Statement From Vikings Owners Regarding AP

[tweet]https://twitter.com/NBCSports/status/512120334888079360[/tweet]

Goodell swoops in with the invisi-ban. I'm sure the Vikings would like nothing more than to hear a "X game" suspension from the league, but Goodell is understandably gunshy about that kind of thing right now. So instead they go for an under the table method like a skilled matador.

It would appear that Peterson is suspended until... this story becomes old news. I think I liked Goodell before when he didn't cave so easily and let reactionary emotional fans do his suspensions for him. That's not to say that Peterson doesn't deserve a suspension, he does, but I think it's absurd that he might miss a huge chunk of the season (and Rice gets the career death sentence) while potentially nothing happens to Hardy and McDonald.

Welp. The Twitter/Insta-Media mob has spoken. This story broke on Friday. FRIDAY.

Don't get me wrong. AP could very well deserve a lengthy suspension. I just wish we could trust the process to play itself out. Troublesome precedent being set here.

kearly":1ei1120b said:

I think I liked Goodell before when he didn't cave so easily and let reactionary emotional fans do his suspensions for him.

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I laughed aloud at this; can't lie.

kearly":1a390cr7 said:

Goodell swoops in with the invisi-ban. I'm sure the Vikings would like nothing more than to hear a "X game" suspension from the league, but Goodell is understandably gunshy about that kind of thing right now. So instead they go for an under the table method like a skilled matador.

It would appear that Peterson is suspended until... this story becomes old news. I think I liked Goodell before when he didn't cave so easily and let reactionary emotional fans do his suspensions for him. That's not to say that Peterson doesn't deserve a suspension, he does, but I think it's absurd that he might miss a huge chunk of the season (and Rice gets the career death sentence) while potentially nothing happens to Hardy and McDonald.

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Well I would say that the main difference between Hardy/McDonald and Peterson/Rice are (lack of) visual evidence, respectively.

Peterson being the most marquee player of all might have some bearing, but Ray Rice over the two not so much.

Pictures and video rule. If they had that on McDonald instead of Peterson, for sure he would be the negative press instead.

This is not about innocence or guilt, just about perception.

Beating a kids scrotum and stuffing leaves in his mouth plus photo evidence caused this.

Wow, a lot of act, then react going on.

Instant news, instant reactions.

Just like Ray Rice, with visual evidence producing a more visceral response. I know I recoiled a lot more when I saw the pictures. Add AP's texts to the pile of evidence, and why wait for a slow court?

I do enjoy the rush to judge the twitterverse for rushing to judge Peterson, though. This is a human issue, not a twitter issue. And I have no problem with it. I think it is good that public figures have a more accurate picture of public response. God knows the Rodney King case might have gone far differently if social media had played more of a role in conveying outrage to that police department.

I hate whisper campaigns as much as anyone. Hard visual evidence is not a whisper campaign.

Scottemojo":3umuq73i said:

Instant news, instant reactions.

Just like Ray Rice, with visual evidence producing a more visceral response. I know I recoiled a lot more when I saw the pictures. Add AP's texts to the pile of evidence, and why wait for a slow court?

I do enjoy the rush to judge the twitterverse for rushing to judge Peterson, though. This is a human issue, not a twitter issue. And I have no problem with it. I think it is good that public figures have a more accurate picture of public response. God knows the Rodney King case might have gone far differently if social media had played more of a role in conveying outrage to that police department.

I hate whisper campaigns as much as anyone. Hard visual evidence is not a whisper campaign.

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Word

And now Gloria Aldred is involved.

http://www.ajc.com/news/news/gloria-allred-in-cobb-to-discuss-alleged-abuse-by-/nhPK2/

This mob mentality is just getting way to stupid. But it will be too late before anyone notices it. That's usually what happens when the mob mentality infects the populace.

Sports McCarthyism if you ask me, with Goodells' "Exempt List" being our sports generations Black List. Crazy time.s

huskylawyer":1jyezoec said:

And now Gloria Aldred is involved.

http://www.ajc.com/news/news/gloria-allred-in-cobb-to-discuss-alleged-abuse-by-/nhPK2/

This mob mentality is just getting way to stupid. But it will be too late before anyone notices it. That's usually what happens when the mob mentality infects the populace.

