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Specter: Goodell's Spygate explanations don't pass scrutiny
ESPN ^ | 2-15-08 | Mike Fish

Posted on 02/15/2008 10:56:41 AM PST by Hatteras

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To: AnotherUnixGeek

Free season tickets at the Eagles games. Specter is an embarrassment to PA. Maybe he should apply Scottish Law to his investigation.


21 posted on 02/15/2008 11:32:40 AM PST by mortal19440
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To: Trailerpark Badass

Unfortunately, Specter and his cronies are the only ones that have something to hold over Roger Goodell’s head. And if it takes somebody like that to keep Goodell from destroying the league from the inside, out. I’m all for it. Heck, we’re better off when they are not legislating important issues anyway. Hopefully, it will take up enough of their time to keep them from ruining our lives. Either this or sending them off on extended vacations, I’m good with either.


22 posted on 02/15/2008 11:35:00 AM PST by Hatteras
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To: Lurker

Federal anti-trust exemption? How much is that really worth to MLB or to the NFL? With both major sports just about fully built-out, who in their right mind would want to start a competing league? All the major cities, and quite a few mid-size ones, are taken.

Both sports should ask Congress to yank the exemption & take their investigatory power & .... well, you know.

I’m an Eagles fan, but if they couldn’t win on the field... who cares?


23 posted on 02/15/2008 11:37:23 AM PST by Tallguy (Tagline is offline till something better comes along...)
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To: Tallguy
"With both major sports just about fully built-out, who in their right mind would want to start a competing league?"

It has more to do with revenue sharing than competition from any start-up leagues. The revenue generated from TV. Without it, small market teams would not be able to compete financially. Eventually, the league would eat itself.

24 posted on 02/15/2008 11:48:28 AM PST by Hatteras
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To: Minn
This is always put forth on this forum like it's the end all argument.

The lady asked me why Congress is involved, and I answered her. I don't agree with it. I don't think the Feds have any place in it. But that is indeed their justification for sticking their noses into it.

L

25 posted on 02/15/2008 11:51:18 AM PST by Lurker (Pimping my blog: http://lurkerslair-lurker.blogspot.com/)
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To: Hatteras
Aiello said Thursday that it is an overstatement to suggest the league is investigating Walsh.

"The only thing we're doing is looking at public records and trying to verify his employment history in an effort to learn about him," Aiello said.

A coverup is going on, imo. Say, does anyone know if Goodell is very close to Patriot's owner Kraft? Seems to me I read that somewhere? If so, it might explain a lot of things.

26 posted on 02/15/2008 11:52:32 AM PST by rawhide
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To: Hatteras

So what you’re saying is that this all has to do with Team CATV arrangments & the launching of the NFL channel? Lovely.


27 posted on 02/15/2008 11:53:16 AM PST by Tallguy (Tagline is offline till something better comes along...)
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To: Hatteras
To all asking why Congress is involved with the NFL, they have every right to be under the commerce clause in the Constitution. I'm at work, on break right now, but will post more later. Suffice it to say for now that when the McLaren Formula 1 racing team was caught with information from rival team Ferrari, they were fined $100 million dollars and had all team points removed.

The Patriots penalty was no penalty at all; it was akin to fining me $2. Goodell destroyed the tapes and covered up. The NFL has anti-trust exemptions and functions as a cartel. That league needs an enema.

28 posted on 02/15/2008 11:55:11 AM PST by Richard Kimball (Sure, they'd love to kill me, as long as they can do it without admitting I exist)
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To: rawhide

Kraft was instrumental in Goodell being hired as commissioner, and IMHO, Goodell functions as Kraft’s sock puppet.


29 posted on 02/15/2008 11:56:14 AM PST by Richard Kimball (Sure, they'd love to kill me, as long as they can do it without admitting I exist)
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To: CDHart

Because the NFL got an exemption from federal anti-trust laws in exchange for government oversight.


30 posted on 02/15/2008 12:04:04 PM PST by fightinJAG (Rush was right when he used to say: "You NEVER win by losing.")
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To: Hatteras

I wonder what favor Comcast wants from Specter in return for the $101,750 dollars they contributed to his campaign? Specter also said on WEEI that he is only doing this because he is an Eagles fan and wants to know if the Pats cheated to beat them in the Super Bowl.


