Ray Rice

[pbmax]

The problem for me is that once you're okay with the NFL - a "brand" is ever there was one - being allowed to punish/fire players for acts that occur outside of the workplace because those acts damage the "brand," then you've opened the door to every single company to be able to control the private lives of employees and to fire those who don't knuckle under.

So if you own a plumbing company, and you've "branded" yourself as a family-oriented, good-citizen company, and one of your young plumbers goes and gets wasted and gets into a fight on Saturday night, you really can, under this line of thinking, fire the guy because he's damaging your "brand."

In that scenario there is no private life left. There is only a constant monitoring of one's life by others. One of the big mistakes many people make is in thinking it's "the government" that is doing all this. But that's only part of it. Private corporations (say, Google Earth) are recording where you live, are looking at your facebook page, are monitoring your tweets, and are ready to fire your ass if you don't act in an acceptable way.

I am a little surprised at how okay so many people are with having lost their right to a private life.

We'll, Fritz, unless you are lucky enough to work for a union, every at-will employee in the country is already under that threat. You can be terminated at any time for any reason. Unless they wish to deny you unemployment, they don't even need to show cause or have a suitable reason. Its entirely up to the employer (and employee-they can leave anytime as well). Like Rice, if the plumber is really good, the company will go to longer lengths to keep him around. If he stinks or is easily replaceable, he's going to be out of luck.

I don't think the branding argument works for the Plumbing Co because even if they are big, Trane isn't going to stop selling them parts and furnaces because an employee got into trouble.

A company I know well is currently considering using background checks when hiring because they have had two bad apples recently with bad work histories that weren't readily apparent with the normal screening procedures. Those background checks will include criminal histories if such exist, from publicly available databases. The NFL is just better (and has more resources) than most employers.

Criminal histories are not generally private information. The paper every day is full of the police log book from the night before.

[Rastak]

Are you saying Palmer owed money to wise guys and took a dive?

That was Ali-Liston II. The phantom punch. I firmly believe that short left in the first fight knocked him out.

[Striker]

The problem for me is that once you're okay with the NFL - a "brand" is ever there was one - being allowed to punish/fire players for acts that occur outside of the workplace because those acts damage the "brand," then you've opened the door to every single company to be able to control the private lives of employees and to fire those who don't knuckle under.

So if you own a plumbing company, and you've "branded" yourself as a family-oriented, good-citizen company, and one of your young plumbers goes and gets wasted and gets into a fight on Saturday night, you really can, under this line of thinking, fire the guy because he's damaging your "brand."

In that scenario there is no private life left. There is only a constant monitoring of one's life by others. One of the big mistakes many people make is in thinking it's "the government" that is doing all this. But that's only part of it. Private corporations (say, Google Earth) are recording where you live, are looking at your facebook page, are monitoring your tweets, and are ready to fire your ass if you don't act in an acceptable way.

I am a little surprised at how okay so many people are with having lost their right to a private life.

A lot of our rights to a private life are still there. However, in the social media age we live in, everyone has to be smart and careful with how they conduct themselves on the internet (when posting under your actual alias) and in public places. If you can't resist the urge to post inflammatory stuff on your public profile? Then operate under an alias or, better yet, make sure you lock down your privacy settings.

Or better yet, don't be an idiot.

"Hey, I'm going to smoke a joint, should I post that on my publicly accessible Facebook page?"

"I think my boss is a total fuckstick, should I post that opinion on Twitter?"

Case in point - > Link and link.

[MadtownPacker]

Many of you stank honkies would be toast if your bosses contacted PackerRats!!

[wist43]

Except as we've seen the judicial system is willing to cut a deal for many reasons (fame, lack of a victim testimonial, etc) but it's sadly no different across many domestic violence cases (and other crimes as well). In this case, he has to submit to counseling and then he's done.

I don't think many people's changed their mind on this case after the video leaked. Those that thought the punishment was too light the first time still thought the punishment was too light.

Not only that, but if the story is true that the NFL and/or the Ravens hadn't seen the video until it was leaked, then they also have every right as employers to terminate him if they see fit.

The appropriate place to vent disagreement over the punishment he received from the ADA, is the peoples state representatives, the District Attorneys Office, and the Governor. Stoning and scarlett lettering went out a long time ago.

The only people involved here are Rice and his wife; and apparently she just wants all this shit to blow over; but of course "the people" won't leave it alone, and are determined to ruin Ray and Janay's lives.

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Other examples of this idiocy spreading its ugliness - the San Francisco 49ers radio broadcaster was suspended for 2 games b/c he said something to the effect of, '... what was she thinking, backing her husband'?

Paul George, the Indian Pacers G, tweeted something to the effect, '... if only people took police abuse this seriously' - and Larry Bird brought fury against him and forced him to apologize. Maybe he said something I didn't see, but I certainly didn't see anything that he said worthy of any comment whatsoever...

What's going on here on a societal level is far more disturbing than anything Ray Rice did.

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On a personal note, my wife came home from work today and said a girl at her work was fired today b/c of something she posted on Facebook. She was on medical leave, for a knee injury, but posted pics of her attending a public event in which apparently didn't look injured. My wife tells me that this woman didn't have a good work record, but it was the Facebook post that broke the camel's back, and landed her on the unemployment line.

This social media shit is completely out of control... and it's b/c people can no longer control themselves and mind their own fucking business. You take care of you, and I'll take care of me... that used to be a staple of American citizenship - long since forgotten now I guess.

Everyone is everyone else's judge, and the walls have eyes and ears - my wife went on to say that there is a spy at their work who reports everyone for anything. Long time, good employees are now being hauled in front of HR, and it is causing severe morale problems at her workplace.

