Bill Houston
Posted on February 22, 2009
It’s been just over two weeks since Bill Houston wrote his last Truth and Rumours column for the Globe and Mail. I don’t know about the rest of the not so august members of the sports media fraternity in this country, but I miss him. I used to look forward to reading his column on a regular basis to find out which broadcaster or media company he was calling out. There has to be something said for a writer/reporter who can get under the skin of the late Harold Ballard so much so that he said “Houston should have been smothered at birth”. Houston was never shy about criticizing a company for not giving the viewer what they needed, or a commentator who was missing the point, or taking himself too seriously. Like him or not, he made the broadcast industry in Canada accountable. He was one of a kind. The Globe will not replace his column, that in itself is a tragedy. I think he should write a book, and tell all the stories he didn’t put into print. That would be a book worth reading, even if it didn’t come with crayons, so every member of the media could enjoy it. Enjoy your retirement Bill, you deserve it.
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Heroes?
Posted on February 10, 2009
Sean Avery, Barry Bonds, Charles Barkley, Alex Rodriquez, Pacman Jones, Dennis Rodman, John Daly, and the list goes on forever… All bad-boys, even though they say they’re “misunderstood” “misquoted”
What is it about these professional athletes, and others, when it comes to their sense of entitlement? Is it the money they are paid? Notice I didn’t say “earn”. Is it the notoriety they enjoy? Being the baddest, most intimidating? Maybe it’s the adoration they get from their so called fans, who would love them even if they pissed on them in the street. Oh look, Avery just dumped on me, isn’t that neat!!!!
The media panders to them, encouraging them to say the most outrageous things. And when they don’t they’re boring.
It’s not just kids who idolize these people, it’s adults, fanatics who have nothing else in their lives except the ability to live vicariously through their favorite “star”.
Looking for heroes? Then look at people who deserve hero worship. Folks who make the ultimate sacrifice for their country. Doctors looking to find cures for killers like cancer, aids, diabetes ALS. Teachers, who work for peanuts to produce educated young adults.
And parents who know that professional athletes are not heroes, and don’t deserve the adulation we heap on them. Parents who raise their children with perspective, and the ability to know right from wrong, good from bad. Parents who raise their children to make a meaningful contribution to society, wether they’re athletes or not.
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