Image by Hawk Eyes via Flickr
As the history-political science-professor-writer guy, people tend to ask me questions when big events happen around the world. As quiet as I’ve been about the recent death of Osama bin Laden, I still hear from plenty of folks wondering what I think.
Combine that historic occasion with today’s controversy over comments made on Twitter by Pittsburgh Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall and these questions aren’t going away.
So let me offer a short perspective before asking you a question of my own.
First, what did I think/how did I feel upon hearing the news Sunday evening that bin Laden had been killed. A comment response I left at Lessons from Teachers and Twits on Renee’s thoughtful post should suffice. Quoting myself:
“I felt pretty unmoved when I first heard the news. Bin Laden was dead. Brought to justice is a fitting description of that. I thought of the forces on the ground and was happy they did not suffer a loss.
I turned on the news and saw the celebrants. I had an unpleasant feeling too. I thought of the Scriptures and wondered how I should react. Just me. What was the right thing for me to feel and do. The love your enemies part still makes my head twist.
Then I went back to work because my life is no different today than it was before Sunday.”
Secondly, when I awoke today the Rashard Mendenhall story was already raging. If you are unfamiliar, Mendenhall is the Steelers running back (yes, my hometown team) who led the team in rushing on the way to and fumbled during Super Bowl 45.
Mendenhall basically asked why no one ever listened to bin Laden’s side of the story and threw out the tired conspiracy theory that those planes did not bring down the WTC towers on 9/11. In other words, he offended millions of people by sounding like a complete idiot. This is the same guy who a few months ago compared the NFL to modern-day slavery proving that a) he is clueless and b) he is completely clueless.
And oh by the way, Steelers owner Dan Rooney is a United States ambassador, so you can imagine what a fun time the team’s public relations office had today.
Now to my question for you.
Twice today I followed the Twitter stream on a search of Mendenhall’s name. Most people lambasted him, but a couple said things like “everyone is entitled to their opinion” and “I respect him for speaking his mind.”
What do you think/How do you feel? Is everyone entitled to any opinion? Should there be limits? Should athletes and celebrities be held to a different standard?
Maybe Mendenhall’s punishment is that the judgment of the vast majority is as public as the remarks he tweeted off in a frenzy. The NFL and Steelers organization may take further action.
Voltaire once said that “We have a natural right to make use of our pens as of our tongue, at our peril, risk and hazard.” What do you say?
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Thoughtful post, Clay. I think everyone is entitled to their own opinion, BUT, in the case of those who are overly offensive or clueless, I don’t think those opinions should necessarily be shared with the masses.
Regarding Bin Laden, at http://theycallmejane.wordpress.com/, she shared the Catholic Church’s take: “Faced with the death of a man, a Christian never rejoices, but reflects on the serious responsibility of everyone before God and man, and hopes and pledges that every event is not an opportunity for a further growth of hatred, but of peace.” Something to think about.
Useful words for sure Amanda. Thanks.
I felt as you. I was only glad that we have such a professional and capable military and that UBL (OBL?) could no longer be a potential threat.
Mendenhal may be a great athlete, but his grasp on slavery & Bin Laden’s position on America & it’s citizens is sadly deficient.
Celebrities are often thought to be renaissance men & women and America is always shocked to find that they are really just human.
Thanks for your thoughts Garr.
I think celebrities should have the right to speak their mind like anyone else but they also have to be very aware that they are roll models for many young people so they have to be more circumspect about what they say and do in public.
Ps: of course he’s probably still in shock from my Packers beating him.
Of course you had to go there! You can imagine though in Pittsburgh today how much everyone brought out the Super Bowl fumble again as part of the backlash. The radio stations must be blowing up.
I have a Facebook friend who dashed off some comments about Bin Laden that offended some of his friends. He then read the responses, issued a public apology, humbled himself to all his friends, and opened what became a vibrant discussion about religion, ethics, and what happens when bad people die. I really respected him for how he carried that through. I think everyone has a right to their opinions, but I always celebrate when people around me (and I myself) learn to hold our tongues and seek wisdom before we speak.
Thanks for those thoughts Elizabeth. I appreciate you commenting.
Everyone IS entitled to their opinion, but just because someone has an opinion and the free speech to air those opinions does not mean that the rest of us don’t have the right to hold them accountable for those opinions.
The court of public opinion has much looser criteria for establishing guilt than the Criminal or Civil Courts.
That’s one thing about celebs. Their name has a financial value to them and they should realize that. Of course, I wouldn’t want someone to put money over truth if they believed that’s what they had. It’s all perspective.
He is entitled to speak his mind. Unfortunately for him this shows he does not have one,
Good line Carl
I have to agree with you Clay on your emotional steps about the death of Osama bin Laden. I was just about to go to bed and a friend sent me a text sharing the news, I asked what his sources were and he said the news turn the tv on. Once I did, I was shocked, intensly curious, and relieved all at once. I have several friends that are part of that “quiet professional” status and I’m sure they are getting sick and tired of my many thanks but they most certainly deserve it. I’m also glad everyone came away (on our side) unharmed. There are of course feelings towards the events that only those who have been in combat I feel would be able to relate to…an I’m sorry
No doubt I have no clue what it’s like to be in the military. No one should pretend to without having been there. I’m just as thankful to folks like you who have been a part of the service at any point, especially in these last 10 years in regards to this incident.
