I was reading the chat with Simmons and was shocked at his statement...I enjoy reading his columns and most of his work, but this was a horrible comparison that he refused to back away from. I tried to challenge him, but my questions were not posted...glad to see you using your forum to challenge this absurdity.

No Tiger is not Ali because Ali had two children out of infidelities while Tiger has none at this moment.

One of the many bad things about new media is the proliferation of misinformation. You have a bunch of people offering commentary and opinions on things they have little or no knowledge of. They'd also rather be entertaining and provocative than factual. Dave, you've got your hands full trying to keep the idiots at ESPN in line regarding Ali, or any other topic for that matter.. I don't think they give a ____ about the truth.

Dave another classy attack piece on a writer much more successful than you'll ever be.

But while you seem quite content to hail Ali and bash Tiger, but you ignore the fact that the media did cover for Ali in Zaire when his wife showed up before the big fight to confront him over his cheating. That would have been a huge scandal in today's media.

I'm enjoying the rich, in-depth perspective by Larry and Definitely, who have reduced Ali's entire life as a public figure in sports, American and world history to his extramarital affairs. I guess there's a far bigger segment of the American public that can't grasp issues that go beyond a prominent athlete's penis than I ever imagined. Some of them write for ESPN, and some of them post sad, depressing comments here.

Here's another difference:

Ali endorsed Ronald Reagan for President, because "He's keeping God in schools and that's enough." LA Times, Oct. 13, 1984.

Hey EJH

Dave wastes time not only addressing Bill Simmons chat sessions. He actually attacked Simmons wife during one of his Vick-is-the-victim articles.

Mr. Definitely - you have every right to be an anonymous troll. But you should know what you are talking about. Ali's wife confronted him before Manila. Not Zaire. Simmons wife in her own column said that Vick should be tied up on a leash, locked in a cage, and electrocuted. If you stand with that, more power to you. Yikes.

Ali clearly gave his reasons for supporting Reagan, that Reagan was keeping God in schools. Nowhere does Ali say he's a conservative Republican, Mr. Definitely Grasping At Straws.

Why is it that so many right wing white people I know suddenly took up animal rights causes when Vick got busted? Beforehand, they couldn't care less.

I usually enjoy reading simmons but this was not his finest hour. To say that Ali faced 10% of the vitriol tiger will is absurd - it is the other way around!!! tiger will face legitimate questions concerning his ethics and his judgement as an adulterer. Ali faced severe racism, hyper-nationalism, and torment that most of us could not imagine. He carried a huge burden as the face of the vietnam resistance movement, while tiger is the face of nothing more than his corportate sponsors.

Who the hell is this Bill Simmons?

Shocker...Simmons idiotically deals with race in a chat. I read his column regularly (often to keep up with my students who read him as well), and while he tries to understand race he's horribly misinformed at best. In a column a few years back he claimed that NCAA basketball was in trouble because Adam Morrison and JJ Reddick were the two best players and there whiteness hindered the appeal of the sport. He even claimed that when black players were allowed to play the game became "more vertical", thereby replaying the tired old mantra that "white men can't jump". Of course this article is buried deep in ESPN's archives, and is difficult to find, but his simplistic understanding of race is telling. Still as often as he misses, his popularity and ideas have allowed for ESPN to produce the U in their 30 for 30 series which was a fascinating look at the shift in race and class at the University of Miami. I guess I've learned to critique the bad (including his ridiculous sexism) in the hope that he also allows for some instances when he provides good instances of social issues to share in class.

If Mr. D thinks that People, including some in the Media as well as Hotel/Casino People, Private Planes and Cars People etc. were not covering for Tiger, he is Naive enough to think Zirin gives a fig about his own comparative "success" when it comes to giving the straight dope on Ali. Zirin knows his stuff and is right to spend a moment to call BS on the fools who claim to know Ali's story and would try to underplay how reviled he was at one time. To compare Tiger to Ali is disrespectul of the Champ but more importantly an affront to Real World History. Thanks Dave!

Great great read, unfortunately the trolls lack reading comprehension and do not realize this is not a comparison of whose marital infidelities are better or worse.

Thanks for putting the history of what Ali did in a real perspective, it is in no way a waste of time. and definetely worth a defense. It's becoming very similar to the use of the word Nazi or Hitler in comparing every single "bad" person out there.

Easy on the Mohammed Ali quotes from the 80s. He was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in the early 80s and demonstrated Parkinsonism with dementia. So, not to invalidate everything the man did post-Parkinsons, but let's keep his social-political pronouncements in this context please.

Not that every one who supported Reagan was demented, but... Just sayin'.

To sell book$ to hoodwinked "radicals", Zirin masks Ali's political conservativism:

"Shadow boxing as the crowd chanted his name, former heavyweight boxing king Muhammad Ali stole the show from the politicians yesterday."