31 posted on 02/15/2008 12:05:37 PM PST by massgopguy (I owe everything to George Bailey)
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To: Richard Kimball

If Goodell was Kraft’s sock puppet then the Pats wouldn’t have been the first team busted for taping. There’s plenty of indications that they aren’t the only team that does it, plenty of other targets Goodell could have made an example of to get Kraft to stop, instead he busted the Pats. If that’s a sock puppet it’s a damn uncomfortable sock.


32 posted on 02/15/2008 12:08:42 PM PST by discostu (aliens ate my Buick)
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To: discostu

Goodell was dragged into the investigation because of public complaints by the Jets coach, a former Pats assistant. AFAIC, this is less about the Pats and more about the NFL.


33 posted on 02/15/2008 12:11:16 PM PST by Richard Kimball (Sure, they'd love to kill me, as long as they can do it without admitting I exist)
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To: Richard Kimball

Coaches bitch and moan constantly, the Jets could have been ignored while some other team got busted and a quiet message to Kraft that there could be a second bust.

I think it’s about an idiot Senator with too much time on his hands. It’s a stupid rule, it’s always been a stupid rule, it’s probably going to be post dated this off-season when they finally give the defense a radio helmet. Specter needs to rent a life.


34 posted on 02/15/2008 12:17:26 PM PST by discostu (aliens ate my Buick)
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To: discostu
We disagree on this one. The Pats have also been accused of jamming the radio helmets when the other team gets a good drive going.

Personally, I think Goodell knew that some of the Pats illegal activities involved Super Bowls, and wanted it buried, so he made a minimal fine, destroyed the evidence, and counted on the fact that all the major news media have massive contracts with the NFL (NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX) to keep the coverage from getting too deep.

35 posted on 02/15/2008 12:24:33 PM PST by Richard Kimball (Sure, they'd love to kill me, as long as they can do it without admitting I exist)
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To: massgopguy

Comcast is in a big fight with the NFL over access to NFLNetwork programming. This is Sphincter letting the NFL know that it will stop only when they pay the “protection”.


36 posted on 02/15/2008 12:25:58 PM PST by Paine in the Neck (Nepolean fries the idea powder)
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To: Tallguy
If you mean the attempt to cover up the extense of the Patriots cheating scandal, I'm not making the connection to the NFL Network.

The point is that, as disliked as Specter is, and he may have a financial interest or he may not, but he is also a fan who like the majority of fans in the NFL had a lot of questions and fortunately for NFL fans, he carries enough weight to have his questions answered.

Before Specter got involved, we knew that Roger Goodell and the NFL were aware of cheating taking place on opening day of 2007 and sometime during 2006. Now we find out that Belichick had admitted to Goodell back on September 13 that he had been employing this illegal tactic since he started as the coach of the Patriots but Goodell failed to mention this admission and quickly burned the "evidence". Keep in mind, Belichick says that he acted based on his interpretation of the rules. So it is safe to assume that Belichick employed his spy tactics (which he "believed" to be legal) at every opportunity, including the three Super Bowls.

Now, thanks to Specter, and unfortunately for Roger Goodell, we have the emergence of a former employee of the Patriots that apparently still holds "evidence" to shed light on the extense of Belichick's cheating. And also, hopefully, thanks to Specter, this "evidence' won't be destroyed and we'll get the truth, whatever that may be.

37 posted on 02/15/2008 12:26:19 PM PST by Hatteras
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To: Hatteras
It has more to do with revenue sharing than competition from any start-up leagues.

Which strikes me as ridiculous. Teams compete on the field but are franchisees of the same company. The Yankees can't entertain their fans and make gobs of revenue without a visiting team. I'd bet if you looked into it it, the whole anti-trust exemption thing sprung from some sort of labor relations thing. Democrats seeking to enlarge the base to include athletes.

38 posted on 02/15/2008 12:26:28 PM PST by Minn (Here is a realistic picture of the prophet: ----> ([: {()
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To: Hatteras

Does Arlen Spector realize what an ass he is? I guess not.....


39 posted on 02/15/2008 12:26:31 PM PST by Rummyfan (Iraq: it's not about Iraq anymore, it's about the USA!)
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To: CDHart

Because they can.


40 posted on 02/15/2008 12:30:06 PM PST by swain_forkbeard (Rationality may not be sufficient, but it is necessary.)
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