Sports McCarthyism if you ask me, with Goodells' "Exempt List" being our sports generations Black List. Crazy time.s

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Anytime this lady gets involved, I tune out. Can't stand her

huskylawyer":188fkqhz said:

And now Gloria Aldred is involved.

http://www.ajc.com/news/news/gloria-allred-in-cobb-to-discuss-alleged-abuse-by-/nhPK2/

This mob mentality is just getting way to stupid. But it will be too late before anyone notices it. That's usually what happens when the mob mentality infects the populace.

Sports McCarthyism if you ask me, with Goodells' "Exempt List" being our sports generations Black List. Crazy time.s

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Ok, huskylawyer and your nonsense rage at something that's not the problem, what do you wish happened?

Do you wish people went back to not giving a crap whether AP whips his kids to open sores? Do you wish we could go back to a simpler time when knocking your fiancee unconscious and dragging her out of the elevator is a 2 game punishment and a slap on the wrist? Would you prefer that a man who threatened to murder his girlfriend is allowed to play every Sunday?

Fun little phrases like 'mob mentality' are flaky attempts at hail-mary defense for people who just don't deserve it. Who are you defending here? Why are you complaining? What do you think is so wrong about what is occurring? Are you just saying words to say them? Are you just trying to be a contrarian because you think it makes you look better than the rest of us?

This 'mob mentality' is the only thing that is forcing the NFL to adopt policies and give a second thought to how they punish those who abuse other people.

You're trying to figure out why everyone is outraged now but not before... but why aren't you outraged now? Does a sudden public focus on an issue make you disinterested in the topic?

huskylawyer":2gysvbhf said:

And now Gloria Aldred is involved.

http://www.ajc.com/news/news/gloria-allred-in-cobb-to-discuss-alleged-abuse-by-/nhPK2/

This mob mentality is just getting way to stupid. But it will be too late before anyone notices it. That's usually what happens when the mob mentality infects the populace.

Sports McCarthyism if you ask me, with Goodells' "Exempt List" being our sports generations Black List. Crazy time.s

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Maybe if the people in charge did the right thing, instead of doing the LEAST amount of right thing in order to cover their asses and continue to make wheel barrels of money there wouldn't have to be a public outcry.........or as you call it "Twitter mob mentality."

There's no mob needed if Goodell, Rice, AP, Hardy, the owners involved stepped the F up and did the right thing from the get go. Instead they act like politicians and wait until the public is standing on their doorsteps with torches and pitchforks demanding that the right thing be done.

SonicHawk":2phrpfio said:

huskylawyer":2phrpfio said:

And now Gloria Aldred is involved.

http://www.ajc.com/news/news/gloria-allred-in-cobb-to-discuss-alleged-abuse-by-/nhPK2/

This mob mentality is just getting way to stupid. But it will be too late before anyone notices it. That's usually what happens when the mob mentality infects the populace.

Sports McCarthyism if you ask me, with Goodells' "Exempt List" being our sports generations Black List. Crazy time.s

Click to expand...

Ok, huskylawyer and your nonsense rage at something that's not the problem, what do you wish happened?

Do you wish people went back to not giving a crap whether AP whips his kids to open sores? Do you wish we could go back to a simpler time when knocking your fiancee unconscious and dragging her out of the elevator is a 2 game punishment and a slap on the wrist? Would you prefer that a man who threatened to murder his girlfriend is allowed to play every Sunday?

Fun little phrases like 'mob mentality' are flaky attempts at hail-mary defense for people who just don't deserve it. Who are you defending here? Why are you complaining? What do you think is so wrong about what is occurring? Are you just saying words to say them? Are you just trying to be a contrarian because you think it makes you look better than the rest of us?

This 'mob mentality' is the only thing that is forcing the NFL to adopt policies and give a second thought to how they punish those who abuse other people.

You're trying to figure out why everyone is outraged now but not before... but why aren't you outraged now? Does a sudden public focus on an issue make you disinterested in the topic?

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Well, it is easy to explain. I'm an attorney, so I have a lot of appreciation for well thought out punishment, due process, and letting ALL the facts come to light.

It isn't a "you don't care" or "hang 'em high" proposition. There IS a middle ground, but people are so wound-up with hysteria that they don't take a deep breath, and evaluate things objectively. Right now, the NFL is moving towards, "better an innocent person get suspended than a guilty person not get suspended." I don't think that is the correct way to do business, let alone a justice system.

