Ray Rice: everybody’s favorite wife beater. Just like Riley Cooper is everyone’s favorite racist. Oh, you forgot about Riley Cooper and his little tirade? No matter. The name Ray Rice is synonymous with dirt for the next several months. Just like Leonard Little (vehicular manslaughter and DUI) was synonymous with scumbag a few years back. Don’t remember him either? It’s inconsequential to this conversation.
See the Ray Rice outrage has nothing to do with do with domestic violence. Nor does it have to do with the poor cover up attempt by the NFL and Ravens Organization. And crime and punishment is rarely mentioned in the conversation so you can definitely rule that out. Ray Rice hit (no pun intended) on a little spoken on truth in the ethos of America: people despise those who interfere with the pure enjoyment of our sports. It’s the reason why umpires/ referees are unpopular. It’s why “bad” announcers are excoriated over the internet. And it’s why Jimmy Kimmel’s stunt to have people unplug the TV during the Super Bowl awhile back was almost universally met with violence and instant anger. Ray Rice, Greg Hardy (domestic violence conviction) and Adrian Peterson (child abuse allegations) made people look at football players negatively during a 3 week stretch that never seemed to end. And that negative image was all you could discuss. Not the game. Not the final score. Not the players. And it rubbed an overwhelming majority of sports fans and sports media the wrong way. You don’t mess with sports in this country. It’s why the same men who wish they could slap the taste out of their fat, annoying wives were all of a sudden dismayed with Ray Rice. It wasn’t because what he did was wrong. It was. It wasn’t because the video was despicable. It was. And it wasn’t because it was a cowardly act. It was. But it was because the random NFC West divisional showdown 3000 miles away from Baltimore and Atlantic City was less enjoyable to watch because football players became synonymous with crushing left hooks in an elevator and that didn’t sit well with sports fans.
What makes me so sure of this stance? How little outrage there is against the State of New Jersey for letting Ray off with a light slap on the wrist. If that was another man who Rice hit, he would’ve received a harsher punishment. Same thing if Janay was hit by another female. But every New Jersey lawyer who defends a domestic violence perpetrator will now argue for the Ray Rice penalty; and such a light penalty is not in the best interest of the domestic violence advocates who the NFL hired in light of the Rice fallout. But yet, these women never mention this fact on ESPN. It’s all about the NFL: the multi-billion dollar corporation who has no effect on the day to day quality and quantity of life of most Americans. Professional football is nothing more than an entertainment service which has permeated almost all aspects of daily life. This fact makes the NFL seem more important than it really is. Rice doesn’t pay your rent. Roger Goddell doesn’t raise your kids. The NFL is just there to televise a kid’s game and advertise various products. Unfortunately for you, the constant conversation about domestic violence and child abuse has distracted from the conversation about whether Tom Brady is done. Crime and punishment are massive issues in this country, but people are more upset they wasted fantasy football draft picks on Rice and Peterson. You don’t want to deal with violence against women. You want the game to kick off and your team to score.
Enjoyment of sports is what ultimately matters. It’s the constant undercurrent of every conversation about the Ray Rice incident. It’s why ESPN talking heads would in one breath decry the negative attention Rice placed on the sport, and in the next sentence, decree that they were going to “get back to the game, because nothing is bigger than the game.” Domestic violence, crime and punishment, second chances, conspiracies, cover ups and the happiness of the now married couple mean nothing. And even though these topics affect your everyday lives more than the NFL, you only care about the entertainment football provides. Rae Curruth, I mean Ray Rice be damned. Come Sunday, the figurative question will be asked: “Are you not entertained?!?!” And you are hoping and praying that the answer will be yes.
Knowledge ESQ
Persecuted Knowledge 