This article was originally posted on Sports-Central.org on Thursday, May 15. It was re-posted on Bleacher Report with their permission. Sean Crowe writes a column there every other Thursday. Please take some time to check them out.
"We (the NFL) respectfully disagree with Sen. Specter's characterization of the investigation conducted by our office. We are following up after yesterday's meeting with Matt Walsh."
The NFL has to play nice, so you can see why they "respectfully" disagreed with Sen. Specter.
I, on the other hand, have no reason whatsoever to "respectfully" disagree.
While a high-ranking United States Senator was meeting with a man about a football game, one could argue that there were other things going on that deserved his attention.
I know what you're thinking. What else could possibly be happening in the real world that's more important than an NFL team stealing defensive signals?
Maybe a few things...
Some would argue that instead of wasting time meeting with Mr. Walsh, Senator Specter should have been meeting with the family of Cpl. Jessica A. Ellis.
You see, while fighting in a war that Sen. Specter supported, she was killed. Her death was announced by the military while he was meeting with Matt Walsh on Tuesday. Jessica was a 24-year-old from Bend, Ore. She was killed by an improvised explosive device that was detonated near a vehicle she was in.
Some would argue that Sen. Specter should have been looking into how our military can gain an advantage over the insurgents in Iraq so people like Jessica don't have to die, instead of looking into the competitive advantage gained by an NFL coach from taping defensive signals.
While he was giving his press conference on Spygate, your share of the United States' national debt went above $30,800.
That's just your share.
The entire bill? That's over $9.3 trillion.
One could make the argument that Sen. Specter should have been figuring out how much to fine our government for allowing us to get into this situation, instead of talking about how the fine the NFL gave to the Patriots was inadequate.
In the month of April, while Sen. Specter was threatening the NFL and demanding to talk to Matt Walsh about a video tape, he could have been working on a plan to help the 20,000 people who lost their jobs in that month alone.
Maybe he should have been looking into how to keep his constituents alive?
Philadelphia is now referred to as the city of death, since its murder rate is the highest it's been in 20 years. Perhaps instead of trying to stop the shooting of sideline video, he should have been looking into stopping the shooting of American citizens in the city he represents?
Rather than worrying about the NFL's monopoly on professional football, maybe Sen. Specter should have been looking into Big Oil's monopoly—especially since there were reporters who didn't make it to his press conference because they couldn't afford the gas.
Sen. Specter claimed Wednesday that nobody has ever questioned his integrity. Yet he gladly takes money from companies like Comcast and supports companies like Exxon/Mobil, who take advantage of the people he represents.
Seems to me that someone with integrity wouldn't do such a thing.
Who knows, maybe he'll give up golf like President Bush until the NFL resolves this crisis that's apparently worthy of more United States Senate attention than Osama bin Laden.
We may not be able to catch the guy who destroyed the World Trade Center, but we sure as hell will take down the evil Bill Belichick!
Patriots fan or not, you have to be ashamed, annoyed, and downright angry that your taxpayer money is being wasted on this crap.
Especially considering that this is all being done by a man who admitted on Boston Sports Talk Radio (850-WEEI) that he was only interested in Spygate because it cost the Eagles (his favorite team) a Super Bowl.
Well, fine. I give up. The Eagles can have their Super Bowl. They win.
If it means our government can go back to concentrating on petty, insignificant issues like Iraq, the War on Terror, unemployment, the cost of gas, and the national debt, I'll gladly give up one of the Patriots' three Super Bowls.
Just tell me what I have to do to make my government get the hell out of my sports.
Sean Crowe is a Senior Writer at Bleacher Report. You can email him at scrowe@gmail.com. His archive can be found here. You can find everything he writes, including articles for other publications, here.
