Ben Roethlisberger

Bigfish · « **on:** 19 Mar 2010, 12:53 pm »

As a forty year Steeler's Fan I wanted to express my thoughts about the latest news about our quarterback, Mr Ben Roethlisberger. First of all I know that many of you are diehard fans of a sports team and are proud of your chosen team. As a proud Steeler's Fan I am embarrassed, disappointed and a little mad that Ben Roethlisberger does not get it when it comes to being a Steeler. I greatly appreciate that he has lead our team as quarterback to two championships but I am disgusted at the bad choices he is guilty of making. The legal process will take it course and if Ben is found guilty he will pay his debt to society. However, as a Steeler Fan I believed in Big Ben after the Tahoe incident last year but now I feel like the old adage: "fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me." I just cannot believe a two time Superbowl Champion Quarterback would be so stupid.

Ken

maxwalrath · « **Reply #1 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 01:01 pm »

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AqmLwHUykGQOkQ4xXiH7F.dDubYF?slug=ms-trippintuesday030910&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

macrojack · « **Reply #2 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 01:12 pm »

Whether guilty or innocent, all of these idiot athletes need to learn about putting themselves in circumstances where they are vulnerable to such allegations. When they party with abandon, it is only a matter of time before things go bad.

I have never personally known someone who was brought up on murder, rape or drug trafficking charges. What professional athlete can say that?

jackman · « **Reply #3 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 01:18 pm »

Quote from: Bigfish on 19 Mar 2010, 12:53 pm

As a forty year Steeler's Fan I wanted to express my thoughts about the latest news about our quarterback, Mr Ben Roethlisberger. First of all I know that many of you are diehard fans of a sports team and are proud of your chosen team. As a proud Steeler's Fan I am embarrassed, disappointed and a little mad that Ben Roethlisberger does not get it when it comes to being a Steeler. I greatly appreciate that he has lead our team as quarterback to two championships but I am disgusted at the bad choices he is guilty of making. The legal process will take it course and if Ben is found guilty he will pay his debt to society. However, as a Steeler Fan I believed in Big Ben after the Tahoe incident last year but now I feel like the old adage: "fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me." I just cannot believe a two time Superbowl Champion Quarterback would be so stupid.

Ken

I'm a fan of the Steelers and of Ben but the latest case looks bad, on the surface. I suspect we will never know the real story and don't think we'll have to worry about Ben being accused of this again. He has lawyered up with the guy who got Ray Lewis off on murder charges and I suspect he will easily be able to beat these charges. Regarding the legal process taking its course, I assume you mean the process where a rich guy hires a very expensive hot-shot lawyer and walks away squeeky clean. If that's what you mean, then yes, I believe the process will take its course.

gerald porzio · « **Reply #4 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 02:23 pm »

Plexiglass Burrus's case shows that justice occasionally triumphs. As Lenny Bruce once said, "The only justice in the halls of justice is in the halls."

PhilNYC · « **Reply #5 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 02:55 pm »

Quote from: gerald porzio on 19 Mar 2010, 02:23 pm

Plexiglass Burrus's case shows that justice occasionally triumphs. As Lenny Bruce once said, "The only justice in the halls of justice is in the halls."

Burress got 2 years for accidentally shooting himself with an unregistered handgun. While I agree he deserved some punishment, I don't know if the sentence he got truly reflected justice based on the specific circumstances.

On the other hand, Donte Stallworth got 30 days for killing a man while driving drunk...imho, Burress' and Stallworth's sentences should have been reversed...

jackman · « **Reply #6 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 02:58 pm »

Quote from: gerald porzio on 19 Mar 2010, 02:23 pm

Plexiglass Burrus's case shows that justice occasionally triumphs. As Lenny Bruce once said, "The only justice in the halls of justice is in the halls."

Good call. The only difference is that Plaxico had a room full of witnesses and lots of physical evidence (gun, gunshot wound, etc.) and Ben's alleged offense happened in a secluded VIP room and woman's restroom. It appears to be a "he said, she said" case with no physical evidence as far as I know. No matter what happened, it will be a tough one for this lady to win. Kind've like the case against Kobe Bryant.

