Would that story about the capsized boat been in the news

had it not involved "NFL players?"

If the missing were regular folks, would it be that much in the news? Are the lives of "celebrities" worth more?

It just grates on me, when both local and national news report about the "NFL players" missing.

If one of the survivors was a 6 year old Cuban boy.

and in the media a couple years ago? I think it's just the reverse: nobody seems to care about these players.

Then it would be on 24/7!

many times. Not too many people get lost out on the ocean every year. I think more attention has been shown due to two of the missing being NFL players.

The hometown paper of a victim might go with the story if they were a local VIP or something but that would be about it.And if they did run the story it would most likely not be front page news.

even mention their names and home towns? Why preface the story with 'NFL Players?"

Is this the only way to get our attention?

very short segment.

I've got a 28 ft sailboat and am VERY reluctant to make the Floria Straits and Yucatan Straits crossing from Key West to Ilas Mujeres Mexico without much more expensive upgrades like a EPIRB, Life raft and getting my inboard diesel running. I've got two outboards including an almost new 4 stroke 15 horse Honda, a GPS chartplotter and a radio with DSC auto distress signal that sends my GPS co-ordinates in a MAYDAY, But it's not near enough for me to feel safe out there.

The Gulf can get VERY rough in a hurry. In a 21 ft open boat with little freeboard an unexpected squall can churn up 15-20 ft seas in a heartbeat and that can flip or swamp even the best boatsman.

These pro Football guys sure fit the stereotype.

Dumbasses!

was the forecast was for bad weather. They should not have been out on the boat that day. We had several lines of storms come thru in advance of the cold front. In central Fl we had a lake wind alert. There were white caps on the lake I live on in Orlando. No way would I have been on the ocean in a small boat with the forecast. I hope they find the missing men alive. I have an image in the back of my head of them bobbing around in the ocean waiting for help. It would be an awful experience.

>These pro Football guys sure fit the stereotype.

Dumbasses!<

Let me give you a few stats on the NFL.

1 in 15,000 young men who ever play football make it to the NFL. The average career of a NFL player is four seasons. NFL players would skew somewhat intelligent, due to the fact they are put through a variety of written tests before being drafted. (See the Wonderlic.) If they were truly "dumbasses", they wouldn't be able to hack learning the playbook in the NFL. They also have drive and determination that the average weekend athlete probably wouldn't even think about.

I'm sad that those who were taking the boat out over the weekend didn't seem to realize bad weather was coming, but to call them "dumbasses" because they played pro football is kind of laughable.

and being 35 miles out in that boat with that forecast shows little of the latter

but, no, I don't care for sports

which, to forsake an argument, i will assume (due to your reply) that the forecast was for such bad weather being possible...

which is something everyone i know who fishes out in the Gulf pays attention to AT ALL TIMES...and still, most of them have 'a story' (if not many) about something that 'came up'...the Gulf is a giant bathtub, and waves can mount out of 'nowhere'...especially 20+ miles out...

which a powered 21 foot fishing boat can handle, sans operator error...

and to compare a 15hp motor on a 28-foot sailboat to the power available on the fishing boat is disingenuous, at best...as a sailor, you know the complete difference in the capabilities of various configurations of boats...

as far as the NFL players...why, even though you don't care for sports, would you not acknowledge the level of ability and achievement it takes 'TO PLAY THEIR GAME' at the level they do...

what level of achievement is a measurement for you?...does it depend on 'what it is someone is doing'?....someone might be a 'stupid, f***ing jock' who just happens to do what he or she does at a level that 99% of the people (yeah...even the ones who don't play, but COULD HAVE) cannot achieve...

sorry all those athletes weren't brain surgeons or cancer researchers or social service organizers...or whatever would serve society better...

in the mean time...if you, or any of us, are not in the top of 'our game'...well, who's the dumbass?

After all, if the "dumbasses" of the NFL can do it, certainly you can, too.

Unfortunately for the men involved, one mistake or oversight in a small boat can be your last. I used to work with a woman whose husband was in the Coast Guard. He told me once that it wasn't "if" there was a problem, it was "when".

We do not own a boat.

of the United States would anyone give a crap about her "toned" arms? It's just the way it works.

film at 11 :P

Don't forget, the 24/7 media jumps on ANYTHING that will give them new copy for a while.

but get national coverage, to the point of obsession.