. It was not one in and of itself...it was turned into one by the media. That was his opinion, that was not THAT off-based. A problem we have in this country with regards to race is we feel like it is a civil badge of honor to OUT a racist. In that zeal, I think too often we connect dots, make inferences, and draw conclusions from benign statements and actions that are not racist, not meant to be racist, and not acted out by a racist.