On Stay Out of the News

The news is full of people. First, everyone not only has their preference of news channels, news watchers also have their favorite broadcasters. On the other hand, think about the people in the news. The news is full of the rich, the famous, obnoxious politicians, arrogant athletes, and village idiots; then sprinkled with good Samaritans and the needy.

I am not a fan of Republican House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) or Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), but they maintain positions that are in the news. Although I cannot stand to hear either of them, both are news worthy.

On this post, I ask this question: Who are the people in the news that you wish would go away? No wish of ill or harm, just get out of the news!

Here is my list, so who are yours?

Tiger Woods – I play golf; enjoy watching golf, and a Tiger fan. Because he made bad decisions, his personal life has its share of struggles. Given all the problems in this country and in the world, I wish he would be out of the news – well, at least until he returns to golf.

Pat Robertson – The man simply has the propensity of saying stupid things at the wrong time.

Rosie O’Donnell – Oh please, not her again.

Rush Limbaugh – He can say all he wants on his radio show because I do not listen. I even wished him well during his health issue. Otherwise, stay out of the news!

John Edwards – Currently, the undisputed #1!

On Player Character

Character: the attributes or features that make up and distinguish an individual;  a feature used to separate distinguishable things into categories
Merriam-Webster

Character is an interesting word, and a word we associated with people in both positive and negative contexts. In terms of the negative and in the light of the recent NFL draft, players with character issue can mean a host of issues:

• Encounters with the police
• Drug issues
• Lack of coachability
• Uneven effort
• Self centered over team oriented
• Conflict with coaches and/or team members
• Lack of commitment to the classroom
• Failure to stay in shape

If just losing isn’t enough, living in Cincinnati and dealing with Bengal-player issues in the past hasn’t been easy. Unfortunately, once a negative light shines, any misstep is magnified – regardless of the direction one is moving.

For instance, let’s take the words of Yahoo! Sports Writer Chris Chase:

(Opening line) At some point, you’d think the Cincinnati Bengals would try to distance itself from the lawless, freewheeling image the team has developed over the past decade.

(A few sentences later) First, they draft a veritable who’s-who of character problems last weekend.

To people like Chris Chase, “character issues” not only includes everything I’ve listed (and then some), but each item is of equal weight. Granted (and in my view regretfully) the Bengals one player of 11) with a police record. However, since I find Chris Chase’s words and descriptions as inaccurate and irresponsible, I simply question his character and integrity with the same broad definition he imposes on others.

I not only invite you to read his story, but to also see the comments; which include several by Bengals QB Carson Palmer.

On an Ice Legend

Many of us recognize Scott Hamilton, the professional figure skater. Most of us remember Scott Hamilton the Olympian. I’m one of the much smaller number who was fortunate to see him skate during his teen years.

I attended (and am a proud graduate of) Bowling Green State University. Scott grew up at Bowling Green as his adopted father was a biology professor at the university. And yes, Dr. Hamilton was one of my professors for a portion of freshman biology.

As an avid Falcon hockey fan, we were treated (between periods, once a year) to a skating exhibition by a young townie who had won many competitions. Yes, that was my introduction to Scott Hamilton; so it’s been a pleasure following his career.

Recently I saw an interview with Scott on the Today show as he’s promoting his new book: The Great Eight: How to be Happy (Even When You Have Every Reason to be Miserable). We know Olympic Gold Metal winner, the skating commentator, and professional performer, but Scott Hamilton faced medical obstacles throughout his life. Yet he remains positive and full of life.

He focuses the book on the eight secrets for dealing with challenges. I haven’t read the book, but this is a great interview with a positive message and also humor. If the book is anything like his personality, it’s got to be a great read.

Here are three links: the Today show interview (7 minutes), a written interview from years ago at the Academy of Achievement, and the book on Amazon.