A8 TUESDAY, July 2, 2013
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KAMLOOPS
THIS WEEK
Publisher: Kelly Hall publisher@kamloopsthisweek.com Editor: Christopher Foulds editor@kamloopsthisweek.com
A lucky nation of immigrants
PUBLISHER Kelly Hall
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The National Felons League hits the police blotter again
Y
ET ANOTHER National Football League player has been arrested on suspicion of murder and a continent emits a collective yawn. Aaron Hernandez is a star tight end with the New England Patriots who just signed a $40-million contract extension with the club. Unfortunately, the hulking Hernandez will likely be making pennies cleaning potties rather than making millions meandering to the end zone as he is charged with shooting to death his friend, Odin Lloyd, and suspected in two other murders in 2012. According to the San Diego Union-Times’ NFL Arrests Database (which can be viewed online at http:// www.utsandiego.com/nfl/arrestsdatabase), there have been at least 38 NFL player arrests this year for something more serious than a speeding ticket. These include Hernandez’s murder charge, Cleveland linebacker Ausar Walcott’s attempted murder charge and Adam Jones’ assault charge for allegedly hitting a woman in a nightclub (the latest in a string of criminal charges against the Cincinnati cornerback, who for some reason continues to receive second, third and fourth chances by various teams). There seem to be so many charges (assault, drug possession, DUI, failure to pay child support) and so many players that the perceived all-encompassing criminality of NFL players becomes like white noise. Because pro athletes are celebrities, an arrest makes the headlines.
CHRISTOPHER FOULDS Newsroom
MUSINGS When Hernandez or another player is arrested for murder, it dominates headlines in newspapers, on TV, on radio and on the Internet. When 23 people are slain in crimeinfested Camden, N.J., in the first six months of 2013, not one of the 23 killings will approach the media coverage given the Hernandez case. No celebrity, little span of coverage. While it may appear as though the NFL is a league rampant with crime, the arrest rate of its players remains far below the national average in the U.S. According to Stephen Bronars of Bronars Economics, the arrest rate for NFL players has averaged about 2.9 per cent compared to 10.8 per cent for men ages 22 to 34, based on FBI crime data by age for men in 2009. Another interesting piece of data revolves around which players are more likely to be arrested. Wide receivers accounted for more than one of six arrests, cornerbacks accounted for about one of seven arrests and linebackers accounted for one of eight arrests.
On the other side of the crime spectrum are the small punters and kickers, accounting for one of 82 arrests, and those big offensive guards, accounting for one of 98 arrests. All of which helps pinpoint what these guys would do if, tomorrow, pro football was banned in the U.S. Obviously, punters and kickers would become real-estate agents (hello, Paul McCallum) or accountants. Offensive linemen would be saltof-the-earth guys sweating it out on a construction site. Quarterbacks (pivots without the Ryan Leaf and Michael Vick genes) would still shine — they simply have “it” and, even without football, would wind up with some fantastic job, making a load of money. Wide receivers would be serving time for various infractions, mostly involving DUI offences. Cornerbacks would be their cellmates, serving time for a variety of transgressions, mostly involving spousal assault. Linebackers would be in the cell across the way, serving time for a potpourri of offences, mostly involving beat-downs at nightclubs. Running backs would be in line at the government office, filing for bankruptcy as the number of childsupport demands hits double figures. Of course, they would need to take a number and wait their turn — behind the lineup of NBA stars. editor@kamloopsthisweek.com chrisfoulds.blogspot.com twitter.com/ChrisJFoulds
Canadians from coast to coast to coast have just celebrated the 146th anniversary of our great nation’s founding. There is much to celebrate. Earlier this year, Canada was ranked the third-best country in the world to live by the Organization for Economic Cooperation (OECD) and we are consistently ranked high in the United Nations’ Human Development Index. By any metric you choose to measure, Canadians enjoy a standard of life far above that of the rest of the world. However, sometimes it seems we Canadians don’t realize how good we have it. For the majority of Canadians, our claim to citizenship is merely by an accident of birth — we are the lucky few who started life in a society so prosperous — one that values peace, education, and public welfare. Few of us have ever gone without. If you ever want to truly understand just how good we have it here, talk one of the seven-million Canadians who came here from elsewhere in the world. For Canada’s immigrants, being a part of this great nation was a choice, one that likely brought with it not only great hardship, but great reward. No one has a greater appreciation for what Canada has to offer than new Canadians. It hasn’t always been an easy transition, however. In the past, when cultures clashed in Canada, what resulted was unjust and often violent. But just as it is important to celebrate the great achievements of our forefathers on Canada Day, it is equally important to remember the many the dark chapters in our collective history, so that we might learn from them and ensure they are never repeated. Episodes such as the Japanese internment, the Komagata Maru incident, the Chinese head tax, and the residential school system still resound today. Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it, which is why we as Canadians must remain ever vigilant to ensure such injustices don’t occur in the future. Today, as always, Canada is a nation of immigrants. It is what makes us unique, and it is what makes us great. And we are all the better for it.
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