"Wearing a red, white and blue George Bush campaign button on his jacket lapel, Ali endorsed the vice president's White House bid during a breakfast visit to the Pennsylvania convention."

"I love Reagan, and Bush is Reagan's man, and he's the best," Ali told reporters who surrounded him as he stepped off the dais."

Philadelphia Inquirer (Aug. 19, 1988).

What exactly does that have to do with comparing Tiger's comeback to Ali???

I should say that Simmons "apologia" is actually an effort to walk back the hyperbole of the last piece, and make the case that the rust and media pressure Tiger faces in 2010, coupled with the mental demands of golf, make the return more challenging. I still don't buy it at all. The pressure of the media vs. the pressure of Leavenworth. Silly.

Aaron,

I actually don't know much about Ali's true political ideology or his reasoning, but was trying to make a somewhat 'tongue in cheek' jibe, but with a possible seed of truth. So, as you've said, it seemed that Ali's wits were intact, but I would actually disagree. I obviously did not examine him or perform neuropsychological testing, but I have seen thousands of similar cases and as a practicing neurologist have studied the pathophysiology of these degenerative conditions for many years.

I can say that obvious 'dementia' usually only appears to casual observers many years after the process is underway. It is proceeded, sometimes by decades, by subtle cognitive deficits, errors of judgment, logic and reasoning that are not apparent unless specific testing is performed. And this is particularly so when there is a preconceived notion about the person (as a wit, for instance) or they are only seen in social settings, or casually. And add to this that for people we know, or think we know, it is often human nature to 'fill in gaps' or rationalize lapses in the affected person's behavior almost subconsciously, though this is obviously variable.

So, as I said, I don't know that much about Ali or his inner workings and can't say anything about anything with regard to him personally, I was just making a bad pun about Reagan supporters and dementia. Oh, and Charleton Heston...Just sayin'.

HI all. Great point about Ali not being a "brand". That really bugged me in Simmons's piece. I was going to write a follow-up response to Simmons, but his piece speaks for itself. It's a painful read. There are now snarky blogs therefore Tiger has a tougher road than Ali. It's just silliness. As for whether Ali is closer politically to Tebow or myself, who really cares? Ali at different times in his life had absolutely awful politics. The point is that in the 1960s when there was barely an anti-war movement to speak of, he stood up at great personal cost. For that, I celebrate him. But for a rounded view on all of his incarnations, I wrote the Muhammad Ali handbook and encourage people to check it out.

Not to throw everyone off subject, by I must take issue with the implication that animal rights activists would be against Vic for his skin color. I believe that most captives of the modern empire (meaning you and me) have been programmed to lack sensitivity to animals and believe them to be non-feeling and non-thinking and therefore legitimate targets of abuse. Isn't this the same mechanism involved in the racism that led to the holocaust known as the slave trade, or the holocaust known as western expansion, or the holocaust purveyed by the German Nazis?
I doubt many would actually like to see Vic tortured, but they would certainly be pleased to know that he had realized the errors of his ways; not to look at the whole incident as a punishment, but as a learning opportunity; i.e. a chance for a bit of spiritual growth. For what is more spiritual than to overcome one's own ignorance and to hear the voice of the voiceless. Animal rights are deeply intertwined with human rights.
Fear is fear, respect is respect and never the twain shall meet.

One thing we can all agree on is that Zirin’s man crush on Ali has officially reached epic proportions. This bromance now ranks up there with Peter King & Brett Favre, MJ & Little Michael, Magic & himself and the Sports Guy & anything in Boston wearing a jersey. It’s nice we could all be here for it.

Once again. Read the Muhammad Ali Handbook. There are thousands of reasons to be critical of Ali and I discuss them at length. But in the 1960s, he was the most famous draft resister in this country's history. That's it.

fair enough-seems like a good use of my library card. But more to the point, which is that as a casual fan of this cite, who has been visiting this page for less than a year, the above article is at least the 3rd I recall in which someone was called on the carpet for misappropriating or misunderstanding the Ali/legacy name.

To this reader this seems a bit much.

This sports fan would be much happier if there was less Ali protection and more intelligent and progressive (dare I say liberal) commentary on the world of sports…heaven knows we get enough of the other alternative.

Oh and I could also do without the name calling-culture vulture-really? But that’s just me.

Asking Zirin to be "more intelligent and progressive" is like asking Lawrence Taylor to be a better linebacker. In the convergence of politics and sports there is no one (except me) more intelligent and progressive than Zirin. His career and his writing have defined this obvious fact.

As well, Ali's legacy and impact on the planet can never be overstated. Clearly, history makes little impact on your world view.

And asking for the name calling to cease should start with your post above - "Zirin's MAN CRUSH on Ali..." Homophobic?