Also, it doesn't hurt that Ben was friendly with the cops who investigated the case and was traveling with his own security detail (I believe) that were on the payroll, AKA "witnesses". I'm sure their event of the story will be beneficial to Ben's case. Plax was traveling with another player who tried to cover things up (going from memory here) and when the authorities squeezed him and threatened to press charges, he spilled the beans.

Ben can't afford much bad publicity because I believe he's going to be fighting a civil case, filed by the previous woman who accused him of assault. Whether he's guilty or not, pro athletes should know better than to put themselves in these situations.

I hope he didn't do what he's being accused of doing because I count myself as a fan of Ben and the Steelers. Some of the best fans and one of my favorite towns in the country. I miss Carson Street!

J

jackman · « **Reply #7 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 02:59 pm »

Quote from: PhilNYC on 19 Mar 2010, 02:55 pm

Burress got 2 years for accidentally shooting himself with an unregistered handgun. While I agree he deserved some punishment, I don't know if the sentence he got truly reflected justice based on the specific circumstances.

On the other hand, Donte Stallworth got 30 days for killing a man while driving drunk...imho, Burress' and Stallworth's sentences should have been reversed...

I think there are minimum sentencing guidelines in NYC for handgun offenses. I'm not disagreeing but I believe the judge's hands were tied.

DeanSheen · « **Reply #8 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 04:46 pm »

I'm no Stallworth fan but legally the perception of that case drives me batty.

How about this, how would you feel if you struck and killed a Jaywalker on a 50mph plus street with no crosswalk?

In addition, he agreed on an amount of restitution with the family of the deceased prior to sentencing which played into the reduced amount of jail time.

jackman · « **Reply #9 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 05:14 pm »

Quote from: DeanSheen on 19 Mar 2010, 04:46 pm

I'm no Stallworth fan but legally the perception of that case drives me batty.

How about this, how would you feel if you struck and killed a Jaywalker on a 50mph plus street with no crosswalk?

In addition, he agreed on an amount of restitution with the family of the deceased prior to sentencing which played into the reduced amount of jail time.

Dean, no offense but wasn't Stallworth legally drunk at the time of the event? The fact that he paid the family off doesn't change anything for me. Other people, ones with less $$$, have served long jail sentences for similar offenses. Thomas Gallo convicted of killing Nick Adenhart - a pitcher for the Angels - is facing 55 years to life for DUI manslaughter. Stallworth got 30 days for a similar offense.

The victim in the Stallworth case was a poor Cuban-American guy who couldn't afford a car on his way to a bus stop to get to get home from work. Stallworth, intoxicated with a blood alcohol level of .126 after drinking shots of tequila at a club a few hours earlier and with marijuana in his blood, hit the guy with his Bentley and tried to blame it on the guy. :?His original story was that he flashed his lights at the guy and swerved. He had time to flash lights but not to slow down, kills a guy while drunk driving and gets 30 days?

Donte Stallworth should be in jail for a long time.

PhilNYC · « **Reply #10 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 06:30 pm »

Quote from: DeanSheen on 19 Mar 2010, 04:46 pm

I'm no Stallworth fan but legally the perception of that case drives me batty.

How about this, how would you feel if you struck and killed a Jaywalker on a 50mph plus street with no crosswalk?

In addition, he agreed on an amount of restitution with the family of the deceased prior to sentencing which played into the reduced amount of jail time.

Burress felt really bad about shooting himself, too...

jackman · « **Reply #11 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 06:35 pm »

Quote from: PhilNYC on 19 Mar 2010, 06:30 pm

Burress felt really bad about shooting himself, too...

Not as bad as he would have felt if the bullet had traveled a couple inches over...

I honestly believe if he shot himself in the junk, the judge would have let him go home because any additional time would just be piling on. Yow.

macrojack · « **Reply #12 on:** 19 Mar 2010, 06:53 pm »

Maybe if Burress had offered to pay reparation to his leg, he could have gotten a lighter sentence.
The disparity between the sentence Stallworth got and what was handed out to Gallo underscores and illustrates how ordinary people are treated as compared to celebrities. When the athlete is the perp, we go light. When the athlete is the victim, the hammer comes down hard.

Bigfish · « **Reply #13 on:** 20 Mar 2010, 12:05 am »

Quote

Regarding the legal process taking its course, I assume you mean the process where a rich guy hires a very expensive hot-shot lawyer and walks away squeeky clean. If that's what you mean, then yes, I believe the process will take its course.

