Riled Up Riley and the N-word

Bob George stole my Breaking Bad thunder (I'm not salty at all) so I'm forced to write about the next thing that popped to mind. You probably know this story by now. (Its about a week old, but I don't get to post until Wednesday)  If you don't, I'll give you a quick recap. Riley Thomas Cooper of the Philadelphia Eagles said the n-word and was caught on tape. He threatened to beat up "all the niggers" on the other side of a fence while intoxicated at a Kenny Chesney concert. Don't piss off a white person with a stadium full of white people behind him.

Honestly, I could give a damn about Riley. I'm a Giants fan and I honestly think about 98% of adult white people have used the n-word during their lifetime outside of reading Huck Finn. Black people know how awkward it was to read that book aloud in English class. I'm also convinced that another 65% of adult white people use the word on at least a weekly basis. Whether these are the sheet-hood wearing KKK whites, "I got two black friends" having whites or drunken whites belting out the words to some Lil Wayne song they all use the n-word. White people love Lil Wayne.

Going to a predominately white school, where I would oft overhear non-black people using the n-word, I'm now immune to getting riled up over it. I still cringe like no other when I hear it and have the urge to flip, but I restrain. In my opinion, you know whether or not you should be saying it. If you choose to do it, then that's on you. I'm beyond getting pissed. If you don't respect me and my blackness enough to not say it in front of me, then I don't respect you enough to care about anything you say. If I overhear you saying it when you thought you were alone, I'll let it go as if I accidentally caught you masturbating. Sometimes you just can't fight the urge. What you do on your own time is on you, but damn be smart about it.

None of us can say we're not guilty of saying inappropriate things about people out of their earshot. Whether that's about the fat lady at the buffet with three plates, the little boy with the piss stained pants or the homeless man who smells like the fat lady and pissy boy together covered in poop. We've all whispered to our friends about these people. I can't front as I probably do it more than most.

That being said, Riley was caught on tape. He effed up. He said he was sorry. And he should pay the piper.  He received some light sanctioning and a "high-dollar" fine from the Eagles. Roger Goodell took a punk stance on it and said that since the club fined him, the NFL won't. Roger Goodell is as close to a slave owner as any American and let one of the house negroes get away with some foolishness by standing behind some policy. Weak.

Riley Cooper really just needs to be forgiven by his teammates. They are the only people who really need to respect him. 51 out of 80 people on the roster are black so no doubt he's aware of the severity. He knows he messed up but he won't be cut. He's slotted to be the no.2 receiver this year, they need him more than they need to be moral at this point. It sucks but its the truth. The Eagles suck. The NFL should sanction him somehow but won't. Most of his teammates said they've forgiven him, so why shouldn't we? I mean there's a bounty on his head now. How dumb can you be if your job consists heavily of getting hit by some of the most athletic black men on the planet? I think he's going to catch the business end of a lot of hits this season. The other 31 teams might not be as forgiving. Ya'll should pray for this Riley Thomas for many reasons. Tim Tebow is.