Splicetoday

Sports
Apr 03, 2008, 10:04AM

Fool Written All Over Him

Troubled NFL player Adam "Pacman" Jones was suspended for a year after involvement in numerous unsavory incidents. Now he's about to be reinstated, and he still hasn't gotten the help that he needs. From The Towerlight.

One of the things my mother always used to tell me is that you can't reason with a fool. You can't try and teach a fool a lesson and most importantly, you can't change a fool. So if NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell had been one of my eight siblings and grown up in my household, he would know that simply suspending troubled NFL cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones is not enough because the man has "fool" written all over him.

Don't let his recent charity work in Atlanta trick you into thinking that he's learned his lesson. The man needs psychological help and until he gets it, he will continue down the same path he's been on his entire career.

You need proof that Pacman is a fool? Well here it is. Since joining the NFL in 2005 Pacman was arrested more times than he's caught interceptions. The Tennessee Titan cornerback has had several altercations in several night clubs and strip joints and even was involved in an altercation at a Vegas strip club that ended with a bouncer being shot and paralyzed.

Goodell suspended him indefinitely a year ago for his actions, but here's the crazy part. After getting into so much trouble at strip clubs, Pacman decided to visit one the day before his appeals meeting with the commissioner.

When asked why, he stated that he "just wanted something to eat." I guess McDonald's closed early that night or something.

During his suspension, in an effort to show Goodell that he could stay away from the drama and negative headlines, he joined TNA Wrestling. After his three-month stint in professional wrestling failed to work out, he again tried to prove to Goodell that the life of crime, sex, money, and drugs was a thing of the past by becoming a rapper. His label was named National Street League Records and his group was called the Posterboyz.

Now does this sound like a changed man to you? Of course not! You have to be seriously sick in the head to think that any of this is acceptable behavior so why let someone, who clearly doesn't see a problem with it, back into the league without the help of a psychologist?

Don't get me wrong. I'm not going to judge the man now without looking at his past. Pacman grew up on one of the toughest streets in Atlanta. When he was just five years old his father was shot and killed. His mom spent part of his childhood in prison forcing him to be raised by his grandmother. He saw several of his peers slain in the streets and had to protect himself by creating his own "gangster" mentality and persona. If it weren't for his skills and abilities on the football field, I am confident that he would have just been another homicide statistic in the poverty stricken inner-city community.

That's why I don't blame him for being a fool and making a lot of bad choices. It's easy to judge people without fully placing yourself in their shoes and understanding where they came from. That's why Pacman needs counseling as well as better role models around him.

So many people will sit up on their high horses and criticize those down below without ever giving a thought to how instrumental their own parents, mentors, teachers, friends, and community were in the process.

But what about those who don't have any of those things? People say that everyone knows right from wrong but what they fail to see is that different people have varying perceptions on what is right and what is wrong.

I'm not justifying Pacman's behavior. I'm just trying to get Goodell to see that the problem is much deeper that the surface. He has to dig into the roots in order to get the best results out of this situation. Jones is a troubled young man who needs serious help. I just hope the commissioner sees that.

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