This white man had the opportunity to grab a newspaper at the gym this morning and was confronted with the following grandiose bold headline: THEY LIED! Of course it was referring to the two Collingwood Magpies AFL players who had transgressed the night before; the two players being involved in a drink-driving incident where cars were damaged yet fortunately, no-one was physically hurt. But the media screams out LIES!!! MISTRUTHS!!! as it seems that the greater wrong in this incident was that one of the players lied to his club by denying that the other player was directly involved - in essence vainly trying to protect him from trouble. And yes, to try and falsify the truth was misguided and plainly wrong. Yet something seems to be getting overshadowed here - a prominent footballer who is a role-model whether he likes it or not made a decision to break the law and potentially risk harm not only to himself but also to others by getting into his car intoxicated and deciding that he could drive home. Well his car didn't make it home but, for the grace of God, he managed to emerge unscathed in one piece. But it could have been much different - it could have been an awful tragedy.
When will young people in our alcohol-fuelled culture realise that they are not laws unto themselves? When will footballers learn that they are not bullet-proof and above reproach? When will clubs REALLY begin to make a stand and deal with their players the way they should be dealt with? Not with a slap in the face with a wet piece of lettuce but a significant penalty that responds sincerely to the stupidity of their actions. Heath Shaw and Alan Didak - you both are bloody idiots and I hope you both grow up, learn something through suffering meaningful consequence and change your behaviour accordingly! What does it take and when will they ever learn?
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