As someone who deals with employment disputes and the like, most employers get in trouble when they make off the cuff, reactionary decisions without much thought. As we can see, the NFL is squarely in this category, and I'm going to call them out.

Thinking the NFL and "the mob" is getting out of hand does not logically mean, "you don't care about DV or child abuse." That's ludicrous. What I do care about is making sure things like Duke Lacrosse doesn't happen again, and measured, well thought out policies. Not "let's wing it as we go, and decide what to do based on public reaction." That rarely works in government or the private sector IMHO...

Scottemojo":aq4vhix5 said:

Instant news, instant reactions.

Just like Ray Rice, with visual evidence producing a more visceral response. I know I recoiled a lot more when I saw the pictures. Add AP's texts to the pile of evidence, and why wait for a slow court?

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Fair point.

That said, I'm going to have to differ on the LA Riots commentary. The LA Riots happened precisely because of graphic video evidence which caused enormous outrage. If Twitter had existed back then, it would have made the reaction that much more explosive.

Contrast the LA Riots with Ferguson, where the visual evidence was far less and the story behind the incident was far more complicated. It wasn't really grounds for a riot at all, yet it sparked one because of a snowballing reaction on twitter and the media. Next thing you know, you've got millions of dollars in property damage, 10 people injured and 15 more arrested. All while thousands of people show up without even knowing what they want to change. The whole country turned upside down for weeks for a guy who nearly killed a cop with his bare hands before getting gunned down by the same cop. The cop was within his legal rights, and there is no evidence that race played a factor in the incident. And yet, everybody blew it way up.

A couple days later, a completely innocent an unarmed black man was shot and killed in an incident that quite possibly could have involved racism. That case got zero reaction. So why the lack or reaction? No picture was taken.

Point being, the twitter rage phenomena is not based on ideals or intelligent discourse, but purely on emotion with no room for rational thought. The problem with leaving these kinds of issues up to a reactionary populace is that it is bound to lead to irrational decisions and inconsistent punishment.

I'm not wild about letting an angry mob make decisions for Goodell. Code of conduct policy shouldn't be determined by which cases people choose to be angry about and which cases they ignore.

Probably because there is less risk in this for the NFL than an actual suspension. He still gets paid, and the Vikings get to push him out of visibility while he's working his situation. It's possible he straight up agreed to do this since he still gets his money.

I think AP does love his children as crazy as that may sound after looking at the pictures. The problem is he is so misguided by ancient practices that he thinks this will SAVE his child. That is the problem here and a lot of people don't see it. People like him think that its better "that I beat my child" so he is a better person than to let the streets or the cops take him. He scared his child will end up in prison or worse. This fear drives a lot of these practices. I don't live in the South so it's hard to understand.. Sad situation really..

redeye81":2ep9dogu said:

I think AP does love his children as crazy as that may sound after looking at the pictures. The problem is he is so misguided by ancient practices that he thinks this will SAVE his child. That is the problem here and a lot of people don't see it. People like him think that its better "that I beat my child" so he is a better person than to let the streets or the cops take him. He scared his child will end up in prison or worse. This fear drives a lot of these practices. I don't live in the South so it's hard to understand.. Sad situation really..

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Physical punishment is also used as a method to break an angry child's pride and embarrased them from ever doing the act that warranted the punishment again. With some kids this method works, and other kids it is better to punished by taking away a right or privalged. I know it is either Korea or the Philipines that uses caning on grown adults for misdemeanors.

I understand your argument but it's like saying in other places they "drown women for witchcraft and it works". They had fewer witches (of coarse) because of it.. This is ancient practice used in a way that they think helps protect but in the end doesn't address the issue. We learned much more since then..

huskylawyer":1tojs61k said:

Well, it is easy to explain. I'm an attorney, so I have a lot of appreciation for well thought out punishment, due process, and letting ALL the facts come to light.

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As a "lawyer" you want all the facts to come to light, ok. But at what time does physical evidence, doctor documentation and admission of the act itself not constitute all the facts? Is there something that we are missing in this that would magically mean he didn't beat his kid with a switch until he raised welts? Your assumptions are ludicrous, and I have serious doubts that you are, in fact, a lawyer.