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about 1 month ago
Words cannot describe how much I despise this Arlen Spector. Great article, sums up my feelings exactly. Wasting taxpayers money and a lot of votes. The NFL has its own competition commitee for christsake. I don't know why the media isn't all over this guy for totally forgetting his duties as a U.S. senator.
about 1 month ago
Although many of us feel the Senate's investigation is a waste of time and that there are many other important issues facing our congresspeople, this article could've been improved if it explained the arrangement agreed upon by the NFL and congress which granted the league a limited anti-trust exemption. As part of the agreement, the NFL reaps the benefits of profiting from a monopoly in exchange for being open to Senate oversight. It seems somewhat odd that the Patriots' videos were destroyed. Why would this be done if there was nothing to hide?
from about 1 month ago
Seriously Carl, do you really think stealing signs in sports should be a punishable offense?
I'm no Pats fan, but I'll defend this rediculousness.
The mere fact that they taped them is no big deal. In fact, it's on the ingenious side.
Any coach who doesn't change his signs from game to game is an idiot. Anyone with a pair of binoculars could steal them just as easy. The fact that the Pats taped them is simply a cross-check to make sure they stole them correctlly.
The Barry Bonds witch hunt was also a waste of time. Players such as Willie Mays, Bob Gibson, Lou Brock, etc. have all said that Greenies & Reds were available on the clubhouse counter by the bowls full. They've all said that many players would have never made it through a season without them. If that's not performance enhancement, I don't know what is.
If Arlen Sphincter wants to investigate anything in sports, he should be investigating as to why the NCAA is more concerned with North Dakota's Fighting Souix mascott than they are with the laundry list of indescretions at USC.
USC's Dirty Laundry
about 1 month ago
I actually tried to email him but being that im not a PA resident it wasnt much use. I wish the people who voted for him were this angry cause I sure as hell would be, as well as wondering what more important things hes not doing on my behalf because hes trying to prove what we already know, that the pats cheated. If he really wants to do something to help the sport, why doesnt he see what congress can do to make sure we dont have a lockout in 2011? lol. I need my football.
about 1 month ago
I am livid that a US Senator would waist the Tax payers money. This seems to be typical of our government to allow a US senator waist time and money on a sport. Lets see. We are sending boys to Iraq, We have a magor gas crisis, Gangs just in PA are running wild. Now I am sure that this Sentator must be on some very important commities. Well while he is whineing about his football team he should be voting and doing what he is paid to do. He is why a toilet seat cost 500.000. He most likely is the laughing stock in the senate and quite frankly I am surprised no one has told him to get back to work. He is the reason the dollar is not worth much anymore. What exactly does he want? I really havent figured that out. Government should stay out of sports. period!!!
about 1 month ago
Great Article. It is very concerning that our country is in as large a mess as we are in at the moment and government is spending valuable time and money trying to decide who lied between Roger Clemens and Brian MacNamee and whether or not Bill Belichick taped some practices. We have had over 3,000 troops killed in a war approaching the longest conflict the country has ever been involved in, we are one of only two countries in the entire developed world where the government does not provide healthcare to it's citizens, crime is rampant, virtually anyone can walk into a Walmart and walk out with a gun, gas and healthcare costs are through the roof while employees salaries are not increasing at all, etc. and government is spending their time investigating taping of practices or whether or not Roger Clemens or Brian MacNamee are lying? That is very concerning.
about 1 month ago
I'm glad that Senator Specter is investigating the Patriots.
It's obvious that the NFL is incapable of policing itself, so an outside authority is needed. Baseball? Same with the steroid scandal that was swept under the rug by the commissioner's office for years.
The victims of sports cheaters, such as the Patriots or Barry Bonds, are the non-cheaters within the respective sports. Someone needs to stand up for them, and Arlen Specter is doing just that.
And the undercurrent of liberal bashing of the war in Iraq lends this article even less credibility. But, like most liberals, they can't keep it out of where it belongs.
I give an F- for the drama queen who wrote this article.
from about 1 month ago
Lets talk about the war in Iraq for a minute-Let me try to put this a bit more in perspective for you. I'd like the Senator to look into why it takes me, a 40% disabled veteran, months to receive health care from the government. I had to wait more than 2 months to get scheduled for an MRI.
