Rushing To Rush To Judgement

ISean Avery there is no need for you to bother reporting to the New York Ranger's training camp but instead please just go directly to jail, do not pass go and leave us the $200 for our troubles.

Wow you want to talk about how fast people have rushed to judgement over Sean Avery's arrest. Why bother using the word "allegedly" because Avery has to be guilty because he is Sean Avery.

Granted that a lot of why Sean Avery is being pre-judged is because Sean Avery somehow finds ways to get the spotlight on himself. Still like Avery or not (and we really don't) this remains the USA and you are supposed to be presumed innocent until proven guilty.

In today's world where sites like TMZ.com or people like Nancy Grace are given a platform, we are seeing a rush to judgement that is not based upon facts but who the person is and that is scary.

Once upon a time you were supposed to say that a person "allegedly" committed a crime even if you had iron clad evidence that showed a person's guilt. Why bother giving someone even the worst piece of garbage any consideration when you have a bully pulpit.

Sean Avery of course can blame a lot of what he is going through right now on Sean Avery because he has done a lot of the damage to himself. Over the years, this spot has repeatedly said that when it comes to self-promotion; few are better at it than Avery.

But none of that is supposed to matter right now as we are supposed to give Sean Avery the benefit of the doubt that he is innocent. It does not matter what Sean Avery has done in his past as under the eyes of the law then Avery is not guilty until it is proven otherwise.

And we have to agree with Larry Brooks when he writes

But being arrested for battery on a police officer, even if the charge is dismissed along the way, does not help Avery be taken seriously as a social progressive, and it does not make it any more likely he will be called upon to lobby legislators on behalf of issues about which he cares deeply and for which he has been an effective advocate.

See with a cynic like yours truly then it is hard to convince me that the causes that Avery has supported are because he believes in them or is it just another reason for Avery to get himself into the spotlight. But Brooks is right that Avery if he truly does care about helping the gay community gain the equality they seeky that getting arrested does their cause more harm than good.

In today's world there is more often than not a rush to find ways to tear a person apart and the excuse is because bad people draw higher ratings. Sean Avery has found ways to draw attention to himself as he did in the now infamous "sloppy seconds" remark that earned him a suspension as well as an exile from the Dallas Stars.

And as much as we dislike Avery for the antics he pulls at the same time it bothers us more at how fast he is being hung out to dry (and we are not talking just Ranger fans either). So far the reporting we have seen regarding Avery's arrest for battery on a police officer has been an excuse to highlight every single misdeed that Avery has done.

While one is used to trash journalism from sites like TMZ and the New York Post but when you see "The Sporting News" including this nugget as part of their coverage of Avery's arrest then you have to wonder:

In November, Avery was at the center of a brawl between the Rangers and Oilers after what was called a "gutless" punch to Ladislav Smid.

What exactly does this have to do with what happened the other night in Los Angeles? If someone at the Sporting News would like to explain how this has any bearing on this arrest then hey we are all ears.

Even TMZ the site that broke the arrest story for some reason decided to include images of NHL hockey fights. The head scratching comes when not one image is of Sean Avery in a fight but it is TMZ so expecting things to make sense is asking a lot.

And how sad no call it disgusting is that people who dislike Avery are using this arrest to question Avery's own sexual preferences. Huh? Avery is Gay because he allegedly shoved a police officer?

Wow knew that small minded people can be rather stupid at times but if you are going to say Avery is gay because he allegedly shoved a police officer then please help the rest of us by not having any children of your own.

Now understand with 4 family members who have been or are police officers that we like hearing about any police officer attacked. But there is a huge leap from battery on a police officer compared to assaulting one.

If Avery had done something in an attempt to injure an police officer then the charges would be much worse than what they are currently. And they are not so it would not at all surprise us that in the end Avery winds up with a fine for "disturbing the peace", asked to apologize to the officer "allegedly" shoved and asked to pay for the cost of the investigation.

And heaven forbid that all charges get dropped, wonder where the zeal will be the report that part?

It won't be on TMZ or the Post.

(Avery courtesy of the Associated Press)