…haha I’m also sorry my thumb hit the publish button before I could finish typing haha…as I was saying, there are feelings I and many others I have served with share in regards to this event. Just wanting to be apart of the select few involved in such a HVT operation, it’s the thrill, the workup, the brain power, it’s an incredible rush…it’s like having that one play in your back pocket for coming in off a timeout in an overtime situation for the Stanley Cup and being able to pull it off successfully BUT also adding the measure of “your life and everyone’s lives around you depending on it”. I have very private thoughts about the operator who let loose the “double tap” that eliminated bin Laden…but after hearing about everything as soon as it happened I knew it would be the same story over and over until several days later when the Defense Department could release anything viable to the public, that is just how it works everyone, very vague at first then slowly but surely details are released. But all of us that have been through combat known to keep our heads on a swivel for the future and never get complacent. So that’s about it. As far as #34…you do have the right to your opinion but you are a role model who can be in the media at any given point…just police yourself…I’m sure he has been frustrated at coach before but I’m sure he has never just looked him in the eye and blurted out something stupid that would jeopardize his spot on the team. Just police yourself, it’s easy…mind your P’s and Q’s right? Haha
I guess everyone can have an opinion, but it seems best if people actually think through the ramifications of sharing their opinions with others.
I agree. Unfortunately, some people don’t know how to think.
Here’s a half-baked idea: I think free speech has changed with social media. While I support people with radical opinions being able to share their ideas, the nature of Twitter may mean that idiotic comments get way more press than they deserve, often making the issue way bigger than it actually is.
And yet, I love Twitter. Of course, the other side of it is that people DO respond in masses against idiot-speak; they may just not get the same press.
All right. Time to go bake the other half of that.
Yup. If anything crosses the line then there’s a public record. Millions of idiotic things are tweeted every month. Some of those are by well-known figures. They are going to be called on it I guess.
Funny how we’ve had ten years to consider how we would feel and react if he were ever caught or killed, but it seems like many of us aren’t sure how to feel. Most of us don’t want to dance in the streets when someone has died, and we also realize that will only antagonize people who hate America and will be shown repeatedly to incite others.
True. In a way, the moment is anti-climactic? I kind of viewed it as job done. What’s next?
The words “job done” also sums it up for me. I’m so glad he’s not destroying the world anymore. I feel compassion for those he caused to suffer. And I am heart broken over all the terrible things he did to others. I guess I’m glad that he’s not going to hurt anyone anymore.
Thanks for the thought-provoking post!
Thanks Ellie. Good thoughts.
I think Twitter is a great medium for polarizing people. When you get 140 characters to say what you have to say, and I get 140 characters to reply to what you said, it doesn’t leave much room for gray area. It’s also a great medium for getting attention quickly, although not so much for getting people to follow up on what you mean. The Drudge Report works kinda the same way.
I wonder what Twitter would be like if it had a MINIMUM character requirement…
That’s a good point. Brevity is a key to clear communication. Twitter definitely makes people get to the point.
I didn’t react over the news of OBL until I watched the death celebrations on TV. Dancing in the streets and celebrating death is not our culture. Never before have we openly partied over death…not even for Hitler (people rejoiced at the end of the war). Celebrating loss of life is not who we are or how we act. We are Americans and we need to remember our principles, seek justice and behave humanly once it is obtained or else we aren’t any different than those who hate us.
As for Mendenhall: It’s one thing to be an idiot. It’s another thing to open your mouth and prove it.
Good thoughts Botut. I’ll have to think more about how the scene the other night fits into history. But you’re right. And I like the Abe Lincoln paraphrase at the end. “It’s better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak up and remove all doubt.”
We are free to say or do what we want, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t responsible. As a responsible adult some thoughts should be kept to ourselves even though we are free to tweet em.
Yup, free speech is also the freedom to sound like a fool.
Everyone should be free to say what they want as long as everyone else remains free to ignore it. (it’s the ignoring part that most people seem to have a problem with)
And the media is only too happy to point out controversy. But that’s the business of audience reach right? Thanks for commenting Amy.
I agree with Voltaire…one should be held accountable for what one says…
I am happy that Bin Laden will no longer hurt people, but sorry that he had to die to accomplish that.
Wendy
Thanks for your thoughts Wendy.
As for Bin Laden, I am relieved on behalf of the countless thousands, perhaps even millions, who he will not have the chance to murder. It was an intense, profound evening.
As for opinions, everyone certainly has a right to one, and everyone certainly has just as much of a right to ignore them. I believe free speech is paramount to a free society, even when people are saying things I don’t like or that are stupid beyond belief. And we can’t deny the comic value of it all.
I do feel concern, though, for younger generations who will not have the opportunity to walk away from the stupidity of their youth now that it is forever preserved in the public eye. I think that’s a game changer that we will all suffer from. Being able to re-invent ourselves is crucial to growing as human beings, and I’m concerned the unforgiving nature of social media will prevent that.
Thanks for a great post, Clay.
That’s a fantastic point Piper. Not only are words forever etched in our digital memory banks but the photos and videos are going to have long-term results that a lot of kids used to be able to leave behind after high school or college. Great comment.
I totally agree with mendenhall and his tweet regarding the death of bin laden….. theres kno way we should be celebrating the death of a person like some of these americans did. esp someone we dont even know! cause truth be told, we really dont kno the entire story behind everything that go’s on with america and its agendas.. we only kno our side of the story, AMERICAS side! how slanted and corrupt is our govt!?! how many lies have they told us throughtout history?! think about it and stop watchin so much darn TV!!