Blogs on the news – 06/30/14

Nyang’oro update

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On Monday last week The News & Observer whet its readers’ appetite about the upcoming hearing involving former UNC-CH African Afro-American Studies Department chairman Julius Nyang’oro.  The hearing was scheduled to take place on Wednesday, however on Tuesday, the day prior to the hearing, the media (mainly McClatchy newspapers which are obsessed with bashing the reputation of Nyang’oro) announced that Orange County District Attorney Jim Woodall was having second thoughts about following through with the felony criminal prosecution of the former professor because he had been so cooperative with the investigation into the athletic-academic scandal lodged by Kenneth Wainstein. 

Although the UNC system under President Tom Ross prides itself in recouping the $12,000.00 paid to Nyang’oro for teaching a summer class which did not physically meet, it promptly set about paying Mr. Wainstein $990.00/hour and his associates in a range from $440-750/hour to conduct an investigation into whats/whys/whens/hows of the scandal.  This investigation, which has already chalked up more than four months, has been estimated to last until this fall… and why not since the attorneys are getting paid by the hour.  They’re going to milk this golden cow for all it’s worth!

Wainstein and his legal comrades evidently assured the Orange County D.A. Woodall that Nyang’oro was thoroughly cooperating with the investigation… a disclosure which seemed to shock the district attorney.  Had Woodall, or his assistant D.A.s taken the effort to question the black professor prior to criminally indicting him, then perhaps Woodall mightn’t’ve been so awed that Nyang’oro’s behavior was sincerely helpful. 

However, in North Carolina it is a common practice to arrest and even indict African American suspects without bothering to question them during an initial investigation.  That’s what happened to Crystal Mangum, the Duke Lacrosse victim/accuser, in the stabbing of Reginald Daye.  Bull City officers did not approach her an ask her for her side of the story surrounding the early morning physical confrontation.  Instead they handcuffed her (arresting her for assault and battery in the stabbing of Daye), took her to police headquarters, read her her Miranda Rights, then began to interrogate her.  A similar scenario played out in the murder charge against Knightdale resident Carletta Alston who spent a year in jail for the murder of her stepfather before being released with the charge dropped and without explanation.

Now it seems as though Woodall is going to be forced to drop his ill-advised charge against Julius Nyang’oro… and not for the reasons touted by the D.A.  Woodall could care less about Nyang’oro’s cooperation with Wainstein.  His concern is the unexpected collateral damage to administrators and others in UNC-CH upper echelon that a criminal investigation would expose.

The News & Observer last published that Woodall was in serious self-deliberation about dropping the criminal charge against Nyang’oro and that the hearing was still scheduled to take place on Wednesday.  However, it was The Herald Sun, a Durham daily that informed the public that the hearing had been cancelled.

So it appears that this politically charged felony prosecution to destroy the reputation and life of Julius Nyang’oro (described by local media as being at the center of the UNC-CH academic scandal) is going to dissipate with a whimper instead of taking down another innocent victim with a bang.  nn

UNC-CH Hairston scandal

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As far as scandals go, the one involving the abhorrent mistreatment of UNC-CH round-baller P. J. Hairston far outweighs that which was spawned by the media about the African and Afro-American Studies program that was put in place by powers at UNC-CH to surreptitiously enable academically challenged athletes to remain academically eligible to compete in sports… particularly basketball and football.  The real scandal in the latter is that UNC system President Tom Ross is allowing the private law firm to conduct a worthless investigation at exorbitant hourly rates… this leading naturally to an increase in student tuition.

However, the P. J. Hairston saga was without doubt a tragedy that should never have happened… and one that could have been averted had the athletic department at UNC had a bulldog-like athletic director from the mold similar to NC State’s Debbie Yow.  The NCAA wouldn’t dare to pull such shenanigans with State knowing that Yow would stand up for her players… especially star players the caliber of Hairston who are capable of bringing championship trophies to school showcases and meeting incentives that increase her compensation.

As it was, UNC-CH allowed the parasitic, morally-lacking and avaricious NCAA intimidate it and invoke a season-long suspension of the Tar Heels’ leading basketball scorer P. J. Hairston.  The end result of this ridiculous ruling by that self-centered organization was that UNC-CH was removed from contention in the ACC and NCAA tournaments.  As well as the team did without Hairston, it would’ve done a heckuvalot better had he been on the hardwood.  Not only did the NCAA ruling destroy the Tar Heel season, but it was detrimental to Hairston himself.  Despite being selected in the first round, his prospects would’ve been much better had he been allowed to perform during his senior year… possibly propelling him into a top ten selection.  It is apparent that his play is NBA caliber, but the NCAA and the mainstream media have elected to represent Hairston as an irresponsible troublemaker lacking character.

