Not Guilty!
With the exception of some Pennsylvania-Dutch town, you could not go anywhere in the past year and a half without hearing about O.J. Simpson and the "Trial of the Century." Well the trial finally came to an end, and O.J. walked away an innocent man. If it was up to me that would be the end of the matter, but still you can't go anywhere, even the Pennsylvania Dutch debate about it now, without hearing somebody give his or her opinion on the verdict. So I'm gonna join in on the fun and throw out a couple of my opinions and then drop the issue for good.
When people think of the Dream Team nowadays they think of the Simpson defense team of Robert Shapiro, Johnny "Crazy Legs" Cochran, and F. Lee Bailey. Now that is a pretty good group, but they do not compare to the real Dream Team, the American men's basketball squad in the 1992 Olympics. Sure F. Lee Bailey is a threat from long distance, but can he dish the pill as well as Stockton? And we all know Robert Shapiro is a monster in the paint, but can he really contain Ewing and Robinson? But that is not the main difference between the two Dream Teams. The original Dream Team went overseas, blew out other countries, won respect, and brought home glory and a gold medal for America. The newest Dream Team stayed in Los Angeles, polarized its own country, lost respect, and brought home glory and lucrative book and movie deals for themselves.
I really hate how everybody says that the reason O.J. got off is because he was black and a famous football player. That's not true, the reason he got off is because he acted white, was extremely rich, and everybody liked him. Let's not kid ourselves, if it was Jim Brown in O.J.'s place he would have been sent to the gallows after a trial that lasted three days tops. Jim Brown was mean and bitter, O.J. was nice and happy. Jim Brown never forgot his roots, O.J. was a traitor to his race. Jim Brown lived modestly, O.J. lived lucratively. But Jim Brown was a bad actor and O.J. was a good actor, and that is why Jim Brown was hated by many, and O.J. Simpson loved by more. So for now O.J. is back in his rich white neighborhood turning tragedy into a pay-per-view special, and Jim Brown is still in South Central Los Angeles turning ex gang members into decent human beings.
Another detail of the trial I disagreed with, was how everybody was calling it a circus because of all the T.V. cameras in the courtroom. I think most people must have a different image of a circus than myself. Of all the circuses I've been to, I don't think I have seen a single television camera, nor have I seen many circuses on network television. But somehow something with extensive television coverage is considered a circus. I think media circus is an huge oxymoron. If Dan Rather drove a motorcycle through a ring of fire, then that would be a media circus. If the entire staff of the Morning Show was shoved into a small Volkswagon, then that would be a media circus. And if David Brinkley juggled swords while riding an unicycle, then yes even that would be a media circus. But eventhough Johnny Cochran is a clown, who scares small children, the O.J. trail was still not a true media circus.
O.K. I avoided the topic long enough, now on to the verdict. Was the verdict the right one? Sadly it was. There was no murder weapon found, no witnesses, and of course no confession. What there was, was a bloody glove that was found by an extremely discredited witness, and D.N.A. evidence that came with conflicting testimonies that further confused the jury. Now does this mean that O.J. is innocent? Yes. If a boxer wins a fight by a contraversial decision, no matter what anybody says he will always be considered the winner. Was justice served? Yes. Was truth served? Absolutely not. But our court system is based on justice, not truth. Does this trial show that we have a faulty justice system? No. This trial was an extraordinary trial, and in no way represents the norm of our legal system, which is still tops in the world.
One last thing about this whole thing that got to me this past week, was how the entire country was devastated over the possiblity that a guilty man might have got off. For all the apathy shown towards the injustice of Blacks in the American justice system, why should America all of a sudden care about one man possibly getting away with murder? Organized crime has been getting away with more than murder long before O.J. Simpson picked up a football. And the same society that glorifies organized crime in movies, is now condemning O.J. Simpson. It doesn't make much sense, but who really cares? Life will go on.
So to conclude for this week, Robinson would dominate F. Lee Bailey on the glass, Jim Brown deserves a little more respect, and Willard Scott alone couldn't fit into a Volkswagon.
This week's feature is Feff's top ten N.F.L. players of all time:
10. Phil Simms
9. Mark Bavaro
8. Richard Dent
7. Warren Moon
6. Doug Flutie
5. Bart Oates
4. Jim Burt
3. Joe Morris
2. Chuck Cecil
1. O.J................McDuffie