Good Job, Bones

TigerBlog could care less what any singer or athlete or movie star thinks about serious issues that affect the world today.

For that matter, he can’t understand why anyone else does either.

George Clooney, for instance, was born good-looking. That’s his talent. The fact that he makes entertaining movies is a by-product of that – and it doesn’t make him the least bit of an authority on any serious subject out there.

The same holds true for any of the other narcissistic entertainers who think their lucky break in life has now qualified them to be intelligent voices who lead the international discussion. It doesn’t.

So if Ozzie Guillen wants to love Fidel Castro – or respect his toughness or whatever it is he actually thinks – that’s great with TigerBlog.

It’s his opinion. It’s just that in TB’s mind, it counts for zero. Just like the opinions of every other famous person.

When TB first heard Guillen’s comments, he thought that would be the end of Guillen’s tenure as manager of the Miami Marlins – for good, not just for five games.

It’s not because of what he said. It’s because of where he said it.

The Marlins need the local fan base to be completely on board to make their new ballpark and new investments in players pay off, and that’s not going to happen without the support of the displaced Cuban population there.

And, given how that Cuban population got to Miami and the fact that many still have family stuck in Cuba, that’s not going to happen if the leader of the Marlins is a pro-Castro guy. 

So that would make what is likely going to be the inevitable end of this - Guillen's termination - an economic issue, not an issue of free speech.

As far as that goes, Guillen can say whatever he wants, as far as TB is concerned. He can love or hate any famous or infamous person or embrace whatever controversy he'd like. So can anyone else.

TB recoils in horror when people are disciplined for having opinions that are contrary to those of the mainstream, largely because who decides when the line is crossed.

Can Guillen not respect Castro but respect Hugo Chavez? If not Chavez, then what about someone else and then someone else and then someone else? Who decides when it is too far?
 

When Atlanta Braves' reliever John Rocker was suspended and essentially had his career ended by his dopey comments about riding the 7 train in New York, TB was appalled. If Rocker wants to be a jerk, that's his business. Same with Guillen.

Or TigerBlog or you for that matter.

The entire Guillen controversy came out in an article in Time magazine, written by none other than former Princeton basketball player Sean Gregory, who was part of the great class of 1998.

And now there is some backlash going on against Gregory, as if he someone exploited what Guillen said to make himself look good or to purposely make Guillen look bad.

In truth, Guillen knew exactly what he was saying, how he was saying it and even more importantly the platform on which he was saying it.

What was Bones (that's Gregory's nickname, by the way) supposed to do? Ignore that Guillen, the manager of a team that had just gone out of its way to brand itself as MIAMI, not Florida, had spoken about Fidel Castro, the most reviled person in the city of Miami?

And Guillen knew exactly what he was saying, so why say it?

To show how tough he was. To show how nobody's going to control him and his thoughts. To show how he's not afraid of anyone.

So good for him. He got everything he wanted.

As for Bones, he did the 100% correct - and not easy - thing in leading his story (which is only available online to Time subscribers) with the Fidel Castro quote. 

Bones is the tough guy in this situation.

Guillen is just another famous person with a big mouth who thinks he's above it all.