Postscript

There's a debate going on over in Friday's comments about the Sean Avery "sloppy seconds" comment. Of course, he's a clown and probably a jerk, but I don't know that that's the issue.

The issue is that he said what he said on camera. Worse things are said on the field, but nobody has documented it. When it's recorded and presented to us, we act surprised.

I've never figured out what we expect of our pro athletes. They're men who generally have no other skills, and if it weren't for sports they'd probably be making minimum wage, but they can catch a ball or skate really fast, so we reward them with millions of dollars. They get all the hot women and when they go out, they don't have to pay for dinner.

We forget that they're clowns who are sometimes socially inept. Generally, they've been pampered and looked-after their whole lives because of their athletic skills. Most of them were given free educations (which they may or may not have taken full advantage of) and for most of their lives they have been the center of attention. We think that because of their station in life that they are going to act the part, when generally the opposite is true. That's why it's such a surprise to run into an athlete who acts like a regular person. It's also why I like the LPGA so much.

So, when you hear about athletes making rude comments, shooting themselves or generally acting like an ass, remember who they are and apply some perspective. Then, you won't be so upset by their actions and you'll wonder (like me) why such things become such major media events.