What readers are saying

Ernie Steele

No A-Rod shrine at Ernie Steele's

The life of Ernie Steele, a good old Dawg, captured by Steve Kelley ("Ernie had city's first, and finest, sports joint," Seattle Times, Oct. 18) says that long ago sports wasn't all about the money like it is now.

The prime example is Alex Rodriguez. Before leaving Seattle, he said it wasn't about the money. Then he signed with the Texas Rangers for $252 million over 10 years. The Rangers realized the folly of their ways and shipped A-Rod to the Yankees while still owing him a third of his salary for the duration of the contract. Absurd and greedy? You bet.

How much does it take to live a comfortable life of wealth? How much is ever going to be enough? Every time the upper limit is pushed, be it by an athlete or movie star, life gets harder for those at the bottom of the ladder.

Ernie Steele lived an honorable life serving others, including the homeless, at his legendary Capitol Hill restaurant. He is an example to all of us of a life well lived. May he rest in peace.

— David Enroth, Seattle

A thank you to Ernie

Thank you for a very thoughtful ode to Ernie. I worked there in 1971. I was 14. Ernie would always make sure I was fed. He'd sit me down in that back booth and make me take a break. He'd ask what book I was reading and ask me about school, etc. He'd do the little things that would make you feel included in some way.

Seattle has lost a bit of the fabric of its collective character. Ernie's was a culture of acceptance, of inclusion.

At Ernie's, you felt like you belonged.

— Wayne C. Maher, Seattle

College football

We all need a return to civility

I was watching college football on television last weekend and the Ultimate Fighting Championships broke out. As a parent in youth football past and present, I am at a loss as to how such actions get on the football field. Those players who were swinging helmets and stomping on players down on the field should have their scholarships revoked and be banned from intercollegiate football. It is that simple, no excuses!

College football is out of control. There is too much money involved for the programs and too much pressure on the kids. Kids practice in the mornings before school, go to school all day, then practice after school into the evenings and then travel on weekends. These are kids, not professional athletes.

The respect for the game has been replaced by big-time TV money, endorsement rights, pressure to go on to the NFL, and rankings. Coaches making millions of dollars are under extreme pressure and that is transferred to the athletes. It might be unintended, but it can't be denied.

Even so, it is not the coaches' fault, it is the universities pressuring them. Winning means dollars for the school. Let's start with a simple fix, let's have the teams meet at midfield and shake hands after the game like our youngsters do. Leaving the field as friendly athletes and not hated opponents is a start to the return of civility in college football.

— Art Francis, Issaquah

Michelle Wie

It's all starting to become a joke

Michelle Wie had a comical week at the LPGA Samsung, the best from which can be said is that Curly was AWOL. As it was, Moe and Larry (Wie and her new caddie) provided enough laughs to keep observers' minds (briefly) off the fact Wie had failed to break par in a round in her last 12 attempts (including four in men's events).

After wasting what seemed like hours on rulings over the first two rounds, Wie and her caddie could then be seen playing in a bunker like a couple of kids in a backyard sandbox. During the third round, when Wie was nowhere to be seen, commentators were joking about how they might actually get through the round without a ruling.

Earth to Michelle: They're laughing at you now.

Leave it to Michelle Wie to tell us that despite finishing 21 shots off the lead in a field of 20, she feels "real good" about how she played.

Wie's egotism is now such that nothing can faze her. She tells us that she will continue to compete against the men, even though she has demonstrated in her past two LPGA events that no one — not even her "inferiors" — is afraid of her. And the truth might be that she really isn't that good.

— Mark Kittell, Seattle

UW sports

Let's not forget the success of crew

In response to Blaine Newnham's column ("Remember the real source of this current UW success," Seattle Times, Oct. 15), in which he wrote: "For the moment, these are Washington's two most successful sports programs, men's basketball and women's volleyball... "

Huh?

I'm a sports fan, 101 Club member, Board of Rowing Stewards member and volunteer fundraiser for Husky sports. I am also a season-ticket holder to UW basketball and believe that Lorenzo Romar and the Huskies are a perfect match, and I've watched the women's volleyball emergence with great excitement. But to anoint them as the two best programs is to do grave disservice to the rowing program. Perhaps familiarity breeds contempt, or perhaps consistent, world-class competitiveness is expected and, therefore, boring to sportswriters.

Did you know that 20 athletes and coaches from the UW competed at the World Championships in England this summer, or that a somewhat smaller group competed at the Under-23 World Championships in Belgium? In both cases, many of the Huskies won medals and some won world championships (women's eight world championship, U-23 women's eight and men's eight world championships).

Did you know that the Huskies' freshman team won the U.S. national title at the IRA this spring? Or that the UW coxed four won the national title at the same event? Or that national titles were won by Huskies in 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999, 1998 and 1997?

Did you know that all Huskies rowers graduate, which is, arguably, a better record than its long string of national championships? Did you know that Washington has the finest collegiate rowing program in North America?

I love basketball and volleyball and I am thrilled that The Times has given the athletes so much coverage the past two years, but I'm willing to put the UW crew record against theirs any time, any day.

— John L. Wilcox, Seattle

Broadcasting

Lyons' 'joke' was pure bigotry

Fox actually fired announcer Steve Lyons for "making a racially insensitive comment while on the air" during an ALCS game? Unexpected. Then Lou Piniella "came to his defense by saying, 'There isn't a racist bone in his body. Not one.' " Incredible.

In response to Piniella using a couple Spanish words when talking about a Latino player, Lyons said he didn't understand what Lou was saying, but that he was checking for his wallet and didn't want to sit too close to Lou. Lou and the other announcer were silent, with no on-air response to the "joke."

What does it take for Piniella to recognize bigotry? Does Lyons have to put on a KKK sheet? Does Lou really believe that a person completely free of any race/ethnic bigotry would think and say something as obviously bigoted as this? Why does Piniella feel compelled to make a public defense of blatant bigotry?

Piniella's "defense" of Lyons' bigotry is a good example of bigotry enabling, as was the on-air silence of the other announcer. Bigotry abuse enabling is equivalent to alcohol abuse and spouse abuse enabling. And The Times compounds this enabling by characterizing Lyons' bigotry as a mere "insensitive comment." It wasn't 'insensitive' — it was blatantly abusive.

The Dodgers think Lyons' bigotry is going to be transformed by his completing a "diversity training" program? Another pluralism hoax. More likely, he'll learn how to hide his bigotry, how to be a more sophisticated bigot.

— Walt Smith, Mount Vernon