I've got friends whom are active duty that have to wait 6 weeks or more before getting into surgery for injuries suffered while deployed.
I've seen soldiers, and have friends that ask for help with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), and have to wait 2 months to get professional counseling.
I've seen soldiers, both active duty and reserves, that have lost limbs while deployed, and have to wait nearly a year before getting fitted with a permanent prosthetic.
I'd love for the senator to stop wasting time on whether or not teams in the NFL are video taping signals, and spend a bit more time getting the brave men and women whom defend our freedom everyday better health care.
Of course, according to you Tom, the victims of sports cheaters deserver Senator Specters time more than the men and women in our armed forces.
Things seem different when they're looked at from someone else's shoes, doesn't it?
Doing my best to avoid a personal attack, I'd give you an F- for putting the NFL above our service men and women.
from about 1 month ago
Just because someone is a liberal who dares voice an opinion in conflict with yours does not make him less credible. If you think his individual points are not credible, let's here your counterpoints. I'm sure you will find no shortage of people willing to have an informed debate on the issues if you are willing to stop name-calling and making demeaning generalizations.
(Tip: before you assume I am being biased in contending with your remarks, you might want to look a few comments down where I told someone not to engage in the same exercise as it pertains to you.)
from about 1 month ago
Are you talking to me MJ? I thought I did just that-made (what I thought were) viable counterpoints, and with the F- grade, all I did was do what Tom did earlier....dare I say what's good for the goose is good for the gander? Although I did such without insulting anyone.
I care less about others peoples opinions, whether they coincide with mine or not. All I did was attempt to give others something to think about with my comments.
about 1 month ago
Over the course of the last seven years billions of dollars have been wagered on NFL football games. When you add up all the collective betting on football on a global scale it is hundreds of billions of dollars. A lot of people lost a lot of money because of the Pats cheating.
Now,in the gambling world, its called "fixing a game" when organized cheating occurs within a sports franchise. When this happens you leave the rhelm of sports and enter the sleazy world of crime.
Regardless of what Rodger would have us believe, fans outside of Boston think that the Pats had a huge advantage from cheating. So would people betting on the game if they knew about the cheating. When cheating is uncovered in a horse race or boxing match, they don't loose a draft pick, someone goes to jail.
A LOT OF PEOPLE LOST A LOT OF MONEY BECAUSE OF THE PATS CHEATING. THEY FOOLISHLY BELIEVED IN THE INTEGRITY OF THE NFL WHO KNEW OF THE CHEATING AT LEAST TWO YEARS AGO AT GREEN BAY.
You have to realize that cheating in pro sports is something bigger than the sport itself. With the amount of money that goes through gambling transactions, any type of cheating has to be investigated. And that is the door that Goodell, Kraft and Rooney et al. don't want Specter to open.
This story broke nine months ago. In that time we know that Specter sent a letter to Roger Goodell, sent a follow-up letter, spoke with Goodell and conducted a brief meeting with a person with knowledge of the situation.
That doesn’t seem like an unreasonable amount of time to spend on one of the many issues he deals with. He’s the ranking member of the committee with oversight of the N.F.L.’s antitrust exemption. If the league conducted a sham investigation into cheating —as the evidence suggests — then it’s totally appropriate for him to inquire into the matter.
from about 1 month ago
so because people gamble on football sen specter should be allowed to investigate and wasting taxpayers time and money? your argument makes no sense, and i certainly hope you dont vote if investigating sports scandals is what you want your senator to do while in office. As an veteran of the Iraq war and a sports fan I would be furious at my senator if he/she were involved in such nonsense. We live in some of the most crucial times in the history of our nation, with the war, our huge national debt in the trillions, gas prices soaring, global warming becoming a threat to the future of humanity, our school systems failing our kids, and the problems in our healthcare system, yet what we really need our senate doing is finding spare time to make sure sports are fair. Im not saying Gooddell didnt sweep this under the rug, cause it appears he slapped the pats on the wrist and moved on as quickly as possible, however i think of the three commissioners of major sports, he is doing the best job overall and is proactive in his discipline approaches. Thats more than I can say for Bud Selig or David Stern.
about 1 month ago
Someone has to do it. TOM you're an idiot....I'm just shaking my head and laughing at anyone who could be so simple minded......must have taken the short bus.
