Missing the point...

Today in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, I happened across a column by Jim Moore, who inexplicably calls himself and his column the "Go 2 Guy." Cheesy name aside, the column really disappointed me for any number of reasons not the first of which being that Moore's column, whether he'd like to admit it or not, condones the felonious drug use and possession by two Gonzaga basketball.

According to Moore, when Josh Heytvelt, arguably Gonzaga's best player and Theo Davis, didn't turn their headlights on, the reason why a Spokane police officer stopped the Chevrolet Trail Blazer (the irony of the name of the vehicle they were in is striking) the two players were riding in, that was the worst decision they made that night.

Really, Jim? That was the worst decision they made that night. Are you sure it wasn't the whole driving around with 'shrooms in your car thing because that seems like an awfully bad decision to me.

Moore's next genius dissection of this incident is the discovery by the police officer of aforementioned bag of 'shrooms sticking out of Heytvelt's gym bag. His analysis of this incident is so ungodly stupid, I can't help but post it in its entirety.

"If I'm Heytvelt, as soon as I see blue lights in my rear-view mirror, the first thing I'm doing is "un-protruding" my mushrooms by stuffing them deep into my bag, underneath my sneakers and practice jersey and zipping the whole damn thing shut. That just seems like a Foreign-Substance Fundamental 101."

There you go kids, if you're riding around with mushrooms in your car, Seattle Post-Intelligencer Jim Moore gives you specific instructions on how to best hide your stash from the Po-Po.

And then there's the kicker. An argument that I've heard one hundred times before from parents who freely used drugs themselves. And again, I'm going to have to quote Moore directly because I can' t put it any better than he did.

"Yes, here in Washington those magic mushrooms are felonious goods, and I know I'm missing the point, that kids shouldn't do drugs, period, particularly when they're part of a team. It's a privilege, not a right, and so on. But kids do do drugs."

Not all kids do drugs, Jim. I'm 23 years old and I've never used an illegal drug in my life. I know that there are young people who have and do use illegal drugs on a regular basis but that doesn't make it ok or, in this case, legal. I remember reading a feature in SI a month or so ago about Alando Tucker, the all-world Wisconsin forward who is probably the best all-around player in college basketball, making a pact with his father not to use drugs or alcohol. That seems to be working out pretty well for him, don't you think? And you can bet that if he was busted with a bag of 'shrooms or brownies laced with 'shrooms, the local papers would eat him alive. They wouldn't smirk and make light of a situation that, had it not happened to two Gonzaga basketball players likely would have resulted in jail time.

And then there's the rub.

I'm not going to condone Heytvelt's and Davis' actions, but at the same time, haven't they been punished enough? Reinstate Heytvelt in time for Saturday's game against eighth-ranked Memphis and allow Davis to be a member of the team again.

Too often, society is willing to overlook the faults and slip-ups of the talented. And this is no exception. Who cares if you admittedly stole laptops from dorm rooms (UConn's Marcus Williams) or were riding around in your Trail Blazer with a bag full of 'shrooms if you can help us WIN?

Well done, Jim Moore.