Posted on 04/30/2014 12:34:31 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver won near-universal plaudits for delivering “death penalty” sanctions on LA Clippers owner (for now) Donald Sterling with a lifetime ban and a recommendation to the owners that they force a franchise sale. The NAACP, however, isn’t satisfied. They want Silver and the owners to guarantee that this won’t happen in the future, too:
The National Urban League, the National Action Network, the NAACP and the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation issued a joint statement cheering Silver’s announcement that he banned Sterling for life and that the league would attempt to force him to sell the Clippers.
That decision, the statement said, was “a bold, courageous and resolute message that the views expressed by Sterling do not represent the National Basketball Association as an organization today or the kind of organization that it seeks to be in the future.”
But Sterling’s suspension isn’t enough, the groups said, calling for Silver to meet with them to ensure Sterling “remains an anomaly among the owners and executives in the league.”
“Sterling’s long-established pattern of bigotry and racist comments have not been a secret in the NBA,” the statement said. “Yet until now, they have been tolerated and met with a gentle hand and a blind eye.”
That’s true. Sterling’s biases have been pretty well known, if not widely discussed, and his discriminatory practices in real estate have brought legal sanctions. The NAACP in particular has long fought Sterling over his control of the Clippers, and … er, what? They gave him a lifetime achievement award despite their knowledge of his biases and practices?
Maybe these groups should look to clean their own house first, as CBS News explains:
Talk about chutzpah, at least with the NAACP. In this case, all sides acted shamelessly. Sterling bought their approval, and they willingly sold it. The Los Angeles chapter of the NAACP was about to bestow another lifetime achievement award on Sterling in a couple of weeks, which they hastily canceled when this tape went public and viral. They have little standing in this case to demand that the NBA offer them guarantees after years of willingly cleansing Sterling of his sins through his cash infusions.
Life doesn’t provide guarantees — only the need for vigilance. If they want integrity moving forward, though, these groups should start by implementing it in their own organizations first.
The NBA may have better news coming. Entertainment mogul David Geffen wants to bid for ownership of the Clippers, according to Reuters:
Billionaire media executive David Geffen is interested in buying the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team, according to a person with knowledge of Geffen’s thinking, following a decision by National Basketball Association commissioner Adam Silver to ban Clipper owner Donald Sterling for life. …
Geffen, who started two record labels and the Dreamworks film studio with Jeffrey Katzenberg and director Steven Spielberg, had expressed interest in the past in buying the Clippers but never made an offer.
He has a net worth of an estimated $6.2 billion, according to Forbes magazine.
Geffen could probably act quickly if the NBA can force Sterling to sell, but that may end up taking years if Sterling fights them in court. If the league constitution allows owners to determine eligibility for a franchise ownership, though, Sterling may not have much of a case, and may decide to save his money and make a fortune on the sale instead. Magic Johnson and his Guggenheim Partners would probably be interested in buying the franchise and it would be better public relations to have Johnson end up as managing partner for the club, but Geffen’s wealth gives him a big edge, especially if the league acts quickly. Geffen could always combine forces with Johnson and his partners, too.
What a witch hunt. If they burn him at the stake it still won’t make the witch hunters happy. The accusation is worse than the thought crime which, as private speech, is still a first ammendment right - so far.
NAACP needs a better form of mind control.
And another NAACP racist coup in the name of diversity.
Who is talking WalStreet hostile take over here? This is such utter crap when politics can take over an entire business... this is totally criminal.
It’s surprising to me how many otherwise intelligent people do not understand what they heard the other day.
You’ve got an old fart owner, who has plenty of money and is trying ot live out the remainder of his life as a player with a particular young woman. He asses he can’t demand exclusivity, rightly or wrongly, even though he’s very wealthy. He can attract her, and treat her as his girl friend if he’s not to demanding. And so he agrees to not be too demanding.