The PC bullies are doing far more damage to Janay Rice and to society than anything Ray Rice did. It's sick, and it needs to stop.

[Harlan Huckleby]

Many of you stank honkies would be toast if your bosses contacted PackerRats!!

Bosses or county relief.

Bosses may just be an email away, but so is ICE.

[wist43]

I remember reading an article about 20 years ago that talked about the popularity of "reality" shows in the U.K. and Europe - before that poison had spread here. The shows centered around the pack mentality of isolating the target, and then heaping abuse upon them as they were disgraced off the show.

The article talked about the possible societal consequences of such behavior and of such a worldview - that it would lead to a loss of perspective and diminishment of socially appropriate behavior for those that became engrossed is such nonsense.

Of course there was no vision of what "social media" would become - but with our society now awash with morons - that article is certainly proving to be prophetic.

[Rutnstrut]

So players can rape, do drugs, be involved in shootings etc... But the NFL and the public are outraged at someone for a domestic spat. Now the whole deal over when the NFL had possession of the video. Give me a fucking break, it's not like this is the first thing the NFL has ever covered up.

[wist43]

So players can rape, do drugs, be involved in shootings etc... But the NFL and the public are outraged at someone for a domestic spat. Now the whole deal over when the NFL had possession of the video. Give me a fucking break, it's not like this is the first thing the NFL has ever covered up.

Remember "The White House"??

[gbgary]

[pbmax]

The only people involved here are Rice and his wife; and apparently she just wants all this shit to blow over; but of course "the people" won't leave it alone, and are determined to ruin Ray and Janay's lives.

He has earned millions of dollars from his career. She is in no trouble. This is your definition of a ruined life? Do you realize how much actual suffering you are minimizing by using that adjective to describe a fabulously wealthy man? That he is denied, temporarily, employment in one business because he publicly embarrassed himself and his employer.

BTW, many Ravens fans are backing Rice. So I don't think his career is done yet.

This social media shit is completely out of control... and it's b/c people can no longer control themselves and mind their own fucking business. You take care of you, and I'll take care of me... that used to be a staple of American citizenship - long since forgotten now I guess.

This is actually nothing new and has little to do with social media. Someone I know very well was followed for a week after a car accident by an investigator for an insurance company to gather evidence against any claims for injury that might eventually occur. Social media didn't invent people trying to save their business money. Its just another window to peek in.

[Patler]

Many tradespeople can be fired for drug use - some on the spot.

I know in my profession, they do a pretty thorough background check and ask individuals to respond to any possible transgressions.

Heck, I'm instituting an 'emotional intelligence' component to my current recruiting practice because I'm sick of dealing with unstable people.

You all should read an interesting case of a kindergarten teacher caught defacing a Walker booth a a local county fare... should she be fired/suspended? Can the school district do independent investigation? Regardless of political view - would you want your 5yr old being taught by someone with less than stellar character?

But now you are mixing in transgressions that impact the ability of the individual to perform their job. In those situations, of course the person should lose their job. I already acknowledged that when I advanced the questions. A lawyer or accountant who embezzles money will lose their license because their dishonesty calls into question whether or not they can do their job honestly. That's not the situation with Rice, nor what I was questioning.

[Patler]

It kind of makes me sick to my stomach reading Ray Lewis' attempt to contrast his situation and Rice's:

"There is no comparison. This is nothing about me, personally, me speaking with the owner of the Ravens today, Steve Biscotti, just moments ago," Lewis said. "And just listening to the reason why Ray Rice will never play for the Ravens again, he put his daughter — he put anybody that's connected to him that's a female — he put them in that position. When you do that you have to take a step back. When you're an owner and anybody who walks in the room and you see that type of evidence that you haven't seen or heard before ...

“One thing Steve made very clear: there is no comparison of me and Ray Rice. It's night and day. It's night and day of anything we've ever been through and that's why both situations are totally different.”

In another one I read he kept harping on the fact that it was someones daughter. someone's sister; and if anyone did that to his daughter or sister there would be trouble. Well, what about it being someones son or brother, and the fact that his life was taken?? Lewis was accepted back with open arms.

[wist43]

He has earned millions of dollars from his career. She is in no trouble. This is your definition of a ruined life? Do you realize how much actual suffering you are minimizing by using that adjective to describe a fabulously wealthy man? That he is denied, temporarily, employment in one business because he publicly embarrassed himself and his employer.

BTW, many Ravens fans are backing Rice. So I don't think his career is done yet.




This is actually nothing new and has little to do with social media. Someone I know very well was followed for a week after a car accident by an investigator for an insurance company to gather evidence against any claims for injury that might eventually occur. Social media didn't invent people trying to save their business money. Its just another window to peek in.

So Maximus Sanctimonious has decreed that Mr. Rice has made "enough", and that his and his family's needs, wants, and desires are sufficiently fulfilled that they must never be allowed to work again... that about right??

I feel blessed to have finally found a man without sin. A man so grounded in wisdom and insight that such a decree can only be deemed beyond reproach - as the man is surely above reproach.

All hail Maximus

[pbmax]

So Maximus Sanctimonious has decreed that Mr. Rice has made "enough", and that his and his family's needs, wants, and desires are sufficiently fulfilled that they must never be allowed to work again... that about right??

I feel blessed to have finally found a man without sin. A man so grounded in wisdom and insight that such a decree can only be deemed beyond reproach - as the man is surely above reproach.

All hail Maximus

Quit being so defensive. There is a lot of distance between ruined, fabulously wealthy and enough.