by Brian A. Wilkins
9/5/2009
VS. 
Byron Hout LaGarrette Blount
Let’s face it: when Oregon running back LaGarrette Blount dropped Boise State defensive lineman Byron Hout to his knees with a hard right to the chin on Thursday night, everybody knew it would be a HUGE story because it was a “black guy” hitting a “white guy.” Our country always has and always will be obsessed with any competition which pits the “races” against one another (see Obama v. McCain; Jesse Owens vs. “The Master Race” in the 1936 Berlin Olympics; Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson).
First, let’s take a look at the knock down:
As you can see, Blount was walking off the field when Boise State defensive end Byron Hout starts physically taunting him, following a heartbreaking, maybe season-breaking loss, for Oregon. Of course the commentators, specifically former Notre Dame coach Bob Davie, used words such as “unbelievable,” “unconscionable,” and “reprehensible” to describe the knock down. The play-by-play guy even injected the word “police” into his commentary. Both of them also took a sympathy and empathy stance with Hout.
What they both fail to address is the fact that taunting is not only extremely unsportsmanlike, but also a 15-yard penalty in football (pro and college). Taunting is also a technical foul in basketball. What do the commentators or anybody else expect from Blount? He was walking off the field, minding his business, when Hout decided to act like a fool. Many commenters for articles written about this story across the web say Hout had the right to taunt Blount because Blount was talking a lot of trash leading up to the game. There is a major difference, however, between Blount simply TALKING and Hout putting his hands on Blount.
This situation smells about as foul as the alleged “Brawl at the Palace of Auburn Hills” which Euro-American media simply presents and remembers as “Ron Artest going crazy and acting like a thug.”
What they always fail to mention is the fact a drunken Euro-American fan, John Green, threw a cup of beer at Artest while he was lying on the scorers table, having already removed himself from the situation to avoid any further fighting (admit it: Ron Artest did the right thing). Again, what do you expect to happen to you when you provoked a man like that? In another ironic twist to this particular story, Green, who has a long criminal record, including aggravated assault and escape from prison, was sentenced to probation only for starting the riot in Detroit that night. As the U.S. Justice System says it is ok for “white men” to assault “black men,” so do sports media.
Former Duke point guard, Greg Paulus, who today personally lost the game in his debut as Syracuse quarterback vs. Minnesota, is another prime example of “white” players and/or fans provoking the so-called “black athlete” and thinking nothing will happen to them in retaliation. Paulus, during the 2006 ACC Championship Game vs. Boston College, inexcusably hits Louis Hinnant in an extremely punk way, then the commentators made Paulus’ behavior sound like it was not intentional.
ESPN went out of its way to defend Paulus, saying about the incident: “[Paulus] jumped up to celebrate and accidentally hit Hinnant.” Paulus is now considered an “all-American story” by Euro-American media, despite his behavior as a basketball player (NOTE: this is only one example of Paulus being a punk during Duke basketball games).
This would also be a non-story to Operation Nation had Hout been suspended for at least three games for sparking what turned out to be the end of Blount’s career as an Oregon Duck. Hout will only receive a scolding from his coach and athletic director. Go Figure.
Just like police are rewarded with paid vacation (“paid administrative leave”) when they murder “black” Americans, the Euro-American media rewards “white” athletes with sympathy, empathy, and positive airtime when they provoke “black athletes” into a reaction. The European American community expects “blacks” to follow the wussy message of Martin Luther King, Jr., in that “blacks” should let Euro-Americans kill them, rape them, assault them, and in this situation, taunt them, and simply walk away without defending your honor, your pride, and your person.
Blount deserved some kind of punishment for his acts, but so did Hout. But in this country, certain people are held to different standards than others. Its not difficult to decipher who fits what role.