He agrees to let her play around. He simply asks that she keep the pretense in place, that she and him are an item. She may have done this for a while, but even this was too much to ask, and at some point she decided she wanted to play around more overtly, and so she did.
Sterling, wishing to retain at least some respect in public, asked her not to flaunt here sexuality with Blacks in public. Now that does sound racist, until you listen to the rest of it. He said he didn’t care if she wanted to sleep with them privately way from home, or even at his own home. He just didn’t want her signalling that she was cheating on him, because then he would have to react publicly. He asked her to tone it down, because he didn’t want the press playing it up, his peers thinking less of him, or him being publicly humliliated based on her lact of self control.
Folks, this isn’t racism. It’s a crusty old guy trying to maintain a relationship, without being seen as a man willing to share his woman. It’s as simple as that.
Her favorite group of people to consort with happened to be Blacks, but it could have been Whites, Hispanics, Asias... whoever. The guy wasn’t saying Blacks are inferior. He was just asking her to do stuff in private.
This man should not be subject to what is taking place. Cooler heads should prevail.
The Black groups who are now going after him, should be ashamed of themselves.
White racism is not dead. It will never be. It is genearlly under control. And it is under control, because Whites demanded it of themselves. Other forms of racism aren’t dead eather. And those are the types that are proliferating and treatening our society ever bit as much as any outside threat could. The practitioners of that racism, are demading nothing of themselves, except another double serving as often as possible.
This must end.
How many white people does the NAACP employ? I bet far fewer then Donald Sterling!
Why were they giving him a yet another award? They had to know of his background.
And the Championship would be determined by the winner of the NBA and the CBA.
Your scenario sounds pretty spot-on. After a dope-smoking session with plenty of $700-a bottle cognac, a plot was hatched to acquire an NBA franchise. The trick was finding which owner was most vulnerable. Even in a dope and booze induced haze, it would not be hard to figure that one.
Better translation: give us ALL your money.
We’re talking about the NBA. If Sterling wasn’t banned for life the players wouldn’t have played and more sponsors would have pulled their money. Not to mention the protests and negative press. You can’t run a business that way. This had absolutely nothing to do with free speech. The government is not infringing on his right to say anything. His employer is, which is allowed under their contract.
Please, did you have to show us that pair of mugs before lunch!
RE: Rush Limbaugh
About 10 years ago, Rush had a brief stint as a pro football commentator with ESPN.
His comment that caused him to step down was on quarterback Donovan McNabb. He said:
“I don’t think he’s been that good from the get-go. I think what we’ve had here is a little social concern in the NFL. I think the media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well. They’re interested in black coaches and black quarterbacks doing well. I think there’s a little hope invested in McNabb and he got a lot of credit for the performance of his team that he really didn’t deserve. The defense carried this team.”
Rush then tried to buy an ownership stake in the St. Louis Rams in 2009.
Dave Checketts, who was head of the group that was planning to purchase the RAMS said in a statement that Limbaugh’s participation had become a “complication” in the group’s efforts and the bid will move forward without him.
Colts owner Jim Irsay vowed to vote against him. Commissioner Roger Goodell said the Limbaugh’s “divisive” comments would not be tolerated from any NFL insider.
They of course never defined what “divisive” meant.
Can the NAACP guarantee that THEY will never act like jerks again? Did they ever apologize to Bush for calling him a racist?
Clippers Owner Donald Sterling Heckles Baron Davis,
Obama and his ilk are creating a lot of racists.
RE: If we play this right, we’ll be the new owners!
And where do they get the money?
You’re right on, for sure. As usual it’s all about the money.
Rush mentioned today that ESPN told him they didn’t want ANY politics in their programming.
Of course, when Hunter S. Thompson (writing for ESPNDisney’s website) said that the abuses at Abu Ghraib (under GW Bush’s watch) were WORSE than the most vile Nazi atrocity, he still had his job there.
“It’s called free speech!!”
Yep, that’s what they want to make sure doesn’t happen again.
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