Maybe if Ted Kennedy had been an NFL player, the left would have paid more attention

By now, virtually everyone has seen the appalling video of Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice savagely attacking his then-fiancée in an Atlantic City elevator. The punch, which knocked his soon-to-be wife unconscious, was fierce, terrifying, and utterly unacceptable on any number of levels. Immediately, pundits and pols began demanding that the NFL take the types of actions they should have taken when the story first broke in January.

….And they were right to do so. The NFL’s original “two game suspension” response to the news of a player dragging an unconscious woman out of an elevator was woefully inadequate. At best it was pitiful mismanagement that damaged the organization by enabling Rice’s behavior. At worst, it was a cover-up of a heinous crime. I don’t know why they needed a video to drive the point home but, finally, the league has made some of the right calls. Among those who agree with their most recent decisions are none other than President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. The Ravens were right to fire Rice, and the NFL was right to enact an “indefinite suspension.” Heck, I’ll even go one better. Uber-leftist Keith Olbermann is right when he calls for NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to step down, and he’s correct in his assertion that everyone involved with the whitewashing should be removed from their positions. It’s refreshing to see that left-wing politicians and media figures are taking such a stand. ….If only Ted Kennedy had been a football player.

---

Ted Kennedy had a multi-decade history of horrific treatment of women

Uncle Ted had a multi-decade history of horrific treatment of women, and yet left wing politicians like Barack Obama lauded him enthusiastically:

“But though it is Ted Kennedy’s historic body of achievements we will remember, it is his giving heart that we will miss. It was the friend and colleague who was always the first to pick up the phone and say, “I’m sorry for your loss,” or “I hope you feel better,” or “What can I do to help?” “This is how Ted Kennedy lived. This is his legacy. He once said of his brother Bobby that he need not be idealized or enlarged in death beyond what he was in life, and I imagine he would say the same about himself. The greatest expectations were placed upon Ted Kennedy’s shoulders because of who he was, but he surpassed them all because of who he became.”

Men like Joe Biden credit Ted Kennedy with enriching their lives, strengthening their spirits, and encourage their careers:

“And for the hundreds, if not thousands of us, who got to know him personally, he — he actually, how can I say it — he altered our lives, as well. Through the grace of God and an accident of history, I was privileged to be one of those people. And every important event in my adult life, as I look back this morning and talking to Vicky, every single one, he was there. He was there to encourage, to counsel, to be empathetic, to lift up.”

Why, even Harry Reid honored him in the loftiest of terms:

“He was a friend, the model of public service and an American icon. As we mourn his loss, we rededicate ourselves to the causes for which he so dutifully dedicated his life. [His] legacy stands with the greatest, the most devoted, the most patriotic men and women to ever serve in these halls…The liberal lion’s mighty roar may now fall silent, but his dream shall never die.”

It's important to note that these aren't ancient quotes. These are currently sitting, top-level members of the Democrat party. Maybe if Kennedy had been in the NFL these people might have spared a thought for Mary Jo Kopechne, scratching desperately at the floor of an overturned car as she drowned. Perhaps they would have remembered that Ted Kennedy swam away from the scene of the Chappaquiddick crash, went to bed in his hotel room, and complained that a noisy party was interrupting his beauty sleep before his friends convinced him to deal with the repercussions of his actions. It’s even possible that they would have taken the time to mention the Washington D.C waitress who was the victim of Ted Kennedy and Chris Dodd’s violent “waitress sandwich” back in the 80’s. Unfortunately, Ted Kennedy was, and is, a left-wing icon. His last name was important to the liberal cause, so the faithful (including Barack Obama) were more than willing to look the other way. Kennedy never faced the career repercussions that Ray Rice will – justifiably – face. Democrats in positions of political and media power spent 40 years minimizing, justifying, and explaining-away the horrific actions of their Senatorial hero. For them, agenda always trumped honor and dignity. What a shame. To this day, lefties just can’t bring themselves to hold Kennedy to the same standards they eagerly apply to pro-ballers. If you’re a believer in woman’s rights and you’re arguing that Ray Rice should pay a heavy price for his grotesque attack, you’re 100% right. If you’re making that argument, but spent any part of the last four decades turning a blind eye to “the lion of the Senate,” sorry. You’re just another part of the problem.