This is the most predictable response I've even heard. I can't believe you would defend Arenas for this illegal, stupid act. Nobody would accept it if a fan brought a gun to a game. You wouldn't accept the fan's response if he told you it was a joke. Why accept Arenas' excuse? Cause he's a "goofball" and black? If John Rocker brought a gun to the Braves locker room back in the day would you have the same response? I'm guessing, no.
I don't own any guns or am not a NRA member but I do support the right to bear arms and the locker room is not the place for guns. My guess it that you're for Chicago or DC style gun bans but you accept this because Arenas is just a victim to the white man's conspiracy or some other "racism" bullshit.
I hope Arenas is punished hard because athletes should be held to the same standard as the rest of society and if I brought a gun to work as a joke I would get more than a 10 game suspension.

Not only should NBA players protect their families, I believe they should pack heat while on the hardcourt. This would certainly speed up the game. No referee in his/her right mind would call a close foul on Kevin Garnett if his scowl would be back-up with heat. In fact only Shaq being an honorary lawman could stop KG and back it up with guns ablazing. Talk about a shoot-out.

Thanks Dave for hipping us to the latest misadventures of Rev. Sharpton. He lost in an Ironman Run for president lugging a ton of baggage, but now that Obama is Prez, perhaps he envisions a sort of Billy Graham-type advisory role for himself, now that Rev Wright has been silenced. As for your critics "Racist" and "Jason", they are incapable of reading your thoughts with an open mind because they are too busy singing at full pitch in that chorus Rev. Sharpton just joined.

... Al Sharpton? I expect this sort of reaction from, say, Jason Whitlock and the Right Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, but Smith and Sharpton?

Wow.

This certainly has brought out the worst in folks, which is odd considering that, as dumb and immature as it certainly is, it is indeed an aberration. Severe punishment may indeed follow and even perhaps is justified; doing so as some sort of lesson or as some sort of line in the sand about the "culture of violence" in sport is ridiculous--especially since sports has always been chock full of malcontents and offenders.

There's Arenas he missed the first shot, but he got the second with the Glock.

Louie, please enlighten me on how I should look at this situation other than another athlete being a jackass and his defenders thinking that he's above the law. I don't know much about Arenas or the Wizards but I seriously doubt that he needs a gun for protection in the heavily restricted and guarded locker room. Reportedly, he gun he pulled out was one of many he stashed in the locker room for God only knows why. And please don't give me that tired excuse about how he's a black man so he needs protection cause I'm sure he lives in the burbs or a gated community. And the people who are defending Arenas are the same people who speak out against the NRA and their gun obsessions.

I had hope I would finally read a sober response to the Gilbert Arenas situation when I visited your collumn just now.

Mr. Zirin is right, Gilbert is not the poster child for violence in the NBA, or sporting world, and indeed probably the last player one would expect to find in this mess. The fact that the NY Post article, with its Wild West account of the incident, was the first story out, set the mood, and people have run with it in the standard uproar and unwillingness to truely examine a situation typical of the masses.

Gilbert did something very stupid, but intent does matter, and I do believe his account over the hyped sexier version from the NY Post. Looking at Gilbert's actions, conduct, personality/persona over the years, it is clear to see that his account falls much more in line with who his fans have come to recognize as Agent Zero. The gun-totting gangsta, fast becomming parriah simply does not make sense.

People will continue to be outraged and express that outrage because they want a voice, and phoning in a response on a hot topic is too tempting; but so too is taking a polarizing stance on a polarizing subject, often without first examining history, facts and other relevants.

The world is grey, and zero tolerance often ignorance.

---Just wanted to add a thank you for what you are doing Mr. Zirin. I was introduced to your work by Kevin Blackistone. I was a student of his last year at the University of Maryland. I find we often agree and always enjoy reading your work. I find it level-minded amid an increasingly contoversy obcessed world.

P.S. Could really use a job now that I have that degree... just kidding, unless that is you have one for me.

Thanks again

Thanks Nicholas. I appreciate it! No jobs though.. but always unpaid internships! (that's the new economy)

Seriously, of COURSE Gilbert is at fault. I make that clear. But there is more to the story. That's my only point.

Thanks Nicholas. I appreciate it! No jobs though.. but always unpaid internships! (that's the new economy)

Seriously, of COURSE Gilbert is at fault. I make that clear. But there is more to the story. That's my only point.

For the Regressives:

This article is about hipocracy and double standards, not about apologizing for Arenas. Why is this so hard to fathom when the article states it quite plainly? Where is Conspiracy Brother on this, I need your help!

For the Regressives:

This article is about hipocracy and double standards, not about apologizing for Arenas. Why is this so hard to fathom when the article states it quite plainly? Where is Conspiracy Brother on this, I need your help!

Mr. Zirin, I'd be absolutely willing to take you up on one of those unpaid internships.

First of all, no one was really in danger . . . obviously Arenas would need at least three shots to hit anything. But when you hear about guns being displayed in the locker room - could the Wizards (and their top $$ player, Arenas) be any more dysfunctional? I'm not sure this is a double standard as much as one more log on the broken camel that is the Wizards/Bullets lost quarter century of NBA cellar-dwelling.

