James Harrison vs. Roger Goodell: Sacking the dictator

… Goodell is indeed Big Brother 

Pittsburgh Steelers linebcker James Harrison probably dreams about this day occurring in his future: James beats the left tackle and has a clear shot at the QB for another sack, but instead of the QB being the despicable Tom Brady, it is the more despicable Roger Goodell.

Then, suddenly, he wakes up and realizes that it was just a dream, not an opportunity to mete out justice to a dastardly foe.

Then he remembers the NFL acting like it has the power of the U.S.S.R.

Battle between NFL and NFLPA

This battle of five players is actually one that is between the union and management, not between some players and Goodell. The NFL would love nothing more than to beat the union after finally getting a positive legal message in the Deflategate affair with villain Tom Brady -- and in the Adrian Peterson abuse case.

Players who were alleged to use PED's

Harrison, along with two of Green Bay's top players, Julius Peppers and Clay Matthews, and including free agent Mike Neal, were warned by the league that they must sit down with Goodell's henchmen for an interview by Aug. 25th or be suspended.

The fifth, former QB Peyton Manning, was absolved of wrongdoing in this matter in July despite being named in the story. [More on that below]

The NFL is not a democracy

Sounds like the horrible labor camps in the Soviet Union that Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn wrote about 43 years ago in the "Gulag Archipelago."

Or it could be "Big Brother," that frightening, domineering dictator who watched over every aspect of a person's life in George Orwell's "1984," one that was published in 1949, not 2016.

Goodell as Big Brother

At least that is the way that Harrison is looking at it. These players are indeed looking at Goodell as Big Brother, someone who is forcing them to do what the U.S.S.R. did to their people in the labor camps and the Gulag under communism.

I have laughed at the nonsense of a labor union for millionaires and multi-millionaires, but this case demonstrates the need for a union for the players.

Goodell wants to emphasize that he has the powers of former dictators Vladimir Lenin, Joseph Stalin, Nikita Kruschev, or even Adolf Hitler from Germany … the NFL dictator earned $44 million bucks a year two seasons ago, and the Party -- the NFL owners -- wants him to slam the 38-year-old Harrison to the turf.

Hyperbole can work

Okay, so I exaggerate. These players believe that the league is using a case in which the chief prosecution witness has recanted his story, one that was eventually aired on the al-Jazeera network, a Middle-Eastern network that went bankrupt in the U.S. a short time ago.

That story by the bankrupt network has as many holes in it as Swiss Cheese.

Al Jazeera story

The program, entitled "The Dark Side: Secrets of the Sports Dopers," alleged that five players, the four listed above and recently retired Denver QB Peyton Manning, used PEDs [Performance Enhancing Drugs].

The interesting part of this is that the league let Manning off the hook this summer based on the same charges by the same network.

According to a Sports Illustrated [SI] story in late July, "After a seven-month investigation, the NFL announced on Monday that it found 'no credible evidence' Peyton Manning used human growth hormone (HGH) or other substances in violation of the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy."

So, they let Manning go but kept the heat on the other four?

Charlie Sly

A despicable character in a Charles Dickens novel could be called Sly. Yes, the sleazy villain, "a former employee of the Guyer Institute, an Indianapolis anti-aging clinic, claimed that he had supplied Manning with HGH in 2011. Sly, whose accusations were secretly recorded, recanted after those accusations became public," according to SI.

I wrote back in late December when this broke ["An explosive story about Peyton Manning] that Manning's substances were allegedly sent to his wife, who was struggling to conceive a child in 2011 when this allegedly occurred. She did not give them to her husband. As I noted, they worked, and the couple now has two young children, twins.

As SI legal analyst Michael McCann noted in July, "Manning has not, however, denied that his wife, Ashley Manning, received packages from the Guyer Institute."

So, they let Manning off despite his receiving the HGH?

What about the other alleged perpetrators?

Precedent is strong here.

Big Brother could not suspend Manning

Still, think of this: The NFL suspends some mean, nasty linebackers … no problem. Then it also files charges against Manning, a generally popular QB who just led his Denver team to a Super Bowl victory --and then retired.

The metrics of that would have been horrible.

Legal precedent

Mann, the SI legal analyst, said in the Manning story that the NFL does not have subpoena power, so they could not get Manning and the other four under oath. That is one of the reasons that the league wants to make this case early in the season when the teams and the players have something at stake.

This is not just that Goodell is like the dictator Joseph Stalin, but that the NFL office does not have the goods on these four players. Hence, the reason for demanding the interviews.

Harrison

Back in July, Harrison made a video that he placed on Instagram in which he invited Goodell to meet with him in his home. Love to see that Thanksgiving dinner.

Yesterday, Harrison told the PG's Ed Bouchette, "There’s nothing going on. As far as I’m concerned, it’s a done deal.”

Big Brother does not agree with that, and that is why he is making his threats.

Harrison said this in July about Goodell's pursuit of him: “I never had a bully before in my life and I’m DAMN sure not about to have one at this point. But since I’m a nice guy & don’t mind helping to clear the air in the name of the NFL Shield, I’ll do this interview. WITH THESE STIPULATIONS: The interview will be done at MY house. BEFORE training camp. On a date of MY choosing. AND Mr. Goodell must be present.”

Collective Bargaining Agreement

Here is the problem for Harrison and the others. According to SI, the collective bargaining agreement gives him such powers: "Birch’s letter cites Article 46 of the collective bargaining agreement as well as the NFL Player Contract, which every player must sign in order to obtain eligibility to play in the league. Article 46 accords Goodell with sweeping authority to discipline players for any 'conduct detrimental' to the NFL. Goodell has sole discretion to determine whether a player’s conduct is detrimental and whether and how the player should be punished. Similarly, the NFL Player Contract empowers Goodell to punish players for 'any' form of misconduct 'reasonably judged' by the commissioner."

Sounds like the Gulag to me.

That is the power that he used in suspending Ben Roethlisberger after two alleged rapes in which no charges were field. [I agreed with that.]

While I would like to see Harrison body slam Goodell, Big Brother will not hesitate to suspend these guys for the season based upon evidence that would never be admissible in court.

I am rooting for James in this case.

Al Jazeera: "The Dark Side: Secrets of the Sports Dopers"

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/12/dark-side-secrets-sports-dopers-151227133355144.html

HBC Blog; An "explosive" story about Peyton Manning

http://hughbradyconrad.blogspot.com/2015/12/an-explosive-story-about-peyton-manning.html

Manning SI story

http://www.si.com/nfl/2016/07/25/peyton-manning-nfl-hgh-investigation-al-jazeera

James invites Roger to his house

http://www.post-gazette.com/sports/Steelers-Blog/2016/06/27/James-Harrison-invites-Roger-Goodell-to-his-house/stories/201606270088