- You knew an announcement like this was bound to happen soon.
Las Vegas Raiders DE Carl Nassib comes out as gay
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 21, 2021
He also announced a $100K donation to the Trevor Project, a suicide prevention organization for LGBTQ youth. pic.twitter.com/5Xobd9s0pp
I concur with Nassib in that I hope that announcements like that are little more than a footnote in the future. Truth be told, I don't care if a pro athlete hooks up with dudes or goes all Wilt Chamberlain in his bawdiness.
On a different note, Nassib's jersey has become a huge seller across Fanatics apparel sites in the 24 hours following his announcement.
Yesterday @_RyanWinkler abused House rules to rudely interrupt GOP women speaking on the floor. To quote ML Winkler himself: “Men in politics can take it for granted that their voices will be heard. Women in politics can take it for granted that they will be shouted over.” #mnleg pic.twitter.com/Fc3ttxi8WZ
— Anne Neu (@anneneu) June 22, 2021
With all due respect Rep. Neu, it's futile to attempt to use Winkler's statements against him. After all, he's a huge beneficiary of that Urban Progress Privilege.
- A huge ruling handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court of the United States unanimously affirmed a ruling Monday that provides for an incremental increase in how college athletes can be compensated and also opens the door for future legal challenges that could deal a much more significant blow to the NCAA's current business model.
Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the court's opinion, which upheld a district court judge's decision that the NCAA was violating antitrust law by placing limits on the education-related benefits that schools can provide to athletes. The decision allows schools to provide their athletes with unlimited compensation as long as it is some way connected to their education.
Gorsuch wrote that the nation's highest court limited the scope of its decision on those education-related benefits rather than delving further into questions about the association's business model. Justice Brett Kavanaugh published a concurring opinion that takes a harder line, suggesting that the NCAA's rules that restrict any type of compensation -- including direct payment for athletic accomplishments -- might no longer hold up well in future antitrust challenges.
"The NCAA is not above the law," Kavanaugh wrote. "The NCAA couches its arguments for not paying student athletes in innocuous labels. But the labels cannot disguise the reality: The NCAA's business model would be flatly illegal in almost any other industry in America."
I can't help but recall an ESPN documentary on the early 1990s University of Michigan men's basketball squad. That team (specifically the "Fab Five" freshmen) revolutionized college basketball to the point where jerseys with their names on it became hot selling items at apparel shops. However, the kids didn't see a dime of the enormous revenue generated despite the fact sales were a direct result of fan enthusiasm over their play on the court. And how much did the University benefit from the full arenas and lucrative television contracts due to the success of that program? Yet if a booster purchased a hamburger for one of the kids, it was deemed an NCAA violation.
I was bullish for years that these student athletes were already garnering tremendous value through a free college education, thus any extra benefits were unnecessary. But after watching that Fab Five documentary a decade ago, I firmly grasped how young adults not even in their 20s could be so easily exploited for financial gain. Kudos to SCOTUS for hammering that point home.
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