bighousemike84
05-03-2010, 01:03 AM
I dont know if anyone else watched the 30 for 30 episode on ESPN in which a documentary filmmaker followed Ricky Williams through the last 6 years of his life, if you havent then I would absolutely recommend that you take the time to watch it.
When Ricky Williams first got into trouble for marijuana I laughed about it, being a bit of a smoker myself naturally I didnt see anything wrong with it.Then he got in trouble again and then he got in trouble AGAIN, much like the rest of us I began to question Williams intelligence and his maturity as a man. After watching this documentary I feel ashamed of myself for ever judging this man when I had no idea what kind of life he really lived.
It is very easy for us, the less privileged, to look up at the "stars" of professional sports and judge them for the mistakes they have made. Naturally I am jealous that these athletes get to play a sport that I love and they get to do it for millions of dollars. This 1 hour documentary is making me rethink the way I see professional athletes.
For example: I live in Findlay, OH the hometown of Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger. The recent issues that have been raised regarding Big Ben have made for some interesting discussion here in town. Some folks tend towards believing that he is guilty and he is a damn fool, the other side feels that he didnt do anything wrong and he is being targeted because of his success. To be fair, Findlay, has been split between fans and haters of Roethlisberger ever since he was drafted to the Steelers. My thoughts on the subject have changed a few times in the last month but overall I feel that Roethlisberger screwed up, whether he is actually guilty is not important, the fact that he got himself into that situation is. Its easy for me to say that because I have no idea of what kind of life Roethlisberger lives, I have no idea of the circumstances surrounding the incident. I find it really easy to judge him for his actions but I am finding that I really have no right to. I really dont know why someone in his position would ever get them self into that predicament but since I have not ever spent one day in his shoes I couldnt possibly understand all the circumstances, some that might be more deep seeded than a big head, that lead to that decision.
I initially judged Ricky Williams to be a bit nutty and obviously stupid for the mistakes that he made, after one hour with Williams I am convinced that he is a little messed up but not nutty, and that he is in fact a really intelligent guy. I guess I just felt dumbstruck by the reality of the documentary and how it effected me, I wanted to share this with you so that you might find out for yourself. If you watch it I hope you enjoy it as much as I did, if not, well, just watch it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfRLwVLOgCs&feature=related
When Ricky Williams first got into trouble for marijuana I laughed about it, being a bit of a smoker myself naturally I didnt see anything wrong with it.Then he got in trouble again and then he got in trouble AGAIN, much like the rest of us I began to question Williams intelligence and his maturity as a man. After watching this documentary I feel ashamed of myself for ever judging this man when I had no idea what kind of life he really lived.
It is very easy for us, the less privileged, to look up at the "stars" of professional sports and judge them for the mistakes they have made. Naturally I am jealous that these athletes get to play a sport that I love and they get to do it for millions of dollars. This 1 hour documentary is making me rethink the way I see professional athletes.
For example: I live in Findlay, OH the hometown of Pittsburgh QB Ben Roethlisberger. The recent issues that have been raised regarding Big Ben have made for some interesting discussion here in town. Some folks tend towards believing that he is guilty and he is a damn fool, the other side feels that he didnt do anything wrong and he is being targeted because of his success. To be fair, Findlay, has been split between fans and haters of Roethlisberger ever since he was drafted to the Steelers. My thoughts on the subject have changed a few times in the last month but overall I feel that Roethlisberger screwed up, whether he is actually guilty is not important, the fact that he got himself into that situation is. Its easy for me to say that because I have no idea of what kind of life Roethlisberger lives, I have no idea of the circumstances surrounding the incident. I find it really easy to judge him for his actions but I am finding that I really have no right to. I really dont know why someone in his position would ever get them self into that predicament but since I have not ever spent one day in his shoes I couldnt possibly understand all the circumstances, some that might be more deep seeded than a big head, that lead to that decision.
I initially judged Ricky Williams to be a bit nutty and obviously stupid for the mistakes that he made, after one hour with Williams I am convinced that he is a little messed up but not nutty, and that he is in fact a really intelligent guy. I guess I just felt dumbstruck by the reality of the documentary and how it effected me, I wanted to share this with you so that you might find out for yourself. If you watch it I hope you enjoy it as much as I did, if not, well, just watch it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfRLwVLOgCs&feature=related