Nice forum many good thoughts all around.
Thanks,
from about 1 month ago
The name-calling of Tom and short bus quip are unnecessary and offensive--do not stoop to the level of his kind, branding anyone who disagrees with him as a drama queen somehow less credible. Let's keep the discussion, which as you aptly pointed out, is otherwise a "nice forum (with) many good thoughts all around."
I will also state in the interest of fairness that Spector has been among the most critical of the Bush Administration's disinformation even though he is a fellow Republican who voted for the war. However, I also do not think any rational person can argue that there are not more important things for him to be focusing on, nor that this is an example of blatant pandering. And you laid out those issues as well as you could have, Sean--props!
about 1 month ago
Robert - sounds like you lost the bet. Regardless, all gamblers had an even playing field because in case you haven't figured this out yet ALL THE TEAMS DO THIS. WAKE UP. I had to write that in caps in case that's the only way you know how to communicate.
about 1 month ago
Agreed MJ - guilty as charged. Being a sports and seeing such short sightedness got the better of me.
about 1 month ago
You know, Sean, the biggest problem in this article, is trying to compare apples to oranges.
First of all, if you wanted to make sure there was no spygate, you could give all the football players machine guns, send them through Basic, and then let 'em loose in Iraq.
Nice, neat, and no more messes to pick up.
All that money, that would be paid to players, owners, stadium construction costs, and the like, would pay off the National Debt.
And then we could all go watch a nice game of Baseball.
Now, in the real world.....
We know, signs were taped.
We know, that Belicheck has a history of cheating.
Probably the biggest oops to come out, came from Phil Simms, when he said, there is no guarentee that winning a game, will occur with knowing the signs. They had the signs of the San Diego Chargers during a game....and got 44 points hung up on them.
Who was part of the Giants organization, in 1980?
Belicheck was there. So was his number two, partner in crime.
And the whole grey area statement, is one thing.
But how do you mess up the gray area, for 8 years?
Lastly, how much is Goodell getting paid by Kraft to make this ugly little matter be swept under the carpet? All, as they say, for the integrity of the game?
about 1 month ago
South Park episode where they mentions Bill Belicheck is very very funny how he teaches his class to cheat like white people.
The NFL should have done its job better there should be a seperate body that can be used, internal affairs that is what is needed in some fashion and far more tranparency I got no trust in the NFL...
Alby
about 1 month ago
Great article. While the Patriots may or may not have taken part in immoral activities with Spygate, it is far below what Senator Specter should be focusing on.
Also, that is a very flattering picture of the senator
about 1 month ago
Obviously, this article could've been a hell of a lot longer, filled with stuff Specter could be doing instead. I'd like to add: 1.) Baking a raisin nut bread and 2.) Doing a Viagra or Cialis commercial cameo of some type.
There's something about ultra-nerdy politicians getting their hands dirty in a sport they clearly never played. How about if Specter can prove to the NFL that he can catch a football, the investigation will be allowed to continue? The YouTube clip would likely be called "Man getting hit in the groin by football."
One question: If Specter is a true Philly fan why hasn't he taken repeated and unprovoked shots at Donovan McNabb? Isn't that how they roll? I'm confused.
Solid read, Sean.
about 1 month ago
this is america! when did it become ok to cheat !when my son was in forth grade ,he already knew the"every one else was doing it"thing didn't fly.but here [i assume] grown men and women are using it.to say the senate is too busy to deal with this is wrong, or that its none of their business is also a bit simplistic .if the nfl refuses to take a more realistic look into this matter .i for one am glad some one else will.players and fans deserve better!look at baseball! they saw those big swole up heads in the locker rooms,they did nothing.now their sport is a joke.it will take years to get back what they lost,if they can!
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