I went straight from work to a Wizards game sometime last season. I had my work bag and laptop with me. When I got to security, they said I couldn't come through that entrance because I had a computer with me and I had to go in a special entrance. Annoyed, because I'm the last person to ever come close to a gun, I turned around and went through the proper entrance.

When I got in, I found that it was military recruitment night, or something ridiculous like that. Each arm of the military had tables set up in the concourses, and one of them had an automatic weapon sitting on the table. Now I'm sure it was unloaded, but I wonder which special entrance they had to come in through!

Fans aren't allowed to bring weapons into the stadium, players shouldn't be allowed to either, and the NBA definitely should not be profiting from military advertising. Your last paragraph is absolutely on point in terms of the crazy double standards we have...

Two weeks ago Gilbert was a media darling, a playful, childish imp. But now the image of him brandishing a gun overrides his entire past. Everything the media thought they knew about him is forgotten. He is now ... a black man with a gun. Regardless of all one has ever done or been, once you're stained with a stereotypical image, your past is wiped away and forgotten. A black man is always one misstep away from being given the benefit of the doubt to being considered just another . . . I think, in a similar position,a white man's past and his character would be weighed and he wouldn't carry the burden of racial stereotypes. In fact, a white man with a gun is more likely to conjure up images of a hunter than a gangsta.

As for Rev. Sharpton, I think he's looking for some of that Obama love from white people.

Shout out to my tag team partner Mike L!
Funny post DaveM.
Racist Moi, I'm still praying for ya dude.

Thanks folks. And as for the double standards..... it's all over the place/ Pointing out the hypocrisy is not the same as saying "Yay guns!"

Since we are talking about about double standards/race,I am surprised nobody has mentioned the clincher which is class. Money is honey. If a poor person falsely states that he has a loaded gun at O'Hare airport, he is going to be treated differently than a rich person who has a loaded gun. Money trumps race.( The only exception is stupidity)

PS. Thanks CB for your prayers.

I had heard TJ Ford's comment on the subject, and indeed, his comment did sound like something an NRA guy might say. For all I know, Ford is a member. Then again, he is from Texas, and is probably no stranger to gun culture.

While the NY Post was reckless, as they usually are with splashy headline stories, the truth is, Arenas brought this one on himself. When you brandish a gun around in public, you'll get reamed for it. Why don't we grill NASCAR drivers or Phil Mickelson over whatever guns they own/carry? Hmmm. Because said figures haven't been involved in a night club shooting fatality (Tank Johnson) or self-inflicted wound (Plaxico)? Haven't been sighted firing a gun off in public at night (Stephen Jackson, Marquis Daniels)? Haven't been present in lethal shooting of a cousin (Brian Blades)? Nope. They're white. That's the only possible explanation.

Actually, Karl Malone, among other athletes, has been featured in an NRA advertisement, and there may be others. Ford's comment indicates that he probably does own at least one firearm, though we cannot tell from that quote whether he carries his in public. Parenthetically, the state of Indiana has offered a conceal-and-carry license for years. If Arenas, or any of the other wayward athletes kept the guns at home (or even just kept the one he brought tucked inside his locker or gym bag), we wouldn't even have found out about it, let alone made a stink about it.

I would agree, though, that Arenas is more goofy than anything else, and hence I was surprised he, of all guys in the league, was involved in such tomfoolery. I don't think of the NBA as a thug league, despite shenanigans like this one. At worst, most of the league's miscreants are usually silly or lacking in social skills. Nevertheless, Stern doesn't get the kind of leeway for these hijinks the way that the NFL gets for much worse infractions, so I can understand if he comes down with admittedly disproportionate punishment.

I understand a world of gray but the problem I have is that this situation could have easily turned into a Jayson Williams situation. He was another guy considered a goofball and a good citizen but he killed a man because he thought playing with guns was funny. Burress, another guy never thought to be a thug, could have killed someone and shot himself cause he thought guns and sweatpants were a good combination.
Athletes shouldn't be role models but they are and a superstar like Arenas is. The last thing we need to tell kids is that it's ok to play with guns and if you're "joking" you can get away with it.
I wouldn't want Arenas to loss his job forever, like a nonfamous person would, but he does deserve a serious penalty. One of my problems with Dave's column is that he doesn't question the law he broke but who broke the law. Just like many in the Plaxico situation they weren't concerned with a draconian one sized fits all law they are concerned about the athlete facing the same punishment as the rest of us would. These are the same kind of liberals who support gun laws for everyone and want equality but at the end of the day they are like the pigs from Animal Farm. "Some animals are more Equal than Others."