What is sad is the phony reasons given for demeaning this student-athlete (who attended classes) and did everything he possibly could to appease the NCAA and be allowed to play his final season on the Tar Heel team he loved.  Evidently the NCAA was not impressed and imposed the season-long suspension for the following:  1) an arrest during a traffic stop for possession of marijuana (the charge later being dropped); 2) driving a rental car which is considered by the money-crazed NCAA as being a dreaded impermissible benefit; and 3) speeding.  Can you believe that?  What a joke!

The media is now trying to justify Hairston’s NCAA suspension by writing that he’s owning up to his mistakes.  A recent headline on the sports page of The News & Observer reads, “P. J. says he’s a better person:  Hairston says mistakes are in the rear-view mirror.”  What’s the big revelation about that?  Face it, everybody makes mistakes.  I made plenty of mistakes when I was younger… and with time, I matured… somewhat.  Driving a rental car paid for by someone else and speeding are not what I would consider serious violations worthy of draconian punishment meted out by the collegiate athletic overseer.  The action taken against Hairston by the NCAA was arbitrary, baseless, and cruel.

The same newspaper of June 28, 2014, contained another article titled “Manziel won’t tone it down,” in which Johnny Football, the star quarterback from Texas A & M, was unapologetic about his off-time weekend drinking and partying.  He claimed he was going to live life to the fullest.

NCAA parasites went easy on Manziel when it was disclosed that he had signed sports memorabilia and earned a reported $7,500.00.  For this violation he was suspended the first half of the first game of his last college football season at A & M.  Part of the laxness of his punishment might have been due to the fact that the NCAA was making big bucks off of selling Manziel’s jersey on its online site… a lucrative business transaction which it apparently stopped after it was revealed in the media.  But, that’s the creed of the NCAA – it’s okay for the NCAA to make big bucks off of Manziel, Hairston, and other college athletes but it would be considered an illegal impermissible benefit for the athletes themselves to do so.

I believe that the all colleges and universities would be better off by kicking the NCAA to the curb and building from scratch its own regulatory agency… one that would have the best interests of the athletes in mind and one that would do away with the “impermissible benefits” concept which is ethically conflicted.  Also, I believe that some of the enormous profits generated by college sports programs should go towards compensating those responsible for it… the athletes.

Unfortunately, under the NCAA, P. J. Hairston and subsequently UNC-CH’s basketball team needlessly suffered.  Even media articles directed towards justifying the barbaric treatment of Hairston by the NCAA cannot conceal that fact.  nn

Change the name!

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Washington Redskins owner Daniel Snyder has been unyielding in his determination to retain the “Redskins” name for his NFL professional football team.  And it seems as though he has picked up a few supporters including former Redskins manager Joe Gibbs who claims the name has been positive for him.  In an Associated Press article by Gary B. Graves, Gibbs is quoted as saying: “Never once did I hear anybody ever say anything negative about the name Redskins.  It was always prideful, it was courage involved.  We have a song, ‘Hail to the Redskins,’ and so everything, everything, about that name has been positive for me and my past.”

Also circling the wagons around Snyder on this issue are three Virginia legislators (Sen. Chap Petersen, Delegate Jackson Miller, and Delegate David Ramadan) who are forming a “Redskins Pride Caucus.”  What a pathetic waste of time and effort… sounds like something North Carolina legislators might do.

The majority of civilized America, including a vast number of politicians and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office find that the Redskin name is disparaging to Native Americans and should be changed.  Most important, Native Americans find the name to be demeaning and offensive.

What the Native Americans believe is overwhelmingly what should be taken into consideration.  What Joe Gibbs thinks is irrelevant as he is not a Native American.  So what if he finds the name Redskins to be prideful…?  Who cares?  And the three member Redskins Pride Caucus, to my knowledge, is not comprised of any Native Americans.  But this threesome professes to be standing for the all-important principle of “commercial freedom”… which in a capitalistic society readily trumps morality, compassion, and common sense.  Again, I say who cares what the Redskins Pride Caucus thinks.  It is without Native American representation and therefore its position on the issue is irrelevant.

