For me, it's an issue of him being singled out as the scapegoat for something that was widespread.

And another thing - she elevates what Aaron did because of all the racist hate mail he received. While that does render what he did more notable, it isn't like Bonds doesn't receive hate mail. I don't know exactly, but I believe that Aaron did not receive this hate mail for the majority of his career, but only when he got close to the record. And people didn't throw syringes at Aaron on the playing field.

And Bonds is playing in an entirely different environment, but he does receive death threats and hate mail, probably from the same people who enjoy drivel like this article.

Damn, she doesn't even want A-Rod to break the record because he hasn't been threatened everyday like Aaron was. Hank Aaron took greenies.

And she is worried that this will become another OJ thing where blacks and whites are split. who cares? Blacks and whites, as groups, are often split along racial lines and people like this jenele exploit that for their own gain. This whole Bonds scenario wasn't really viewed in racial terms until ESPN, her employer, made it an issue. She should be ashamed of herself. She won't because she's a subhuman opinion writer, but she should.

She even calls Bonds an "alleged cheater." How can she say alleged and then find him guilty? what a dipshit.

Kindly get the F out of the pool and quit ruining it for those of us who aren't pious retards peddling misguided blather. I really can't blame you for taking a paycheck from ESPN to write this garbage because hey, we all gotta eat, right? There are far too few people who understand the difference between editorializing and reporting, and even fewer who understand the roles both have in journalism. Vulture! Preying upon the weak and the easily swayed Bonds haters! May flesh eating bacteria attack your fingers and leave them as nothing but bony stubs, thus leaving you to a lifetime of typing with your nose, or getting a Dictaphone setup to continue writing your subpar tripe.

That's how you do hateful vicious writing, honey.

No love,

The Baron

I've sat and watched this team, the Giants live and die on that man's quick stroke.  You write him off because of (1) book and what ESPN tells you?  He is tested, scrutinized and much more villified than Aarron ever was.  75% at the time supported Aaron, though the other quarter was more radical and outspoken.  But because someone hated you for your race or your color, it's easy to write them off as ignorant fools.  Aaron had the side of right on him.  People hate Bonds because of hypothetical data that has never led to any conclusive evidence.  Personally, I hate Barry because he is all ESPN can talk about in reference to the Giants.  (There are many more interesting storylines.  For chrissakes he wasn't even playing sunday night, but all ESPN could talk about is him and Roger Clemens though the future aces of the franchises for the giants and phillies faced off, one in his debut).  How is Barry supposed to deal with this kind of hatred???  You hate because you're told to, not because you've found anything damning.  And you question why the man is confrontational or avoiding of the media??  You villify him because you need an enemy, you need someone to rail on.  Same story with T.O. and any other athlete that's not the cream of the social crop.  This isn't a race issue, it's a social issue.  The world needs a pariah and ESPN has chosen Barry.  Make no mistake about him, You and Sports Illustrated created this monster simply to kill him.  Are you happy?  A man is going to do something incredible and you are going to turn it into a travesty.  Next time, find a new angle, maybe try talking to the man?  Or his teammates?  Or someone that watches him sell his body and his health every day to make a large contingent of adoring fans happy?  You people really are heartless, I hope you are proud.

Sincerely,

Tyler

She drops some other names: Giambi, Palmeiro, Clemens, yada yada yada. However, she goes along with the rest of the MSM in conveniently ignoring that the content of the discussion in "Shadows" and "Love Me Hate Me" has been compromised by the authors either engaging in shady maneuvering to gather info, or exposing himself as an irrational Bonds-the-person hater. Unfortunately for people who want to scapegoat him, those folks have failed in their mission to be even semi-objectively authoritative.

It's okay to talk about how the information makes you feel, and it's great to be passionate about it, but if your argument comes down to "Hank Aaron is a good person, Barry Bonds is a jerk" to explain why you think God should prevent Bonds from breaking Aaron's record, well, I think it's time to re-evaluate.

Much more interesting topic buried in the column: In a Pac Man Jones world, Charles Barkley's "I am not a role model" speech looms large.

Stupid jerk fans.