Monday, March 21, 2011

Day #21.... Tis Only Fair

If one decides to look over all of the posts made since the inception of this blog, there is one glaring, recurring theme that I seem to point out. Auburn University. Even though I have repeatedly stated that my intent is not to slam Au, I must admit it has been my #1 topic. Mainly because they seem to have put themselves at the very forefront of my thought process by having so many people that are integral parts of that university allegedly involved in so many different aspects of corruption in both the criminal and collegiate arenas. Well, guess what Au fan? Today, you will get to hear me turn my ire towards my own beloved Capstone. 

As so many Au fans have pointed out to me since the story broke regarding Alabama’s Senior safety (Mark Barron) and his arrest for obstructing / hindering justice, now is a chance for me to prove that I am not just targeting Au. In my last post, I mentioned how I thought Alabama was having fewer and fewer incidents that made the crime blotters across the state. Of course typing such words most likely greatly increased the odds of something happening this quickly. Murphy’s Law is no joke. That said, I still contend that the incidents involving Alabama’s athletes is on the decline as opposed to past years under a wide variety of coaches. Furthermore, I contend that the severity of Barron’s crime is no comparison to those of Auburn’s most recent student athlete crime blotter listings. It still doesn’t make it right and it still reflects poorly on both Barron and the University of Alabama. 

According to initial reports, Barron’s automobile was involved in a one car accident on an interstate in the Mobile area (Barron’s home town). While the reports I have read were not very clear, it seemed as if Barron was in the automobile, but was not the driver. I saw no mention of Barron being intoxicated, but one would assume that would be the most likely reason that he was not driving his own car. Barron told police that the driver of his vehicle was an acquaintance that he knew only as “Bull.” After a short investigation, it appears that the Mobile police found out that the driver was one of Barron’s cousins who had left the scene of the accident. After giving Barron multiple opportunities to change his story, Barron opted to stick with his original one. STUPID, STUPID, STUPID!!!! I understand Barron not wanting to be labeled as a snitch, especially by naming a family member, but it was obvious that the Police already knew the real story. Sticking to his lie served no purpose at this point, yet Barron refused to roll over on his cousin. So now, Barron has given a black eye to another State of Alabama institution and made my post from the other day look silly. Thanks a lot Mark.

Saban gave his usual, “I’ll have to wait until the facts are in before making a comment” statement which is exactly what I expected him to do. From there, I expect the next comment to be, “We will handle this internally and no further discussion will be forthcoming on this subject” or some variation thereof. While I really do expect Barron to pay a hefty price of some sort for his actions, it drives me insane that the general public rarely finds out what type of punishment is leveled on athletes who violate both team rules and state laws. I think making this information public would go a long way towards deterring the next kid from possibly making a bad choice. I know that if I knew my name was going to be all over the news for months and months to come for something this stupid, I might think twice before doing it in the first place. Saban has his way of doing things and nothing I will say on a web blog that he doesn’t know even exists is going to change that. 

A poster on another board (sorry, I can’t remember which one I read it on) thought that Barron should have to sit out the first 3 games of the season and have his leadership role as the 2010 team captain revoked. If what has been released so far is all that there is to this story, I concur with this guy’s idea of punishment. Not allowing Mark Barron to join the other team captains at the yearly tradition of putting their hand prints and cleats impressions into the concrete surrounding Denny Chimes would be a long standing punishment for what he has done. Making him sit for 3 games in his senior year could also affect his draft status next year with the pros (if there is a draft next year, but that’s a story for a different day). I would not be surprised for the punishment Saban levels on Barron to be exactly this and then some, but that is purely speculation. I also expect, since Barron is going to be limited in spring practice (He’s still rehabilitating from his surgery) that he will be given some less than glamorous exercises to perform while his team mates are preparing for the upcoming season. RUN MARK RUN!!!!!

I have said all along that I just want all of college football cleaned up; this includes the University of Alabama. While Mark Barron’s actions are less severe than those of his counterparts down on the plains, they still look bad on both the University of Alabama and the state as a whole. I would hate to see the kid kicked off the team for being stupid, but I would think that is a very real possibility in light of all the other problems going on with student athletes in this state at the current time. People are demanding that issues be addressed and sadly for Mark, he very well could be used as an example. If that happens, then so be it. Kicking Barron of the team for this infraction may be a bit severe in my eyes, but if it aids in cleaning up the sport as a whole, I can completely understand it. 

On other fronts, more and more information is coming out that seems to link Atlanta area based gangs to athletes, not just at Au, but all over the southeast. Pictures upon pictures of these kids flashing guns, cash and gang signs are starting to be seen all over the place. The funny thing (or not so funny in reality), most of these pictures are being taken right off of the player’s personal Facebook pages….. AND I’M CALLING OUT MARK BARRON FOR BEING STUPID? Come on guys, even if you are involved in a gang that is selling drugs, committing robberies, killing people and a plethora of other things, don’t you think that it is a bit stupid to plaster your association with these gangs all over the internet? It’s kind of like robbing a bank with a banana. There’s a good chance that you are going to get caught before you get to spend a dime of your take. Is this a matter of the kids today being so brazen about their illegal activities that they fear no consequence or is it stupidity on a scale much larger than the one I’m using for Mark Barron? Either way, I sure hope to see some examples made out of them and I hope these examples are made by the legal system as opposed to the school they are representing. While these types of actions reflect poorly on the Alabama and Auburns of the world, I think they reflect even more poorly on the legal system as a whole. Brazen criminal activity plastered all over the internet with no action is more than thumbing a nose at us all; it’s giving us the middle finger.

RTR
BamaSon25

4 comments:

  1. BamaSon25, I think Mark was at the car then next day after the Police were called via 911. If I read the story correctly. Good job! Bamainmyheart

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  2. IF you could link that Mike, I would appreciate it. I haven't heard that version of the story at all. If Barron was not around at the time of the accident, then that changes a lot of things.

    RTR
    BamaSon25

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  3. I found the article and I did read it wrong. So sorry, he was standing beside or near the car when the Officer arrived.

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  4. Ok...thanks. That's the same version I read as well. I'm not above screwing up either, so please don't hesitate to call me out if you think I've messed up.

    I hate it for the kid. I hope he comes out of it all ok. It really just sounds like he is willing to take his lumps and not rat out his cousin. I understand blood is thicker than water, but heck within a year Barron could pay all the guy's legal fees and a hire an attorney to beet the whole thing anyway. Just not smart.

    RTR
    BamaSon25

    RTR
    BamaSon25

    ReplyDelete