William Shatner Reacts To Seeing Earth From Space: 'It's So Fragile' At the age of 90, .Star Trek. actor William Shatner made history when he and three others were launched into space on a Blue Origin rocket.
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By Bob Gaydos
A couple of interesting stories flashed by a couple of weeks ago and quickly faded from most news reports. That's common in today's highly charged political atmosphere. "Other" news has a tough time getting noticed.
The stories involved former pro football coach/sports commentator Jon Gruden and former actor William Shatner. At first glance, they may seem worlds apart, but I see a connection. Two, in fact.
Technology and priorities. Technology sacked Gruden and lifted Shatner, Captain Kirk of Star Trek fame, to another dimension. In the process, misplaced priorities of others came into focus.
Gruden was forced to resign his position as coach of the Las Vegas Raiders in the NFL after The New York Times reported that emails Gruden had sent several years ago to the owner of the Washington Football Team (that's its official name) were full of racist, homophobic and misogynistic remarks. Gruden was a football TV analyst at the time.
His contract with the Raiders was for 10 years and $100 million. There were six years and $40 million left on the contract. He recently reached a settlement with the Raiders on the remaining dollars. Being a pro football coach pays well, but only if you hide your bigotry well.
In the years before email, Gruden would probably have survived just as many coaches have survived, by hiding their prejudices in public. But this is a new century and the kind of things that were OK between the guys in private are no longer acceptable when they become public.
Indeed, Gruden's emails came to light as part of an NFL investigation into charges of sexual harassment filed against the team by their cheerleaders, all female. Gruden made his remarks in messages sent to the owner of the team, a team, by the way, which still has not figured out a new nickname to replace "Redskins." It was finally forced to give up the name because, well, it's a new century.
Gruden released a statement, saying: "I have resigned as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders. I love the Raiders and do not want to be a distraction. Thank you to all the players, coaches, staff, and fans of Raider Nation. I'm sorry, I never meant to hurt anyone."
Well, yeah, that's why you say nasty things about people behind their backs instead of to their faces. But when you are in a position of power, how do those opinions play out in your day-to-day dealings with those people? And when you say insulting things about people who might have some power over you, say the commissioner of the NFL, as Gruden apparently did, well that might have an impact on how that person deals with you and your team.
Gruden is reportedly depressed about what has happened. But maybe he shouldn't have sent those emails. And perhaps the NFL, before it gets too self-righteous, should apologize to Colin Kaepernick, the black quarterback who was blackballed for economic reasons by the league for taking a knee during the National Anthem to protest racism in America. That would include the NFL, even though the majority of its players are black. The misogyny and homophobia in the NFL are a given.
Kaepernick, and other players who joined him, publicly protested treatment of blacks that Gruden, and for sure, others affiliated with the NFL, supported in private through their attitudes and comments.
Nothing changes if nothing changes. It's a new century, gentlemen. New Technology tells you if someone really scored a touchdown. It can also tell you if that smiling face on the coach is the mask of a bigot.
Shatner is a different story. In the first place, he's a "former" actor, because he's 90 years old and retired. He wasn't forced to resign.
In an inspired theatrical gesture, he was invited to be a passenger on the New Shepard space vessel launched into sub-orbital space by Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin company. Shatner set a record, going where no man or woman that age had ever gone before.
He returned from his brief trip to space awestruck and emotional..
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