I agree Jason. Dave, I must say that i'm a fan of your work and message, but despite your clarification you're still missing two important points: 1) Arenas broke the law and 2) he has repeatedly treated the issues of guns and safety as a joke, only once tacitly acknowledging that he acted inappropriately through his lawyer. I think you'd be hard pressed to find any reader of this blog praise or defend David Stern, but can you really empathize with Arenas when he "shoots" his teammates during a huddle? Arenas has had several opportunities to publically acknowledge the media persona that he in part created and in part was created for him, but to then stress that gun safety is a serious matter, which should not be treated lightly. Clearly he has not chosen this course of action. Yes, it's probably just as easy to bash Al Sharpton as it is to point out that America has long viewed black men with guns through a different prism than white men with guns. But wouldn't it be more productive to start a dialogue about what the conversation these last few weeks should have been?

Great article, especially the closing paragraph. I went to your site because I only caught the opening of the interview on the Kojo Nnamdi show today. Thanks for the information that puts this all in context and the analysis.

Couldn't agree more Dave. Double standard in full effect! In 2007 Sen. Jim Webb of Virginia had an aide that brought a briefcase to the Senate Office Building that had a handgun and two loaded clips. The aide was arrested, released the next day and subsequently had the charges dropped by the DC D.A. There were no cries of the aide, Webb, or Senate being a bunch of thugs. And you definitely didn't hear other elected officials or the media calling for them to be made an example of. Oh and the handgun was unregistered in DC.

Thats the thing that bothers me most about sports in America. When a Brother has any kind of interaction with law enforcement the immediate reaction from the media is they are guilty. The public follows happily along and cries for them to be immediately made an example of.

A very clear picture of the double standard can be found in the public's and media's reaction to Tom Brady's security people being accused of shooting at photographers at his wedding. I don't think I can recall any statements or investigations by the league or media even though bullet holes were clearly visible in the guy's SUV.

You suck cocks.

I caught a brief moment of Jim Rome's interview of Karl Malone and his take on this current story. Interesting perspective...

@mactown...

very good examples!

I don't follow Al Sharpton that closely, but it seems likely that at one time or another he's commented critically on the militarization of American culture.
I don't think that the "double-standard" of gun ownership by black athletes/white athletes is necessarily the issue, either. If Arenas hadn't been such a bonehead, no one would know today whether he were a gunowner or not, the same way we still don't know which professional athletes (who haven't brandished weapons recklessly) are gunowners. In fact, the only double-standard I read or hear suggested is that a rich, famous professional athlete like Arenas shouldn't suffer the same punishment (i.e. loss of his job) that any of the rest of us would expect were we caught with a firearm in our workplace.
Lastly, Sharpton's comments have to be heard in the context of the numerous acts of gun (and knife) violence involving professional and amateur athletes who,unfortunately, are usually always black. There's got to be helluva lot of frustration for black leaders who are watching their communities being destroyed from the outside by the structural racism in American society and from the inside by endemic street violence, much of it due to the misguided adulation of 'gangsta' culture. For better or worse, sports figures are role models for many young people, and it's got to trouble Sharpton just as much as it troubles old white guys like me to see those athletes acting the fools with their carelessness with firearms.

Another right on, thought provoking article! From personal experience, I can definitely say that that the dominant white culture and its media reacted quite differently to Black Panthers with guns in Chicago (they were murdered in their beds by the Government and police) and Klansmen with guns who murdered anti-Klan demonstrators in Greensboro North Carolina (with the cooperation of the Government and the police.)

If we find that the guns were loaded, that's another issue.

If the guns were unloaded, as the narrative says now, what more is there to say other than Arenas' explanation (he thought changes in the law allowed him to carry them) and some acknowledgement that his attempt at a joke was in incredibly poor taste? He broke the law: give him a reasonable fine and reasonable punishment.

What's reasonable here? Compare this unloaded gun issue to bringing a loaded gun to an Obama speech. Or compare J.R. Smith's seven game suspension for vehicular manslaughter to the threat of derailing Arenas' career and life. Is killing a man by driving recklessly less bad than bringing some unloaded guns into your lockerroom?

Definitely a double standard. Arenas has unloaded guns in a locker in a place where I assume there is 24 hour security. Granted he may have taken a gun out and waved it around (for what, a few seconds?) , but it was still unloaded and normally kept locked in a secure location.

Unloaded, locked up, secure location, 24 hour security.

If a white player had done the same thing would it have been a headline?

If a white player had done it would it have received more or less publicity than a person with a loaded weapon at an Obama speech.

Dear Sam,
I believe you may be suffering delusions. You and the players in the NBA may lack the need to bring a gun to a game. Good point. Your laptop issue was a little weird but vigilant security in a post 9-11, country at war is to be expected. The military, however, has every right to not only bring an obviously deactivated display firearm to a booth at a public event, but also to arm themselves at all times. Don't forget they literally devoted their entire lives to your protection. Once again, an anti-gun opinion twists a reasonable occurrence into some frightening lack of security. Give your head a shake.

I note the outrage that Arenas would dare carry a gun to his place of work...yet, I recall that after the VA TECH massacre, there were serious calls for arming students with concealed weapons. So, bad for black men to take a gun to work, but okay for white college kids to pack heat? Bad double standard...