ZBU: So to kick off our first topic, allow me to briefly summarize the
situation. Earlier in the week, the Arizona legislature passed a bill
named the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. Its proposed purpose was to
restore freedom by allowing businesses to refuse to serve anyone on
religious grounds. Now, one thing this blog will never be is political
propaganda aimed at one side or another. Its not because either of us
don't have strong beliefs, but rather because I've found pieces that
reveal their allegiance for one side or another to stir innate
stereotypes about the writers and the subject. Its sad but true.
Anyway,
the bill obviously caused a scene as many viewed the law as a way
for legislators to discriminate against gay people. Basically, your old
anti-gay sentiment bill disguised as a pro-freedom law. Now, the
Religious Freedom Restoration Act was ultimately vetoed later this week
by Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer. Many have questioned, however, whether she
did so because she thought it was morally wrong or because she was under
a lot of pressure from powerful groups...mainly the NFL.
The
League put out a statement basically saying how their policies
emphasize tolerance and inclusiveness and they would closely follow the
decision in Arizona to formally make the bill a law. It is believed they
were going to move next year's Super Bowl from Tempe if the bill wasn't
vetoed. This would obviously have resulted in a couple million dollars
in lost revenue for the state.
With everything that
has gone on this year from the Richie Incognito vs. Jonathan Martin saga
to the upcoming historic season with Michael Sam as the NFL's first
openly gay player, the move by the League is not surprising. And there
are other obvious opinions to draw from this story; Arizona has some
crazy representatives and the statement by the NFL was pretty noble. But
really what business is this of a sports league? When did the NFL
become mob-like with its political intimidations?
Has the NFL grown too powerful?
Pav: I think the NFL has a mandate to be as powerful as they have been. Their regular season games get more viewers than World Series and NBA Finals games do on a regular basis. The NFL is America's most lucrative sport and easily the most popular.
The irony of the question of whether the NFL is too power hungry is that they nearly chose to pull the Super Bowl out of Arizona based on their cultural beliefs while Arizona nearly chose to leave those who live "alternative" lifestyles in the dust based on an opposite set of cultural beliefs.
So, no, they aren't too powerful. Google can pick and choose where their headquarters are, where they hold seminars and at which tech expos they present their new products. You better believe it would benefit any city in America or anywhere else to have an employer like Google bring their clout and the revenue that comes with it. Same goes for the NFL.
The NFL may have coerced the queen governess of Arizona to veto the conservative bill. But, if I had enough sway over a business partner and I saw a decision they were about to make would hurt my reputation as a leader of acceptance or at least an entity trying to promote social acceptance, I would certainly intervene in my own interest. Is that wrong?
Actually, the NFL has held this power for a long time. Long before the Goodell era. In fact, the last time the NFL vacated the Super Bowl from a specific venue was in 1993 in...ARIZONA. Arizona passed a bill to NOT recognize Martin Luther King, Jr. Day as an official holiday. They were on the slate to host a Super Bowl and lost that opportunity because of the same kind of radical policy they tried very recently to pass. They of course repealed the law a year later and were given the 1996 Super Bowl. That state is lucky to be in such a warm climate or no one would ever consider bringing business there.
I was so ready to get political on this. Glad you said what you said, though, ZBu. I don't think my political opinions, however acute, should cause anyone to form a complete picture of what online persona (thank you Steven King) I try to bring out in the blog.
The NFL is king. For now. Let the king play throne games until his reign is through.
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