I was actually going to post a story from my local paper, which is 30-45 minutes away from Cooperstown. Oh, what the hell, I'll post it anyway:
http://www.thedailystar.com/news/sto...4/10/coop.html
Thursday, April 10, 2003
Baseball Hall snubs celebrities
By Tom Grace
Cooperstown News Bureau
COOPERSTOWN - The National Baseball Hall of Fame has canceled an appearance by Academy Award winning actress Susan Sarandon and her longtime companion, actor and director Tim Robbins because they've spoken out against attacking Iraq.
Sarandon and Robbins, co-stars along with Kevin Costner in the 1988 film, "Bull Durham," had been scheduled to discuss the movie, a comic look at life in the minor leagues, at the Hall of Fame on April 25 and 26. Also slated to be there were NBC movie critic Jeffrey Lyon, "Bull Durham" director Ron Shelton and another movie co-star, Robert Wuhl.
However, on April 7, Dale Petroskey, Hall of Fame president, sent letters to Sarandon and Robbins, criticizing their views on war and peace, and canceling the event.
Petroskey, 47, a Republican who resides in Cooperstown, told Sarandon and Robbins that by criticizing President Bush, they were, in the minds those at the Hall Of Fame, undermining "the U.S. position, which ultimately could put our troops in even more danger."
Petroskey declined to comment late Wednesday afternoon. Hall of Fame Vice President for Communication and Education Jeff Idelson said, "The letter speaks for itself."
The one sent to Robbins reads:
"Dear Mr. Robbins:
"The President of the United States, as this nation's democratically elected leader, is constitutionally bound to make decisions he believes are in the best interests of the American people. After months of careful deliberations, President Bush made the decision that it is in our nation's best interests to end the brutal regime of Saddam Hussein, and to disarm Iraq of deadly weapons, which could be used against its enemies, including the United States.
"In order to accomplish this, nearly 300,000 American military personnel are in harm's way at the moment. From the first day we opened our doors in 1939, The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum — and many players and executives in Baseball's family — has honored the United States and those who defend our freedoms.
"In a free country such as ours, every American has the right to his or her own opinions, and to express them. Public figures, such as you, have platforms much larger than the average American's, which provides you an extraordinary opportunity to have your views heard — and an equally large obligation to act and speak responsibly. We believe your very public criticism of President Bush at this important — and sensitive — time in our nation's history helps undermine the U.S. position, which ultimately could put our troops in even more danger.
"As an institution, we stand behind our President and our troops in this conflict.
"As a result, we have decided to cancel the April 26-27 programs in Cooperstown commemorating the 15th anniversary of 'Bull Durham.'
"Sincerely
"Dale Petroskey, president"
Sarandon has been canceled more than once, recently.
According to The Associated Press, the United Way of Tampa Bay recently told her not to appear at a fund-raiser scheduled for Friday because it had received complaints about her selection as a keynote speaker.
On learning of that decision, Sarandon, 56, said that "considering the depletion of federal funds for community programs and the faltering economy, it is disturbing to me that the United Way is letting partisanship determine its support base.
"Once again, the shortsightedness of the powerful will end up hurting those in need," Sarandon said, according to The Associated Press.
Neither Sarandon nor Robbins could be reached Wednesday for comment on the Hall of Fame's decision.
Another critic of the current war, Adam Flint, who teaches sociology at Hartwick College in Oneonta, agreed to review Petroskey's letter Wednesday evening and made the following observations:
"One, I'd say Bush's status as a democratically elected leader is perhaps the most questionable in our country's history," Flint said. In the election of 2000, more Americans voted for Democrat Al Gore than for Bush, a fact that many seem to have forgotten, Flint said.
"If you look at carefully documented studies of the last election, he (Bush) shouldn't have been elected," he said.
"But that's not really the point. I think the point is whether it's permissible to continue to enjoy one's democratic liberties when the nation is at war. My position is 'yes.'
"If you look carefully at the last 200 years of our history, at outright shooting wars, cold wars and other periods like the McCarthy era when speaking out was considered risky or subversive, that adds up to about half of our nation's history, if not more," Flint said.
If constitutional freedoms were in effect only when the United States was not at war or in crisis, essentially they would not be operational at all, Flint said.
"As for the assertion about Iraq's alleged weapons of mass destruction, no case has been made that Iraqi weapons presented any direct threat to the United States," he said.
"And as far as putting our troops in harm's way," said Flint. "I think George Bush has done that."
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This sucks.
)
- The Baseball Hall of Fame as well as the United way should be ashamed of themselves. What they did is so wrong at every level, and dare I say almost (I'm sure this Petroskey character is familiar with) unAmerican.
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