October 13, 2004
Remembering Pat Tillman
According to this piece in the Denver Post, it looks like Denver Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer is actually on the hook for as much as $30,000 for wearing Pat Tillman's no. 40 sticker on his helmet twice this season.
And though Plummer said he'll take his fine like a man, I'm beginning to wonder just what kind of man would continue to fine Plummer for honoring a friend and a fallen hero.
The Post story also mentioned that the Pat Tillman Foundation has been deluged with calls of support and donation -- ones I believe they richly deserve. I poked around their Web site for a while tonight, and found some words in the foundation's vision statement that I thought were worthwhile:
Pat Tillman was deeply concerned about the apathy he saw in the world around him. Apathy towards bettering ones-self. Apathy towards personal relationships. Apathy towards public policy. And apathy, towards important world events.
Pat Tillman recognized this fact and dutifully took responsibility to rise above the concerning state of indifference and apathy that has taken hold in our nation. Pat’s actions demonstrated his convictions to fight this saddening trend. Sadly, many people act as though the best way to demonstrate tolerance is through indifference. Such a mindset prevents individuals from striving to achieve an understanding of each others’ views – often out of fear that questioning may be perceived as intolerance.
I spent more than five years in the non-profit field, and it's clear to me that Tillman's friends and family at the foundation thought long and hard before they committed these words to paper. And while I can't speak for my readers, that last line couldn't have resonated with me more.
This is a group worthy of your support. As for me, I pledge to donate $25 for every week Jake Plummer continues to wear Tillman's no. 40 on his helmet. I've already donated $50 for the first two weeks Plummer has worn the number, and I'll be back every week he continues to wear it.
To make your own donation to the foundation, click here. To buy a Pat Tillman Arizona Cardinals jersey, click here. All the proceeds from the sale of jerseys go to the Pat Tillman Foundation.
For the latest on Plummer's tribute, click here to do a search with Google News.
UPDATE: Welcome to readers of Rocket Jones, Baseball Crank, Baseball Musings, Cooped Up, Hawspipe and Patio Pundit. Thanks for stopping by.
I just put in a call to the National Football League's public relations office in New York, and I asked that they give me an email address of a real human being where I can send a message to voice my concerns. And because I'm a season ticket holder with the Baltimore Ravens, I've sent an email to Majority Owner Steve Bisciotti to express my concern. I'll let everyone know if and when I get a response.
ANOTHER UPDATE: U.S. Senator John McCain has sent a letter to NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue expressing his displeasure with the league's stance.
Something tells me the league will be announcing an agreement of some sort in the next 24 hours.
FINAL UPDATE: Plummer and the league have reached an agreement, where the Broncos quarterback will remove the sticker from his helmet in exchange for the following:
The NFL agreed to play public-service spots in stadiums on Veterans Day. Plummer will record the spots on behalf of the Pat Tillman Foundation.
Also, the Broncos agreed to put a No. 40 logo near the play clock in the north end zone at Invesco Field at Mile High and to run ads promoting the foundation on the scoreboard during games.
That's the ESPN.com report. More thoughts later.
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.ericmcerlain.com/mt/mt-tb.cgi/3778
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Remembering Pat Tillman:
» Pat Tillman and Jake Plummer from Rocket Jones
Denver Broncos quarterback Jake Plummer wears a sticker with the number 40 on his helmet to honor former teammate Pat Tillman. You may recall Tillman as the pro football player who walked away from millions of dollars to join the... [Read More]
Tracked on October 13, 2004 06:26 AM
» FOOTBALL/WAR: A Man Worth Remembering from Baseball Crank
Why does the NFL insist on fining Jake Plummer tens of thousands of dollars for honoring Pat Tillman? And what can you do about it? Eric McErlain tries to answer the second question.... [Read More]
Tracked on October 13, 2004 06:50 AM
» Civil Disobedience from Baseball Musings
Eric McErlain at Off Wing Opinion, a long time supporter of this blog, is supporting the Jake Plummer's defiance of the NFL. If you'd like to help, read about it here.... [Read More]
Tracked on October 13, 2004 11:14 AM
» Plummer and Tillman from Cooped Up
Eric McErlain is quite properly outraged by the NFL's decision to fine Denver quarterback Jake Plummer, who took the field [Read More]
Tracked on October 13, 2004 12:13 PM
» Plummer honors Tillman from Patio Pundit
Eric McErlain blogs about the fine that the NFL charged Jake Plummer with for wearing a decal honoring Pat Tillman.
Wanna bet that the NFL backs down? I say that they... [Read More]
Tracked on October 13, 2004 01:13 PM
» Marking the days from Population: One
I still have a lot of respect for Pat Tillman, and I think that Jake Plummer ought to be able... [Read More]
Tracked on October 13, 2004 02:05 PM
I don't quite understand the vision statement, perhaps because I've always interpreted indifference as intolerance.
I *think* I can take a bit of a lesson out of the last line. Is his point that we often fail to ask legitimate questions because we're worried that the person we'll asking will take offense?
If so, I hope I'm demonstrating tolerance by asking for clarification.
Posted by:
at October 13, 2004 08:49 AM
Also, I don't mean to be an agitator, but could this situation have been avoided if Plummer and company had sought permission beforehand?
If they did so and were denied, then Eric's point is that much stronger. If not, then I'm not comfortable making the NFL out to be the bad guy here. It's almost as if Plummer is calling them out and not giving the NFL much of a chance to do the right thing and save face.
Recent word is that they've reached a compromise. I'm a little disappointed that they didn't do so in a way that allows him to continue wearing the sticker, but I think the NFL at least is showing some good intentions.
The league hasn't exactly ignored Tillman, you know.
Posted by:
at October 13, 2004 04:46 PM
The NFL agreed to play public-service spots in stadiums on Veterans Day.
And what good does this do? There are no games on Vererans' Day this year. It's a Thursday!
Posted by:
at October 13, 2004 11:04 PM
Post a comment
Thanks for signing in,
.
(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)
12:00 AM