The recent events at Dodger Stadium made me think. Was Bryan Stow, "savagely beaten" as some accounts have said...or, is this just one of the Hoaxes of Professional Sports?
I have been a lifelong Dodger Fan. My Dad loved baseball and his idol was Branch Rickey. Mr. Rickey created the Saint Louis Cardinals in the 1920's and in 1943 began to manage the Brooklyn Dodgers. It was Mr. Rickey who hired Jackie Robinson and, broke the color barrier in professional sports. Dad and I would listen to Vin Scully announce the games through the 50's and 60's.
Over the last 16 years I have been to Dodgers Stadium maybe 50 times to watch the games. I have taken my family there and never felt in any danger. Dodger fans are outspoken but rarely insulting or threatening. I was surprised to hear that Bryan Stow, a Giants fan was injured after a recent game. As the story developed it became almost impossible for me to believe. Something is just not right. Is the so called "beating" another hoax of professional sports?
The TEAM HOAX
When I was a kid Sports Teams had players for life, or at least a really long time. Today there really are no "Teams" in the sense that we used to know them. Players move around like a huge game of musical chairs. I hear Albert Pujols may even leave the Cardinals.....There is no loyalty except to the contract. The idea of the TEAM is a marketing Hoax played on the fans.
The RIVALRY HOAX
Fans that are naive enough to believe the TEAM HOAX are then willing to believe that there is some RIVALRY between these so called Teams of millionaires. It's just another marketing hoax played on fans. The Cubs and Cardinals. The Dodgers and Giants. The Yankees and Red Soxs. Please. Baseball is made up of 30 professional teams each with a 40 man roster. This equals about 1200 millionaires who move around from team to team just to get the best financial deal. The only Rivalry in Baseball is to see who gets more of the fans money. The Players really only care about their contracts, bonus money for the play offs, and endorsement deals. Fans should not be fooled by the idea that Players have ANY rivalry with other teams.....they may be playing on those teams next month.
The BEATING HOAX
On March 31, 2011 the Dodgers played the Giants at Dodger Stadium. It was first reported that Bryan Stow and two friends were "walking in the parking lot when Bryan was pushed to the ground." He hit his head and suffered a serious brain injury. Once the story became well known, it changed into a "savage beating" by rival fans. It was also reported to have been witnessed by over "100 fans".
Could this be another Sports Hoax? Maybe. There remains no clear explanation as to why Bryan was pushed. Sports radio and others have assumed it was due to the long standing rivalry between Dodger and Giant fans. It might just be that Bryan was blocking an exit and he fell. We know his two friends did not stop the so called "beating" or catch the guys who allegedly assaulted Bryan. We also know that none of the "100 fans" who saw the incident took any cell phone photos. Why?
Now we hear that it is dangerous to attend Dodger games. Security is an issue. The facts are that 3 million fans attended Dodger games last year. There were 29 major crimes at Dodger Stadium in this period. Nobody was killed and more people have died in plane crashes over the last 40 years than have been assaulted at Dodger stadium. Maybe flying isn't safe? Don't be fooled by this crap. Think for yourself and always...always ask, why? Do you think the Dodgers need a new Stadium and they want the City of Los Angeles to pay for it....all in the name of safety?