What I would propose to Mr. Snyder is changing the name from “Redskins” to “Warriors.”  Washington Warriors… that has a catchy sound, and it would enable the team to retain its current logo.  It is the word “Redskins” after all that is problematic, and a reasonable person would be able to understand that.  Being an African American, I am naturally more empathetic with the Native Americans’ position than is Mr. Snyder… however, it’s past time for him to walk a mile in someone else’s moccasins and re-evaluate his stubborn position.  nn

UNC academic-athletic probe doesn’t make sense

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It’s been a while since Orange County District Attorney Jim Woodall set his prosecutorial sights on former UNC-Chapel Hill Professor Julius Nyang’oro, head of the school’s African and Afro-American Studies Department in what has become to be known as an “academic” scandal enabling academically challenged athletes to remain academically eligible to play inter-collegiate sports.  The biased media, with emphasis on The News & Observer, has placed Nyang’oro at the center of this brouhaha and painted him as the mastermind behind the unscrupulous practice of enrolling scholastically under-performing African American students in “no-show” classes and having tutor engage in ghost-writing reports and other class assignments.

With sickening relish in destroying the life and reputation of an African American professional, the N & O, as recently as Sunday, June 22, 2014, heralded the upcoming court appearance by Nyang’oro in a felony criminal case brought by the Orange County D.A. Woodall.  It seems that Nyang’oro accepted $12,000.00 for teaching a class which did not meet and which was heavily enrolled by black student-athletes.  After the media pounced on this apparent misstep by the professor, Nyang’oro stepped down as department chair, was forced into early retirement, and UNC-CH recouped its $12 grand salary by deducting it from Nyang’oro.   

D.A. Woodall was all set to prosecute the head of the African American studies program when things happened which took the air out from under his wings… namely, the light of truth started to shine.  The truth, which is plainly obvious to most Tar Heelians, is that Nyang’oro was in reality a very small cog in a very large academic turbo-engine which was designed to make UNC-CH competitive in football and basketball by making sure that the athletes remained academically eligible.  To begin with, many of these athletes, as exposed by UNC whistleblower Mary Willingham, were not academically of college caliber… some close to being illiterate.  Although they represented UNC on the gridiron and basketball court, these students were not recruited by Nyang’oro, and he did not advise them to enroll in his classes.  Nyang’oro was nothing more than acting as a good soldier… following orders handed down to him by his superiors.  Nyang’oro did not devise or implement the academic-fraud system… he merely executed it as demanded by those in high places.  As a result of the athletic successes and championships, millions of dollars were brought to the school.  It’s a fact that winning college sports teams bring in big bucks to the institutions they represent.

It is evident, especially with recent revelations by former UNC roundballer Rashad McCants that the 2005 NCAA national championship Tar Heel team owes its success in great measure to Nyang’oro whose classes allowed McCants and other star players on that team to remain eligible.  UNC-CH should have given Nyang’oro an award for his fidelity to the school instead of forcing him out and using him as a scapegoat… fodder for a district attorney who has no scruples about criminalizing an innocent African American man.  Truth be told, Julius Nyang’oro should be repaid his $12,000.00 salary because he conducted his class courses as demanded by those high up in the university’s chain of command… he enabled the athletes who struggled in the classroom to remain eligible.  In no way did he defraud the school or the student-athletes.  McCants, and other student athletes in his position were aware of how the academic-eligibility game was played and that their diploma would not be worth more than the sheepskin upon which it was printed.

        In the June 21, 2014 issue of The News & Observer, Dan Kane begins the article “Wainstein probe reaches back” by stating “UNC-Chapel Hill wants to move forward, so Kenneth Wainstein first has to look back.  In this case, way back.”  I disagree with this premise totally.  I have no problem with the university moving forward, but to hire an expensive legal firm to investigate the past is nothing more than a waste of money.  According to the article, Wainstein has been conducting his investigation for at   least four months with Wainstein personally being paid $990.00 an hour and three of his associates being paid anywhere between $440.00 and $775.00 an hour.  How do they get away with demanding such outrageously high compensation?  UNC system President Tom Ross tries to give assurances that the money going to pay these overpriced avaricious attorneys is not coming from taxpayer funds.  I don’t believe that; and if that is the case, where is the money to pay them coming from?  Undoubtedly the legal tab has risen far beyond the million dollar mark and the UNC system will logically recoup the amount spent on this ridiculous investigation by raising tuition.  Although there may be no specific taxpayer fund footing the bill, the state institution can’t help but bilk Tar Heelian taxpayers out of millions of dollars.  Well, at least, $12,000.00 of Nyang’oro’s pay will go towards paying for the investigation.  Comforting to know, isn’t it? 