I simply meant that Ben will be charged and judged by the legal system. I do not want to proclaim him to be innocent or guilty of the accusations. My judgement of Ben is based purely on his lack of maturity and stupid decisions. Other high paid, high visibility quarterbacks both current and past have conducted themselves in manners that have not been an embarrsment to their teams or to their fans. I will never have the experience but I am quite certain it is hard to live under constant public scrutiny but it is hard to excuse Ben for being in the situation he was in on his birthday in GA.

Ken

gerald porzio · « **Reply #14 on:** 20 Mar 2010, 01:09 am »

Burrus was toxic. Had it gone to trial, I believe that he would have gotten 3 yrs., which I believe is NYC law. He pleaded out & got 2 yrs. because his conviction was assured. I agree that he got off light. Antonio Pierce helped him conceal the weapon & got off scott free.

PhilNYC · « **Reply #15 on:** 20 Mar 2010, 01:44 am »

Quote from: gerald porzio on 20 Mar 2010, 01:09 am

Burrus was toxic. Had it gone to trial, I believe that he would have gotten 3 yrs., which I believe is NYC law. He pleaded out & got 2 yrs. because his conviction was assured. I agree that he got off light. Antonio Pierce helped him conceal the weapon & got off scott free.

I think the NYC law is too rigid. Imho, given the circumstances, I think Burress got a harsher sentence than he deserved.

And imho, I don't think Antonio Pierce did anything that deserved any kind of charge. Made the appropriate call to the Giants, took Burress to the hospital, and brought the gun back to Burress' house (and never lied about what he did with it).

Rob Babcock · « **Reply #16 on:** 20 Mar 2010, 01:09 pm »

Quote from: PhilNYC on 19 Mar 2010, 02:55 pm

Burress got 2 years for accidentally shooting himself with an unregistered handgun. While I agree he deserved some punishment, I don't know if the sentence he got truly reflected justice based on the specific circumstances.

It was dumb luck that the bullet went into his thigh instead of some unsuspecting bystander's brain-pan. She don't always pay out on luck. I'm a big believer in the RTKaBA, but not so much a fan of moronic behavior. If you stuck an AK-47 out your car window at a playground full of children and emptied a full mag on full auto and no one happened to get hurt, it's still dumb luck. The penalty should still be harsh.

And fer godsakes, Plexiglass, you're a multi-millinaire; couldn't you have sprung for a holster for your gat? Something with some retentive capabilities? Too bad you didn't blow your junk off and shave a few thousand years of evolution off our gene pool.

macrojack · « **Reply #17 on:** 20 Mar 2010, 01:31 pm »

We have special laws that apply to child abuse or molestation by a person in a position of trust. It judges crimes like that by a stricter standard and punishes it more harshly. Like it or not, athletes like Roethlisberger and Burress are, in the eyes of young boys, great men who set an example of how to be great. They are trusted to show the way both as men and as method.
Perhaps we need a stricter standard and harsher penalties for these guys. Make sure they know that standard accompanies the millions of dollars, the bold headlines and the fawning adulation, and hold them to it. The NFL puts on a bit of a show but they could do a lot more to corral these miscreants if that was really their goal.

Bigfish · « **Reply #18 on:** 20 Mar 2010, 01:55 pm »

Guys:

I think we need to keep this discussion limited to Roethlisberger and to the other athletes. Discussing laws is an open-ended mine field and will have this thread sent to the waste bin!

Whether or not professional athletes agree or disagree they are in the entertainment business. As such I agree with Macrojack that they should (whether they actually do or not) understand they have an influence on the youth. I guess this is another reason why I am so disappointed in Ben.

Ken

MarkM · « **Reply #19 on:** 20 Mar 2010, 03:03 pm »

"disgusted at the bad choices he is guilty of making"

I think that sums it up. Pittsburgh and NFL fans had to endure this distraction last year. I don't feel bad for Ben one bit, he deserves every negative comment aimed his way-due to his continued poor choices and gives the appearance that this player is used to getting what he wants regardless.......now the consequences.

Athletes know they are potential targets of these allegations, but there seems to be a pattern here and lessons not learned, the consequences of such poor choices are in the hands of law enforcement now.

Adios Ben!