The US Professional Golfers Association of America is being investigated by the US Department of Justice. We could say–based on the speed of the Trump investigation–that hell will freeze over long before the DOJ acts. But in this case big US $$$$$ are involved so the DOJ will probably render some kind of partial or temporary opinion sooner than later. At stake is the Saudi tour participation in the Masters Golf tournament next April–so there’s time to diddle. For the record the Supreme Court (or NOT SO Supreme Court) ruled in 1953 that baseball is a sport–NOT A BUSINESS. Is that a joke? But that halo ruling has been spread to all “sports” regardless of the billions of $$$$ involved. Not only is any “sport” free from typical laws governing business activities, it is also free from most criminal charges. Example: where else besides a hockey game can you (and several thousand others) witness a player physically assault and draw blood from an opposing player? If that happened on the street charges could result in a long prison sentence. But in the hockey world the assailant might get 10 minutes in the penalty box. Sound about right ? Another example: If you transport a human being across state lines without their OK it is usually termed “kidnapping” and a felony with a severe sentence will follow. Baseball owners do it routinely when they “trade” players without their consent. Isn’t this a form of human trafficking? And let’s talk stadium building…how do we view sports franchise owners bullying state/city officials into building bigger stadiums with taxpayer money (“stadia” for the perfectionist) by threatening to move the team? Isn’t that a form of blackmail? Our point: ALL SPORT IS A BUSINESS (REGARDLESS OF THE SUPREME COURT’S LACK OF KNOWLEDGE AND HONESTY) AND AS SUCH HAS BEEN AND WILL BE ALWAYS ABLE TO OPERATE OUTSIDE ALL LAWS. For the DOJ to dip its legal toes into that cesspool is to open a can of worms (How’s that for metaphors?). Way too much money is at stake and sports are snugly woven into the fabric of American existence. While we don’t agree with that observation–it is absolutely accurate. And soon enough the Department of Justice will act accordingly.
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