Sean Taylor Speculation Thread

[Caveman_Nick]

I hate even writing this because in no way am I making light of or brushing off his murder, but the above was unfortunately my first reaction when I heard about the league-wide honor on ESPN this a.m., especially considering Marquise Hill drowned while saving another person's life after a jet ski accident, and no other teams in the NFL are wearing his #91 stickers. I don’t see anyone league-wide wearing Darrent Williams stickers, and he was shot down like Taylor under sketchy circumstances. I don't see the entire league wearing Damien Nash stickers after he dies of cardiac arrest after playing a charity basketball tournament. So why such grand honor for Taylor?

 

 

I have heard this on local radio and thought is was an interesting perspective, but I think that those carrying this opinion out to others are forgetting something very important. Circumstances like this are extremely shocking. When Williams was gunned down, we were all very shocked in the immediacy of it. When Hill drowned we were shocked in the immediacy of it, at least locally (Hill was not a widely known figure nationally). The same thing can be said for Nash. In all of these instances there was time for the news to settle, and by the start of kickoff of week one, there was little to no fanfare surrounding any of these incidents.

 

This incident with Taylor is shocking in and of it's own right. There was that time period when we all were together hoping he would pull through, and then all felt the loss of his passing together (All is somewhat relative and probably overstated, but you get my drift). And in the immediacy of the moment in the middle of the football season people are reacting. It is at the very least unfair to try and judge or compare how people react to this situation compared to how they might have reacted to another in the past. JMO.

[msaint]

I have heard this on local radio and thought is was an interesting perspective, but I think that those carrying this opinion out to others are forgetting something very important. Circumstances like this are extremely shocking. When Williams was gunned down, we were all very shocked in the immediacy of it. When Hill drowned we were shocked in the immediacy of it, at least locally (Hill was not a widely known figure nationally). The same thing can be said for Nash. In all of these instances there was time for the news to settle, and by the start of kickoff of week one, there was little to no fanfare surrounding any of these incidents.

 

This incident with Taylor is shocking in and of it's own right. There was that time period when we all were together hoping he would pull through, and then all felt the loss of his passing together (All is somewhat relative and probably overstated, but you get my drift). And in the immediacy of the moment in the middle of the football season people are reacting. It is at the very least unfair to try and judge or compare how people react to this situation compared to how they might have reacted to another in the past. JMO.

 

All fair points, Caveman. Very true that people react, mourn, move on with their lives differently.

[Hat Trick]

Count me among those dismayed by yet another senseless death to a young man.

 

I haven't been following the story nearly as closely as most, but it does seem rather apparent that this was no ordinary crime. One, it would appear that is more likely to happen to someone with a sorted history. Did he get what he deserved? Absolutely not. On the other hand, it might be going a bit far to be tripping all over ourselves about the fact that "he'd turned his life around". I mean, if that's in fact true, then it is very, very sad to see that his past caught up with him regardless. However, the first step to not having your past catch up to you is not having a past that you need to be concerned about.

 

The day somebody decides to straighten out, they're not even with those of us who've been keeping our noses clean all along. Perhaps society owes them the encouragement to keep it going, and that often comes with the benefit of the doubt. However, that doesn't mean they're out of the woods. I mean, this isn't about society in general coming down on Taylor because of his past actions, this is about a particular person pissed off enough at him to do this. It is not through some random bit of luck that nobody is leaving a knife on my bed and then coming back a week later to shoot me and it's not like I'm the nicest guy out there. I've made my share of mistakes but have somehow managed to avoid pissing anyone off to the extent that I need to worry about being shot.

 

Here's a thought. People often talk about what a shame it is all that oil is sitting under the middle east because otherwise backwards cultures are afforded massive power and importance. If it weren't for that, the modern age would have completely eaten them up. As it stands, these backwards f-ups are given a free pass and don't need to be held accountable for the fact that they've refused to evolve socially.

 

Now, think about pro sports. You've got the same thing working. For the vast majority of society, evolution stopped being a physical thing long ago. Evolution has meant adapting to a modern world intellectually and socially. However a select, very high profile group of men are outrageously rewarded and sheltered from the need to mentally evolve because of physical attributes and an inclination towards aggression. Not unlike the oil barons in the middle east, their dis-inclination to evolve in the modern sense of the word is being subsidized. Were it not for the fact that these guys are shoved in everyone's faces, it might not have such a cascading social impact, but it trickles down. The incentive to mentally adapt and grow to the extent that you can participate well in society is challenged by the allure of getting bigger, stronger, and more bad-ass in the hopes of a big payday and accolades. For nearly everyone, that second batch of traits would have done a whole lot more good hundreds and hundreds of years ago.

 

Now, I'm not saying that each and every pro athlete is a barbarian or that pro sports is to blame for all of societies ills. However, it doesn't take a genius to see a very apparent trend here. We idolize people half our age, many of whom are functional illiterates that you wouldn't want to spend ten minutes with. All because they can run a 4.2 40 or can take someone's head off when they come across the middle. If they can manage that and even be remotely respectful and upstanding (things we take for granted in nearly everyone else we deal with on a day to day basis), they're "great guys". If they can actually parlay their enormous fortunes and public adoration into a successful business after their athletic careers, they're championed as pillars of society.

 

I guess I'm just getting tired of most of this.

 

Good post I'd like to comment further, but I might piss some people off and I choose not to go down that path today nor in this thread.

[millerx]

Just speculating, but why would someone break down a door to shot someone if it was suppose to just be a burglary and they weren't suppose to be home?

 

Sounds like they might be trying to hide the real intent of the crime!

 

[Cowboyz1]

Thank god it looks like they got um. More then one confession in hand.

 

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