Heroes and Villains

The news the past ten days or so has been dominated by two men who have both been undone by racist comments. One is pretty much universally reviled, while the other is seen by some, amazingly, as a hero.

Cliven Bundy is a Nevada rancher who has been grazing cattle on public lands for years without paying grazing fees. He doesn't pay because he doesn't believe in the "federal government." To me this is the same thing as not paying for using a toll road on some sort of anti-government privilege, or not paying your income taxes. Bundy, basically a scofflaw on a gigantic basis, defended himself by rounding up a bunch of small-penised subscribers to Soldier of Fortune, who pointed their guns at law enforcement agents, who wisely did not shoot back, saving bloodshed.

In a sane world, Bundy would be universally blasted and taken away to the hoosegow in handcuffs, along with anyone else who pointed a weapon at an officer. But somehow he ended up a folk hero to the loony right, personified mostly by bloviating Sean Hannity. I wonder if Hannity ever considered the law enforcement agents who were on the opposite ends of those rifles, or their families, and wondered what he would say to them if they had been wounded or killed?

So Bundy is not in jail, but instead he and his "militia," who are basically hooligans, are terrorizing the nearby town. And he would still be seen as a hero if he hadn't opened his big yap and made his antebellum sentiments about blacks known. His right-wing supporters, including Hannity, Nevada senator Dean Heller, and Kentucky senator Rand Paul fled him like rats from a sinking ship.

Donald Sterling, owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, who has long been seen by those in the know as the worst owner in the NBA, made some comments in a phone call to his girlfriend/nanny/mistress/trollop that he was angry that she brought black people to a game and posed for a picture with Magic Johnson. Considering the NBA is about ninety-percent black, this was not a smart thing. Sterling has since been banned for life by the NBA, and will be pressured to sell the team. He has been an owner since 1982.

The ban, by new NBA commissioner Adam Silver, has brought mostly praise. It headed off an unprecedented boycott by the Golden State Warriors, the Clippers first round opponent in the playoffs, and has earned Silver goodwill from the players, as well as most of the public.

Those who are upset about this include idiots like Donald Trump, who blames the girlfriend, and those from the left, like Bill Maher, who are troubled that it was a private conversation, and that everyone has a right to be an asshole. I, too, am troubled about the private nature of the conversation, as I was when a voicemail left by Alec Baldwin was made public. But here is the thing: once these comments are made public, there's no putting the toothpaste back in the tube. We can't unhear them.

Many people misunderstand what "free speech" means. It means that you can't be arrested for saying something, unless it is threatening, like yelling fire in a crowded theater. It does not mean that what you say doesn't have consequences, so you can be vilified or fired for saying something. The NBA couldn't afford to let such gross comments to be made by one its owners stand. Yes, he has a right to be an asshole, and say anything he wants in the privacy of his own home, but the NBA has a right to try to protect its image. I'm fully supportive of the sanctions.

As for Bundy, he is basically Sterling in a cowboy hat. I'm not sure of Sterling's opinion of the government, but Bundy is a criminal. Once things die down a bit he should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, and that includes attempted assault on a federal officer. His cattle should be seized, and he should be fined the amount of money he owes us taxpayers, plus interest. That this boob has any supporters at all is just another sign that the United States has lost its soul.