        Ross has given Wainstein and his firm free rein in the conduct of the investigation… and no wonder it is stretching back so far.  The investigation is so encompassing because those doing the investigation are being compensated on an hourly basis.  Nothing is to be gained by the Wainstein investigation.  Everyone knows what happened… UNC-CH steered academically at risk athletes to “no- show” classes to assure their academic eligibility.  By doing so, it made UNC-CH competitive in the high revenue generating NCAA basketball and football programs.  What difference does it make who was responsible for putting together this academic-athletic fraud?  Instead the UNC system should move forward and put in place measures to assure their athletes are qualified to do college level work, remove no-show classes, and see that athletes, and not tutors, read their assignments and write their reports.  By doing so, however, UNC-CH will more likely than not become permanent cellar dwellers in the basketball and football standings… that is, unless all other universities in the ACC adopt the same standards.

        Orange County D.A. Woodall, has likewise wasted taxpayer money by instigating the worthless felony prosecution of Nyang’oro.  Facing the prospect of drawing in other high-ranking officials into the criminal prosecution of the black professor is the major impetus for Woodall to fall back from his prior aggressive stance in this case.  Evidently, from the Wainstein investigation thus far, Woodall has learned what most Tar Heelians already knew… that Nyang’oro was merely acting in concert with a system which was already well established to insure the university fielded talented football and basketball teams.  For Wainstein to proceed with the Nyang’oro prosecution would only reveal the true folly of the action taken by him against the dedicated and loyal university professor. 

        In order to save face, Woodall is claiming that he’s considering dropping charges because Nyang’oro is being cooperative in Wainstein’s investigation.  Woodall would’ve found Nyang’oro cooperative had he conducted an investigation instead of prematurely jumping forward to indict Nyang’oro as a felon for accepting $12,000.00 in compensation for heading up “no-show” classes for the benefit of UNC-CH.  In The News & Observer article of June 24, 2014, titled “Nyang’oro charge may be dropped,” Woodall actually seems to be shocked by Nyang’oro’s interaction with the Wainstein investigation saying, “It appears that Nyang’oro has cooperated fully with them and actually, I think, maybe gone over and above what was expected from him.”

        UNC-CH history professor Jay Smith, who for some reason has been pressing for an in-depth investigation into the scandal, admitted that it struck him as odd that Nyang’oro is the only person facing a penalty for the scandal.  It’s not so surprising when one considers that Nyang’oro is black.  Unfortunately in this state in this post-civil rights era, race does matter.  Of course, that is clearly evident in the Crystal Mangum case.

        D.A. Woodall had absolutely no compunction about investigating then Deputy Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Clay Nichols for mishandling evidence in a Cumberland County murder case.  But he has refused to investigate Nichols for proven allegations of perjury in Mangum’s trial (testifying that Reginald Daye’s spleen was removed at surgery eleven days prior to autopsy and therefore wasn’t available at autopsy, and yet describing the organ in detail in his autopsy report on Daye) and production of a false and fraudulent autopsy report.  However, Woodall is in league with others, including Durham D.A. Leon Stanback, and the NC Attorney General’s Office in refusing to investigate the work product of Nichols in the Mangum case.  That’s because it is too political and the Powers-That-Be who have hijacked the state’s justice system are sworn to see Mangum suffer retribution for her claims of being sexually assaulted at a March 2006 party hosted by Duke lacrosse players.

        Make no mistake about it… Woodall is the type of district attorney the Powers-That-Be want at the reins of the important criminal/legal position.  A district attorney who is malleable to the every whim of those in control, and a district attorney who is not moved by issues of morality and fairness.  Former District Attorney Mike Nifong would never have indicted Professor Nyang’oro, and dollars to donunts he most definitely would have investigated Medical Examiner Nichols for his actions in the Crystal Mangum case.  The reasons I believe Nifong would act thusly is because he has proven himself to be a man of integrity who is guided by precepts of ethics, fairness, and justice… a man possessing the independence and courage to fully commit to his conscience in doing the right thing.

        These qualities with which Mike Nifong has been endowed marked him as a major obstacle in the takeover of the justice system, and that is the reason that he was forced from his elected position in the powerful district attorney position.  To dissuade others from following in his footsteps, the State methodically persecuted Nifong while the biased mainstream media crucified him.  The State and media collaborated in a demonization enterprise against Nifong that is not dissimilar to that used against Crystal Mangum.

        To Orange County District Attorney Jim Woodall I say: “I have the privilege of knowing Mike Nifong, and you, Mr. Woodall, are no Mike Nifong.”  And that is the reason medical examiners will selectively not be prosecuted for producing fraudulent autopsy reports and committing perjury at trial.  That is the reason why innocent African American professionals will be preyed upon solely for the purpose of ruining their lives and reputations.  That is why all Tar Heelians are currently living under a legal system in which justice has been corrupted and hijacked.  

