I'm disappointed and angry at Tiger Woods as a father, a husband, and a person of color. His conduct has been appalling and we need to stop making excuses that all professional athletes act this way or it's OK if your wealthy. It's time to draw a line in the sand and say there is right and wrong and you can't cross that line regardless of your fame and fortune. Whether from a secular or religious standpoint, this is wrong.
One of the yearly rituals I enjoy is watching a lot of football during and after Thanksgiving. So imagine my surprise when the football broadcast was interrupted with the news flash "Tiger Woods involved in a single car accident". My first thoughts were, is he alright, will he play golf again, what caused the accident, were drugs or alcohol involved? I was truly saddened and afraid that we may have lost one of the greatest athletes of our generation. I had no ideal that we had, just not in the way originally feared.
As soon as my wife heard about the accident and the few details at the time, leaving at 2:20 a.m., ran into a tree, etc., she immediately said "I think he's having an affair". I looked at her like she was crazy and challenged her assertion. Why would she jump to that conclusion when all we know is he had an accident. She couldn't articulate why she believed he was having an affair other than it was a gut feeling on her part. Of course I dismissed this as typical female paranoia and chastised her for jumping to a negative conclusion. And then we started to hear the rest of the story.
For the few who haven't heard, Tiger apparently has maintained relationships outside of his marriage for several years with several different women. One in New York, one in San Diego, hookups in Australia, and the list goes on and on. Tiger didn't come out and admit the affairs in his "apology", just claimed he wasn't perfect and wanted to deal with his transgressions privately. Talk about putting sugar on s**t and calling it candy! His actions really appalled me on several fronts.
First, it's not about the money. Several commentators have wondered what will happen to all of Tiger's endorsement deals. If Tiger never earned a new dollar and had to live off of his earnings to date, he would not only live a comfortable life, but a life of luxury few human beings could imagine, let alone relate to. He is touted as the first Billion (with a B) dollar athlete so believe me it's not the money. It's about his wife, family, and the general attitude towards his cheating.
We don't know much about his wife Elin other than she was a nanny of another professional golfer when Tiger was introduced to her. She was a model for a short time prior to that. She has remained out of the spotlight until now. What we do know is Tiger married her and they made a sacred vow to each other which has been violated multiple times in unconscionable fashion. For several years with at least three women (as of the time of this writing, more were coming forward), Tiger has been unfaithful. These affairs have been going on since the outset of his marriage and continued through the birth of his children until he was busted on Thanksgiving. These weren't one night stands, or with a former high school sweet heart, or some other scenario you could rationalize as a one time indiscretion. This is a lifestyle for him, ingrained in the fabric of his being. How embarrassing, humiliating, and devastating to find this out about your spouse along with the entire world.
Tiger has two children approximately two years old and a newborn. They are too young to know what's going on, but it won't be long before they are in school and old enough to understand the looks, taunts, and teasing about their father. And by then, will their parents still be together? Elin may very well decide to leave her husband after all that has occurred. If that were to happen, then you have two children being raised by a single parent, with a very negative image of a father figure. This is not good no matter how much money you have.
Finally, I was disappointed as an African American. I realize Tiger has a varied ethnicity, but he is still a person of color. All of these years, it was refreshing to see a positive image of a person of color. Articulate, intelligent, No tattoos covering his arms and chest. All of the negative stereotypes so easily attributed to a dark skinned man were shattered by Tiger Woods on the grandest of stages. He was the new example of what to strive for. Now, he's just another brother cheating on his wife.
Oh my gosh, Tiger is human after all. Personally, I do not care about what he does off the golf course, only that he continues to dazzle me with he golfing skills.
ReplyDeleteTo my knowledge, he has never presented himself as a wonderful human being, with no faults or flaws. He is just like everyone else. He makes mistakes and I will measure him as a human being by how he addresses those flaws now that they are in the public eye. Give the guy a second chance. His sponsors do not appear to be concerned.
Same for Michael Vick. I despised him for the dog fighting, but he did his time and now I support him in trying to make a comeback and take advantage of his talents. I still think he is a twisted person for what he did to dogs but as an athlete, I respect him for what he can do.
Disappointed in two fine athletes, yes I am but the American public needs to ween itself from equating celebrities with people to emulate. Celebrities/athletes use their talents or fame to make a living. They do not have to be fine upstanding citizens or high moral character to do this.
If people need to look up to someone, pick a person that matters and has proven themselves. A father or mother just might fit the bill. Hollywood or the playing field is full of selfish individuals. Look closer to home for what you truly want to model your life after. The people that raised you, the next door neighbor who selflessly devoted his/her life to helping others, a teacher who inspired you to become a better person. The good guys/gals are out there, just pay attention.