  |
|||
|
|
Page 3
Baseball and its Hall of fame do of course have the right to celebrate or ignore any film they want. They cannot be forced to throw a Bull Durham theme party any more than Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon can be imprisoned for having an opinion that is not currently the most popular one. Nevertheless, a worrisome precedent has been set here. The political section and the entertainment section and the sports section of our newspapers have been mashed together, and personally, I preferred it when they were kept separate. It's one thing for ballplayers to talk about "going to war" when describing an upcoming game against a bitter rival. It's another thing entirely not to be allowed into an arena because you happen to be wearing a peace pendant around your chest. Not that such drastic measures are taking place, not yet anyway. But the initial steps down this road have been taken. When next I go to Shea Stadium to watch the Mets probably blow another ballgame, I don't want or care to know what the league's official stance is on events of world impact taking place outside the stadium walls. The reason I'll be in the ballpark is for temporary respite from all of that. I'll buy a beer and some peanuts and crackerjacks, maybe even wear a ridiculous giant foam hand proclaiming that my team is number one, bask in the sun and watch the baseball game unfold. I'll concern myself with more serious matters later, when I'm good and ready for a dose of front page news.
The copyright of the article Baseball takes a stance - Bull Durham bites the dust - Page 3 in Sports Issues is owned by Roy Pickering. Permission to republish Baseball takes a stance - Bull Durham bites the dust - Page 3 in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
For a complete listing of article comments, questions, and other discussions related to Roy Pickering's Sports Issues topic, please visit the Discussions page. |
||
|
|
|||
