As a general rule I do my best to let people enjoy things. Some people like apple pie, some prefer blueberry, others don’t like pie at all. That’s your right as a human being. But what if the pie is poisoned? What if the people enjoying the poisoned pie are unaware of the negative effect it has on their system? Is it moral or ethical to allow them to continue their enjoyment of the poisoned pie??
So there was an American football game on last night, as Monday Night Football featured a marquee game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Buffalo Bills. Ordinarily I don’t care for or watch football, not even out of some moral grandstanding, it’s just alot of standing around and very little action for my taste, but I was “hanging with the guys”, so naturally football was on. What could’ve been unimportant background noise quickly turned to tragedy, as second-year Bills player Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest after a tackle (link to article, NOT video of the tackle, because I’m not a sicko) and was administered CPR and eventually driven off the field in an ambulance. He was taken to a medical facility in Cincinnati where his official status is listed as sedated and in critical condition.
Of course this isn’t the first time a player has been severely injured or even come close to death on a football field. But the reaction from the league told the deeper, darker truth on how valueless the NFL considers human life. The NFL's first reaction to a possible death on the field was to give players 5 minutes to warm up. That’s right folks. They allowed players to gather on the field and pray together and then the league was fully prepared to just dive back into playing. Thankfully, the coaches were alert enough to communicate with one another and recognize the effect the injury had on both teams, and eventually the decision was made by the teams to complete the game at a later date. The league was fully ready to say, “ok folks, nothing to see here, no body means no crime, play ball.”
Keep in mind this is the same league that literally argued that black players suffering from concussion-related damages should get less money than their white counterparts because they had less mental capacity to lose. Truly a joke of a league.
Moral of the story: Some things are bigger than a game. Before you dive into that pie you’ve been enjoying, make sure it’s not completely poisoned and rotting away at your ability to recognize the value of human life.
Side Items
Ukrainian Attack on Donetsk: Ukrainian forces used U.S.-supplied guided rockets to hit a building housing Russian soldiers in an occupied eastern city early on New Year’s Day, according to Russian reports. Sources differ on the extent of the damage, but at least 60 Russian soldiers perished in one of the deadliest strikes on Russia’s forces in the 10-month-old war
Jeremy Renner Snowy Accident: The Marvel superhero and occasional rock star was involved in a snow plowing accident where he suffered “blunt chest trauma and orthopedic injuries” that required multiple surgeries. The 51 year old was originally listed in “critical but stable condition” before being released from the hospital earlier today. No word on when he’ll next feature in an overpriced superhero flick
Congressional Fraud: Our favorite congressional scammer, George Santos from NY, is sweating extra heavy this week after learning that law enforcement officials in Brazil will reinstate fraud charges against the Rep.-elect, according to the Rio de Janeiro prosecutor’s office. I didn’t have “Congressman gets sent to Brazilian prison” on my 2023 bingo card, but let’s see how things play out