Media Bias Continues: Aaron Tempest in Teapot

The media continues their witchhunt on Barry Lamar Bonds. I have chronicled his travails both here and my old blog, Biased Giants Fanatic, of how the Media delights in twisting Barry's words or interpreting Barry's actions in a negative light. Not that Barry hasn't invited this with his behavior towards the media, but then this exposes the fallacy that the media is "objective" and "unbiased". The reporters have abused the power of the media in their witchhunt on Bonds.

Today it is the Hank Aaron golfing while Barry's chasing his record. Perhaps it is as the media notes (today's Merc) that Aaron is said to be "uncomfortable with acknowledging Bonds because of the Giant's slugger's attachment to the steroid era." But it can also be explained very easily too.

Pregnant Pause

What's easier to plan for, a random event happening or a scheduled celebration? Much was made about Aaron showing up with Frank Robinson for the Jackie Robinson tribute in LA, but that was a scheduled celebration. Hank went through the HR chase plus was a major league hitter, he knows that it can come today or it could take 3-4 weeks to happen. What do people in the media want Hank to do, follow Barry for up to a month, disrupting his life, putting everything on hold, just so he could be there when Barry passes him up?

It is not like when Rickey was chasing Lou Brock, Ricky could make things happen, bunt to get on base and fiddle with the pitcher until he steals THE base that passed up Lou Brock. He just needs to get on 1B. Heck, he could be on 2B and steal 3B or be daring and try to steal home from 3B, that would have been something he would probably have loved to do, get attention that way. But how do you make a homerun happen, particularly if a vast majority of pitchers don't even dare to challenge him with anything in the good part of the plate, he has to be like a Venus Flytrap and wait... for... the... mistake...

This is like waiting to see if your wife is pregnant. You try and you try and you try, and it's not happening (though a lot of fun :^). Imagine your mom or mother-in-law, following you around until your wife is pregnant: "Am a grandmother yet? Am I?" It is not like you don't want it to happen, but it should happen some day, if you are lucky.

Are We There Yet?

That's what's facing Aaron and the chase, the boredom of "Yeah, it's great to see Barry BEAT MY RECORD" a million times to the press, everyday until it's done. "OK, I'm following him to the ends of the Earth until he passes my record." The "sorry honey, but I can't come home, I have to follow Barry until he hits that darn homerun." Sure, he can make every great golf course all across the country doing that, but he has a life too, he has things he likes to do to besides waiting for a photo op with Barry when Barry passes him.

If it was just show up and smile for the cameras while Barry takes his record away, then that's one thing, but if its a traveling circus of "Oh well, Barry got walked 4 times again, see you all at tomorrow's game", that's another. Plus, Hammering Hank is no spring pup either, traveling is hard at any age, but he's 73 years old now. But no, the media don't think about all these other reasons for why Aaron is not going, these are all possible legit reasons until Aaron steps forward and says otherwise.

Racism of Another Form

And, yeah, maybe he's uncomfortable too. But I doubt it. Even if he didn't take any illegal substances in his time in the majors, he must have been aware of it, the prevalence of it ensured that. There is a bond that most athletes seem to have with each other, a brotherhood, and if he didn't speak up about those stuff back then, he's not going to today. Because if it really bothered him, he would have spoken up long ago about amphetamines and its usage. He probably just sees steroids as a today's version of amphetamines and cocaine.

In addition, he grew up and dealt with all the racism and bigotry that existed in America in the 50's, 60's, and 70's, and if a dummy like me posting on blogs can see the bias the media has against Bonds, I would think Aaron has seen all the stuff about Bonds in the media and could feel the breath of Crow Law coming out of the media, with the headlines the Media likes to do on Bonds, like "Bonds won't rip Aaron", making the whole thing an issue when there may be no issue. Even if he is not comfortable, the media's witchhunt probably reminds him too much of the past for him to be comfortable to speak up and join the witchhunt.

It is something you never forget and as much as he may or may not disagree with what he may or may not think Bonds may have done, I can't help but think that he sees the ugly spectre of racism rising above these headlines, and won't join in for that reason, even if he may be uncomfortable. Ultimately, Bonds is probably passing him up anyway, but for Aaron to join the witchhunt of the media, to participate in this possibly veiled racism, he is just too classy for that thus far.