Let me say from the beginning that not all Republicans think alike! In spite of my political leanings, I am not a supporter of the right wing radio host, Rush Limbaugh. I am not an apologist for him or his "on air" comments. If my memory serves me correctly, I was quite adamant about Michael Steele's capitulation to Rush earlier this year regarding the hoopla over Limbaugh being an entertainer or leader of the Republican Party. Now the latest dust up (which has been averted) dealt with Limbaugh attempting to become a minority owner of the St. Louis Rams football franchise. Due to a history of racially charged remarks made by Limbaugh over the years, a cadre of Black players threatened to not play for the Rams if the the talk show host obtained approval to become a part owner.
I guess I have become indifferent to these matters because I have yet to see athletes of color galvanize with the same fervor when their compatriots are involved in behavioral/criminal missteps. But when a racial element gets added to this type of elixir....well, things start to change. I have talked about this phenomenon in the larger context of "pathology versus race" within communities of color in previous diatribes and entries. Well Rush lost his bid, due in part to the same cast of characters-Reverends Jackson and Sharpton. Am I looking at this wrong? If so, enlighten me....
And with typical Limbaugh aplomb, he has some words on this defeat, courtesy of the Kansas City Star:
Limbaugh lashes back after being dumped by Rams group
Radio personality Rush Limbaugh assigned blame Thursday after seeing his hopes for owning an NFL team dashed.
The list of those responsible includes President Obama, NFL union leader DeMaurice Smith, Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson and the media.
Conspicuously missing from the list was Limbaugh himself.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and Colts owner Jim Irsay each expressed misgivings this week at a leaguewide meeting about Limbaugh’s involvement with a group trying to buy the St. Louis Rams.
Goodell said Limbaugh had made “polarizing” comments, and Irsay vowed to vote against him. On Wednesday, Dave Checketts, who is organizing the bid, said Limbaugh had been dropped from the group.
According to transcripts posted on his Web site, in 2007 Limbaugh said: “The NFL all too often looks like a game between the Bloods and the Crips without any weapons. There, I said it.”
In 2003, he was forced to resign from ESPN’s Sunday night football broadcast after saying of the Eagles’ Donovan McNabb: “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.”
“The league has 78 percent African-American players,” said Dan Lebowitz, executive director of the Center for Sports and Society at Northeastern University. “Do you bring in someone who has made racist statements to own a team that’s largely made up of players the owner has made slurring statements about?”
On his syndicated show Thursday, Limbaugh said he was approached by Checketts, the St. Louis Blues chairman, earlier this year about participating in a Rams bid. Checketts assured him his involvement as a minority investor had been vetted by the NFL, he said.
“I said to him at this meeting, ‘Are you aware of the firestorm?’ He said ‘We wouldn’t have approached you if we hadn’t taken care of that,’ ” said Limbaugh, a conservative favorite who is reviled by many liberals.
Limbaugh added that Checketts had told him his involvement had been cleared at the “highest levels of the NFL.”
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