UNC bounced from ACC Championship tourney due to self-inflicted wound

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The UNC Tar Heel basketball team has no one to blame but themselves for their first game elimination from the ACC Championship... a precursor to the NCAA March Madness Tournament. A Roy Williams coached team with so much promise after last season began this year's round ball schedule under a shroud of mystery surrounding its leading scorer P. J. Hairston. How long would his suspension last... when would his sneakers again run up and down the hardwood when it really counted? Well, as everyone found out several games into the season, Hairston would be kept out of action for the entire season by the NCAA.

That phony, hypocritical parasitical organization which exploits student athletes while destroying athletic careers of some student-athletes in order to make itself seem relevant, did not disqualify Hairston for drug or alcohol violations... not for sexual assault or harassment... not for unauthorized possession or use of a firearm... not for talking to a sports agent... and not for any academic failures (being one of the UNC student athletes who can read at a college level). Nope, the reason the NCAA kept Hairston from joining his team this year had something to do with his foot... evidently it is made of lead.

It seems that in July 2013, Hairston was driving 75 mph on a freeway with a 65 mph limit... horrors!! Although he was initially charged with reckless driving, he later pled guilty to a reduced charge of speeding and unsafe movement. As the September 4, 2013 article in The News & Observer titled, "Hairston pleads guilty to reduced charge," noted, Hairston was suspended indefinitely hours after being cited for the traffic transgression. And the article went on to say that this was the third "off-court misstep" for the star Tar Heel basketballer who was previously cited twice for driving a rental vehicle linked to a felon. First of all, I am unaware that it is a crime to drive a rental vehicle linked to a felon. I am unaware that it is a crime to drive a vehicle owned by a felon. If that is the case, it behooves everyone to be knowledgeable of the criminal record of anyone of who he/she might think of asking to borrow a car. If there is such a ridiculous rule on the books... I would appreciate enlightenment about it.

Of course, it is possible that such a rule has been inspired by the NCAA and is applicable only to student-athletes. The point is that Hairston should never have been banned for the entire basketball season just because he might have had a need for speed. He certainly didn't violate any of the many ludicrous NCAA rules, regulations, and laws. The NCAA didn't disqualify Johnny "Football" Manziel for signing his sports memorabilia at a convention and profiting to the tune of $7,500. He was only suspended the first half of the season opening Texas A and M football game. Part of the reason for the avaricious organization's leniency was that it was profiting off Manziel's name as well by selling his jersey online. Anyway, when comparing the two discretions above, ask yourself which one is the more severe and deserves the harshest punishment. In my opinion, both are trivial with the NCAA's involvement in them being the most egregious action of all.

UNC, which did nothing to support or defend Hairston, should have "Debbie Yow'd" the NCAA. Bold and brazen as that organization is, it knows better than to mess with North Carolina State because Debbie Yow would go them like hogs in a sty at feedin' time. As the saying goes, "You don't mess with Texas or Debbie Yow." Yow not only protects Wolfpack sports programs and teams, but its fans, too. Everyone knows that those two rowdy NC State fans were out of control and that the referee was justified in having them removed from the State home game... but Yow was quick to counter-attack, with the bleeding and battered referee barely able to hold onto his job while the two State fan-agitators were greeted and treated as conquering heroes in a subsequent home basketball game.

The problem with UNC and its sports-related timidity is that it is gun-shy. After years of media-provoked meddling into the athletics and academic programs at the Chapel Hill university (which is aimed at destroying Julius Nyang'oro), it is bending over backwards to try and satiate the endless appetite for power sought by the NCAA. Face it, Nyang'oro was only doing what he could to help UNC field high caliber and competitive sports teams. That means recruiting and enrolling high school students with stellar athletic prowess, but being somewhat deficient in the academic arena. Nyang'oro was charged with seeing that the scholarly challenged athletes were able to pass GPA threshold to enable them to compete. That is exactly what he did, and as a result, Orange County District Attorney Jim Woodall, is smelling blood and is going in for the kill... a waste taxpayer money, court time, and state resources to sully what reputation is left for Nyang'oro after going through the media shredder... Woodall totally bent on destroying the former educator's life and legacy.

Durhamian David Williamson wrote a common-sense comment in the People's Forum of the March 9, 2014 News & Observer... naturally, it agrees with what I'm saying and can be accessed below. The question remains, how will North Carolina fare in the NCAA Tournament? It is certainly hard to tell considering that it fielded a team lacking last year's leading scorer, but one thing is certain. By allowing P. J. Hairston to be disqualified from playing this season, the team has dug itself a pretty deep hole long before opening tip-off of March Madness begins. 

