So, adjusting my original article and reframing in past tense (as opposed to something more forward-looking and predictive), here’s why this was (and is) one of the absolute biggest non-stories of the year . . .

First of all, I thought racism was part of our American [ more . . . ]]]> I should have seen this coming.  If it weren’t for having such a busy week this week workwise, I would have had the chance to publish a Rush Limbaugh article, oddly enough predicting exactly what happened, namely that Rush would not-so-quietly and very quickly be ushered down the exit ramp of potential NFL team ownership.

So, adjusting my original article and reframing in past tense (as opposed to something more forward-looking and predictive), here’s why this was (and is) one of the absolute biggest non-stories of the year . . .

First of all, I thought racism was part of our American sports past, not our future.  Is it actually possible Rush Limbaugh could have been part of buying an NFL team?   I had already predicted ‘No’ and was going to suggest we find better things to spend our time one for the following core reasons.

1. Rush loves attention. Let’s just not give him any. Let’s let the NFL do what it’s essentially done, i.e. say ‘No’, and be done with it.  The fact players had already come forward saying they wouldn’t play for him is not an idle or celebrity-like comment — Player contracts in the NFL are not guaranteed, meaning any player who steps out of line, refuses to play, et cetera can simply be asked to leave . . . and the team doesn’t have to pay them a dime.  (Whereas player contracts are guaranteed in Baseball.)  That’s real money, and no NFL player would actually walk away let along utter a statement to that effect if it didn’t actually mean that much to them.
2. While people have the ‘right’ to hold such racist ideals as Rush’s close to their own heart, we have set a social standard that those beliefs can not be held within public view or, more specifically, that racism, sexism, and the like can not serve as factors in decision-making, behavior, et cetera.  Yeah, I just wished there weren’t any racists, either, but they’ll die at some point and let’s just be glad that maybe, just maybe, their racism will die with them, not that I wish anyone, including Rush, any harm or ill-will.  Quite the contrary — I hope Rush and anyone like him live long enough to learn, see, and feel how hurtful and wrong-headed their beliefs are.
3. The NFL is one of the most successful money-making brands ever. Quite frankly, I’m amazed this matter even got this far. It’s one thing to take action against an historical / current owner — It’s entirely another to assess the attractiveness of a potential, future owner.  It hasn’t surprised me in the least that we learned only a couple of days after this story hit the news that Rush Limbaugh was — in no uncertain terms — told ‘No’ and that he should exit Gate A.

And as if that set of reasons wasn’t enough, from an ESPN story just yesterday . . .

“There’s an argument that says the very principles Rush espouses — the free market — are what did him in,” said the conservative radio host Michael Smerconish. “This IS the free market. These are private businessmen who made a decision about what was in the best business interest of their thriving venture.

“It’s definitely ironic. There’s a bit of hypocrisy here as well,” Smerconish said, citing a study that showed 70 percent of NFL owners’ political contributions went to Republicans. “Through their dollars they are very supportive of the sort of politics that Rush talks.”

Said the Rev. Al Sharpton, who was a loud voice of opposition to Limbaugh’s bid: “It’s remarkable in that he was denied by other powerful whites. At the end of the day, his own peers said, ‘You are a liability.’ Even the rich and powerful do not want to be identified with racism.”

Which all goes to prove that even though Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot, even he has his (gravitational) limits.