Juliet Macur on Jameis Winston

Thanks. Appreciate you taking the time to reply.

Those are two of the portions I anticipated were problematic, though it was the accuser's first lawyer (her aunt) who reported having the football town exchange and not in the presence of the accuser.

As someone who has probably read more of the reports and various "testimony" than most, I can't reconcile the one-sided views of people I generally trust and respect, e.g. Macur, Jenkins, Wetzel, Schlabach with what I've read.

I also get infuriated by the rumor-mongering and slut-shaming of the other end of the spectrum -- the fan board fans.

There's definitely nuance that can be exercised, but is almost non existent in national media or fandom.

 

The guy's Twitter feed says he is the co-host of the Garnet And Gold Pregame Show on the official FSU affiliate.

To even attempt to write something "objective" or "balanced" is a riot. But I see the dipshits who follow the team are eating it up, so all good.

 

I understand that anyone can cry rape and the media can preach and point fingers often unfairly, but in this case I think there were enough questions that it's embarrassing that the media gave him the Heisman Trophy last year. Also, his coach's statements that Winston is a great kid who has never done anything wrong are so full of horse manure it's infuriating.

If you want to say he's a good kid who has made mistakes, fine. But to not even acknowledge them sounds like whitewash is the paint of choice in Tallahassee.

 

I've always been a fan of Macur. I knew her a bit back in the day. Great writer.

I don't always agree with her writing. I don't know that I would call this one preachy. I'm sure some would call this beating a dead horse, but I can certainly understand what she's saying.

 

It may be a whitewash, and I certainly was not suggesting that he's a "good kid", nor commenting on his guilt or innocence. Only real point I was trying to make with that comment is that I'm sick of people telling me it should affect who I cheer for in a football game.

To me, they're essentially separate issues. The outcome of an FSU game is not gonna change the number of criminals on the street, and cheering for FSU is not something one need feel "dirty" for (as Macur put it). And it's sure as hell not like the other three teams in this playoff are morally pure--they've all got a good share of bad guys to varying degrees and for varying reasons--some of which have been publically revealed, others which have not (at least yet). If one were to cheer for only the most morally pure team, they'd be left with the 1-11 and 2-10 crowd, and that's no fun at all.

 

I think what seems to be the difference at FSU is that is seems like not only is the athletic department on board trying to help the football team stay out of trouble, but the entire university and the Tallahassee PD. And beyond that, instead of ignoring or reveling in a "bad-boy" image, FSU acts like no one has ever done anything wrong.

Any time you get 100+ plus young men together, some are going to cause trouble. It's the way it's handled that separates teams. FSU seems to have giant-sized blinders.

 

"Some would say" should be everyone's signal to stop reading. Always. Whatever follows is always an opinion that is never supported by fact.

 

That's what I always wonder about. Is FSU worse than most schools? I don't get the sense that it is, which by no means is saying that it's good.

Not that what Manziel and Winston allegedly did are in the same league, but all it takes is one high-profile player to make a university look like a bunch of buffoons. I'm not suggesting that Florida State is an innocent here, but when you have a player who is as well-known as any Heisman Trophy winner is and he continues to get into trouble, it makes the school look worse than it probably actually is. I'm guessing you put most programs under a similar microscope and you would have similar findings.

It's bad everywhere.

 

I think FSU is a lot worse than most schools, particularly with the co-opting of the local police.

I'm not naive enough to think my alma mater is pure. Mizzou has had some trouble that goes along with becoming an upper-tier program. ... But this season goes differently if Dorial Green-Beckham plays. They most likely beat Indiana and have a better shot at Alabama in the SEC championship game, with a spot in the playoff on the line. And if Mizzou/Columbia has a similar standard as FSU/Tallahassee, Green-Beckham plays this season.

I'm sure there are plenty of other examples where guys use up all their chances but they'd still have more chances with the FSUs and a few other schools.

 

If you read even the first 15 paragraphs of the NYT's story on the cozy relationship between FSU and the Tallahassee police, you'd feel differently about this situation.

Whoever called FSU basically a team full of unpunished criminals was spot-on.

That story laid bare the lengths to which Tallahassee cops went to protect FSU football players for an assortment of offenses that most likely would've resulted in suspension/dismissal from the team or school.

Winston may be the highest profile criminal, but he's by no means alone.

 

'Twas I!

It has been posted many times here before, but it bears re-posting.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/12/u...sts-shadow-over-tallahassee-justice.html?_r=0

Of particular note is the incident that we've been led to believe was a little pranking with BB guns. Here's what it really was:


At least 13 football players have been implicated in a string of wild public shootouts with CO2-powered BB and pellet guns, causing thousands of dollars in property damage, endangering bystanders and eliciting a police response. Yet until the most recent case — a previously unreported shootout in June that caused such a commotion that a sheriff’s helicopter was called in to search for suspects — none of the episodes led to charges, even though elsewhere in Florida suspects as young as 12 have been arrested for doing the same things.

The investigation of the June shootout sat inactive for months but was restarted not long after The Times began asking about it; charges were filed against three Florida State players on Oct. 2.

Does that sound like a little harmless fun, boys being boys?

Then there was the NYT follow-up, of a hit-and-run accident that resulted in a couple of minor traffic tickets (and very curiously involved the campus police showing up even though the accident didn't happen on campus).

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/15/s...-hit-and-run-becomes-two-traffic-tickets.html

 

I covered two major programs and both schools had a similar relationship with the local cops. Players were given the benefit of the doubt whenever possible no matter the evidence. There was an Orlando Sentinel story years back where the Gainesville DA had autographed footballs and pictures in his office of him with some of the Florida coaches.

Not excusing the FSU-Tallahassee PD relationship, I'm just saying it's par for the course at most major schools.