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NCAA - a parasitic group

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http://www.justice4nifong.com/direc/flog/flog12.html

NCAA – a parasitic group – its members with a repressive, gluttonous, and hypocritical soul
Bent on disrupting college athletic programs for the benefit of its avaricious goal
while Justice casts a disapproving eye on its actions that claim a gruesome toll.


“I want everyone to remember why they need us!” These are the memorable words from my favorite movie, “V for Vendetta.” They are shrieked by England’s governing High Chancellor to his henchmen in charge of executing his commands. Although set some time in the near future it is more than likely that these very words could come from the mouths of the leaders of the NCAA today.

The NCAA, which stands for the National College Athletic Association, is a parasitic organization that feeds off the toil, sweat, bruises, and broken bones of collegiate athletes. A self-proclaimed overseer of college sports, this male dominated group of wealthy individuals has appointed itself as the all-mighty and undisputed regulator of college sports… determining rules and regulations that are all too often vague and discriminatory, and handing out fines and penalties like a cop in a speed trap.

This sedentary and essentially useless gang rakes in the money, hand over fist, that is generated by the physical and emotional sacrifices of the young gladiators on the fields, courts, and arenas. The university athletic system would work fine without the NCAA, so in order for the NCAA to make itself relevant… that is, to remind the university, athletes, and public why they need it… the NCAA conjures up scandals and issues stiff penalties for the most trivial of alleged offenses. And, this group has assigned as one of the most egregious behaviors that of giving assistance to a struggling athlete… lest he/she lose amateur status and be considered a professional. Heaven forbid.

While members of the NCAA wade in dollars flowing in from the toil of college athletes, they rebuke those poor, and disenfranchised players for accepting any money, gift, or assistance, no matter how meager or inconsequential. This rule, which is prejudicial in its nature, causes the greatest impact to the poor, disenfranchised, and minority athletes… for example such a rule would have no bearing on the financially endowed and coddled Duke lacrosse players.

Although the NCAA claims to place a high premium on university athletes obtaining a first-class education, its motivation, like that of Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Duke Energy, or any other capitalistic mega-corporation is its bottom line. Drunk with power it pretends that its actions are altruistic rather than avaricious.

When former president of the NCAA, Myles N. Brand passed away recently, Mark Emmert was selected to fill the leadership role of the NCAA. Mark Emmert, whose annual salary and compensation package from the NCAA is in the seven figure range, emphatically stated, “It’s grossly unacceptable and inappropriate to pay players… converting them from students to employees.” It is apparent that Mr. Emmert would rather keep them as the slaves that they are… who generate for the organization well over a billion dollars in revenue annually. For example, the three week NCAA basketball tournament in March kicks out more than $771 million annually in television rights alone. Yet Emmert and his administration cronies want an ever-increasing slice of the pie that was baked from the efforts of college athletes, many of whom are struggling just to get by.

Emmert’s attitude is not surprising, considering his background. Prior to assuming the position at the NCAA, Mark Emmert was the president of the University of Washington, in Seattle, Washington. Behind the basketball and football coach, Emmert earned the third highest salary, and among public university presidents during the 2008-2009 academic year, his salary of $620,000, making up part of a $905,000 compensation package was second highest in the nation. Sitting on boards of big corporations, such as Weyerhaeuser, brought in another $340,000 annually for Mr. Emmert.

When the University of Washington was under a protracted period of dire financial straits, Mr. Emmert refused to consider a cap on administrators’ salaries. In kind, the administrators backed Emmert’s excessively high salary, claiming his leadership was responsible for bringing in top faculty, and that he was deserving of it. Due to his salary demands, Mr. Emmert was criticized soundly at the Pacific Northwest institution.

Currently, the NCAA is fighting a class action lawsuit against one of its provisions which limits athletic scholarship to pay only room, board, tuition, and books… a fight that will be played out in the court rather than on the field.

Now, I am not alone in my negative assessment of the NCAA. Dr. Boyce Watkins, a college professor of eighteen years experience, stated, “The NCAA is likely the most corrupt system in America, behind the prison industrial complex.” In his online article of October 2011, titled NCAA Athletes Finally Demanding to Be Paid: A Professor's Perspective, Dr. Watkins accurately challenges the NCAA’s hypocritically bogus claim to be concerned about the academic integrity of the schools in its charge and their commitment to see that the student athletes receive a quality education. Dr. Watkins bluntly tells it like it is: “I've seen countless cases in which athletes have had a tremendous amount of pressure put on them by coaches who are only hired to win games and earn their multi-million dollar salaries. Studying becomes an extracurricular activity for the athlete who is being coached by a man who is only rewarded for a high winning percentage, not graduation rates. By systemic design, any athlete who tries to put academics ahead of athletics is severely punished for doing so.”

Not unlike the Salem Witch Trials back in the day, the NCAA is quick to make unsubstantiated accusations, then stand by them regardless if later disproved. The attacks, which accounted for a wide swath of suspensions for the University of North Carolina football team in 2010, had a detrimental effect not only on the athletes, but the head football coach and his staff, the athletic director, a tutor for the players, and an academic chairman.

In a News & Observer article of June 30, 2011 titled “Stewart defends his role”, Todd Stewart, a DJ from Washington DC, called ridiculous the NCAA allegations that he was a financial adviser who provided more than $7,000 in improper benefits to UNC football players. According to the NCAA, the bulk of the $7,216.20 that Stewart was alleged to have illegally given to football players was in the form of traveling expenses… which Stewart denied. Stewart did admit to lending his car to Tar Heel football standout Marvin Austin and allowing him to stay at his house when Austin came to Landover, Maryland for a visit. As Stewart went on to explain, his friendship with Austin goes back a decade before Austin was a high school football star. And the NCAA’s slipshod investigation also linked Todd Stewart to Pro Sports Financial… an accusation to which Stewart countered, “I never worked for them… ever.”

The NCAA also accused Stewart of giving to UNC defensive back Charles Brown a sum totaling $54.50. This so-called impermissible benefit netted Brown a one game suspension by this organization engorged with dollars made off the backs of college athletes.

The NCAA investigation into UNC’s football program forced the resignation of assistant coach John Blake, resulted in the eventual dismissal of head coach Butch Davis, and led to Professor Julius Nyang’oro stepping down as chairman of the Department of African and Afro-American Studies at UNC… the latter action snared in the imbroglio surrounding UNC linebacker Michael McAdoo.

The tragedy involving Michael McAdoo is insightfully explained in an op-ed piece titled “Who failed the player?” written by former NC Justice Robert F. Orr appearing in the August 2, 2011 News & Observer. He accurately suggests the platitudes emanating from the leadership at UNC of concern for “academic integrity” ring hollow. UNC leaders intently wooed Butch Davis to build a football powerhouse from the mediocre program in place at his hiring. In acquiring talent need to fulfill this mandate, Davis went to Tennessee and recruited Michael McAdoo with the promise to help him develop into an NFL prospect and for the university to provide assistance academically.

In the fishing expedition launched by the NCAA seeking out football players who may have received some impermissible financial aid, McAdoo was caught in the dragnet. The NCAA accused him of having unauthorized tutorial help and it labeled one of his papers as plagiarism because it contained a several paragraphs or passages from other sources… but sources which were given mention. Based on this alleged indiscretion, the NCAA permanently banned McAdoo from participating in college sports, a draconian and much harsher penalty than handed down by the school’s Honor Court… which did not interfere with McAdoo’s athletic pursuit.

On his behalf, McAdoo testified that he did not knowingly or intentionally seek to violate any NCAA regulation when accepting tutorial help or in writing the class paper. He then went through the proper channels in seeking reinstatement to play football at UNC. This move was derailed when Durham Superior Court Judge Orlando Hudson denied a temporary injunction to allow him to play college football while he challenged the ruling from the NCAA. With his hopes of continuing his college football career dashed, McAdoo tried out for an NFL team and was picked up by Baltimore Ravens… but at great financial disadvantage as his compensation for not being selected in the draft was severely restricted.

McAdoo then filed a suit against UNC and the NCAA for violating his rights… a lawsuit which was dismissed by Judge Hudson, the very judge who had tossed out McAdoo’s earlier injunction. No surprise there. Hudson avoided the legal and constitutional arguments of McAdoo’s suit by stating that the lawsuit was moot as McAdoo had been signed by a professional team and that he was therefore ineligible to play college ball in the future.

I agree wholeheartedly with the conclusions drawn by Honorable Justice Orr, who stated, “I submit that in all of this Butch Davis kept his part of the deal, as has Michael McAdoo.”

The biased media has not sat on the sidelines as this controversy swirled. They instantly went into attack mode vilifying UNC Assistant Coach John Blake with over-the-top negative coverage. Blake’s sin was that he was a close friend of a sports agent and was communicating with him. And when the cowering UNC chancellor, Holden Thorp finally scrounged up enough mettle to ill-advisedly fire Coach Davis – unjustly, in my opinion – then the media jumped in like a pack of wolves.

Prior to his sudden and unexpected firing, Davis had agreed to release a redacted copy of his personal phone records to the media. However, once he was axed as head coach, the issue was moot, and he did not. Then a coalition of media outlets, led by The News & Observer, had the unmitigated gall to go to court seeking those phone records. It has been shown that when The News & Observer sets its sights on a target, as it currently has with Durham District Attorney Tracey Cline, it will devote limitless time and resources to bring down its prey. For example, when UNC gridiron standout Marvin Austin was under NCAA scrutiny for accepting impermissible assistance in the form of forgiven parking tickets, the newspaper diligently spent innumerable man-hours searching through traffic records.

The NCAA’s self-serving flames of purported scandal in university sports programs that are fanned by the media have resulted in chaos, confusion, and anxiety on campuses across the country. The toll the NCAA charges has had on the University of North Carolina’s administration is evident, as its greenhorn chancellor, Holden Thorp has been shell-shocked into making reckless and impulsive decisions while kowtowing to the Indianapolis-based organization. Instead of vigorously defending its program against the trivial complaints listed in the June 21, 2011 Notice of Allegations, the timorous UNC leadership folded, offering up a list of penalties to mitigate action against it by the NCAA. One of its self-imposed sanctions for its grievous misdeeds is to decrease its scholarship allotment.

A tinderbox of the potential of sanctions by the NCAA has spread to North Carolina State University, where the Wolf-pack Nation called out one of their own for receiving impermissible benefits. Evidently, in May 2011, North Carolina State basketball forward C. J. Leslie was in an accident which disabled his car. Without transportation, he borrowed the car of a friend for a week. In addition, this friend paid an apartment application fee for Leslie’s half-brother. For these two so-called “violations,” NC State dutifully reported Leslie to the NCAA, and declared Leslie to be ineligible to play basketball. The university then filed a reinstatement request with the mighty NCAA. The “magnanimous” organization agreed on the condition that Leslie serve a three game suspension and make “foregoing charitable contributions” in the amount of $410.

The Leslie case is yet another example of the absurdity of the rules and regulations the NCAA has placed on the student athletes. Without transportation, what was Leslie expected to do… walk? Take a bus? Even if someone loaned Leslie money to rent a car, then that would be considered an impermissible benefit.

In a November 30, 2011 News & Observer article titled “Former Wolfpack player barred,” it was disclosed that Eric Leak, a former NCSU receiver, was the person who allowed C. J. Leslie to borrow his car when Leslie’s car was rendered inoperable after an accident. According to Leak, the NCAA falsely accused Leak of paying a rental application fee for Leslie’s half brother… something Eric Leak denied. He did, however, admit to lending two months rent to NC State basketball player Tracy Smith… a close friend of his since they were both in high school.

C. J. Leslie was forced to donate $410 to charity to cover a loan attributed to Leak, which Leak evidently did not make. Because Eric Leak lent his car to C. J. Leslie and helped long-time friend and NC State basketball player Tracy Smith with two months rent, he has been banned by the university for which he honorably played and represented… his crime being that he helped out two NC State athletes, one a longtime friend, in their time of need. Eric Leak should be praised instead of penalized… banning him from having contact with current or future NC State athletes, banning him from using the school’s athletic facilities, denying him the right to rent a suite at the RBC Center or Carte-Finley Stadium, and in the disassociation letter from NC State athletic director Debbie Yow, Leak is prohibited from accepting complimentary tickets from the players or coaching staff, and he cannot purchase season tickets.

Debbie Yow and the NC State athletic department should be ashamed of themselves for rebuking Leak for his actions of kindness, generosity and humanity. The policies of the NCAA have prodded athletic directors, such as Debbie Yow, to enforce irrational policies that are discriminatory against student athletes who are poor, disenfranchised and people of color.

If the NCAA is so concerned about agents or former student athletes giving financial help to struggling students, then the NCAA should open up its coffers and provide assistants to the student athletes in need… the very ones who are responsible for generating money for the NCAA and paying the excessive and exorbitant salaries of the NCAA executives and administrators.

The tolerance of the NCAA by the universities, I believe, is not without bounds. The fat cats at the NCAA who are prospering at the expense of the labor of student athletes need to seriously address the issues of paying athletes for their efforts with full scholarships and other compensation… as has been suggested by Professor Boyce Watkins. It needs to do away with its obstructive and mean-spirited rules and regulations, and place the athletes ahead of its members’ insatiable fiduciary appetites.

To paraphrase a line from my favorite movie, “The universities should not be afraid of the NCAA… the NCAA should be afraid of the universities.” 