Chronicle hires Altuve-hater as Astros beat writer

I blame the Chronicle for hiring someone who said nasty stuff about the Astros or their players. That's just wrong for our city and sports fans. As far as weakness goes, I do think actual physical threats towards a person or their family can scare even the strongest into a different headspace.

I taught for a few years after I got out of the Navy, and yeah, many aren't cut out for dealing with bad parents and students. Luckily I never got physical threats or had some sicko with an AR-15 come storm any of the schools I was in. No job is a safe job anymore really, but I do agree that some are more likely to make you the target on a much broader scale. Getting crazy on people & harassing them like trolls has become the norm for the growing number of people online and for those out on the streets filming that stuff to post online for attention. It's the extremists that are the scary ones, and yes, they are in that crowd of sports fans too.

As a teacher I'm sure you know that bullying and harassment of students won't be tolerated for good reasons. It still happens every day in schools though. Many of those kids are too scared to tell their parents or teachers about the bullying, or ashamed or embarrassed. It's never shocking to hear that kids who were constantly bullied end up committing suicide. Some just can't take it anymore, and feel helpless. Others finally snap, and go all ballistic with a vengeance later, shooting up the teachers and students in schools. Adults aren't invincible to breaking down. I detest harassment and violence for so many good reasons. Nothing good comes from it.

 

A fan trashing the best player from her favorite team's rival is........ vile behavior? And please stop "yeah, but" ing awful behavior. She trashed a multi-millionaire baseball player who really and truly doesn't need - nor probably want - internet warriors fighting his battles. She doesn't deserve an ounce of the blowback, and to argue she does is such a terrible look.

 

This is entire thread is an entire army of internet warriors whiteknihgting on behalf of Jose Altuve, a public figure.....

 

Drawing a line is not duplicitous at all. I don't personally think anyone should care where this woman previously worked and what she previously said - but, OK - nothing terribly wrong with not wanting a Rangers fan in that position. But small-dick, self-righteous Astros fans bullying, insulting & threatening the woman is vile and completely unjustified behavior.

What is duplicitous about that?

 

I'm fairly certain the behavior directed at her is not part of the job description for local sports beat reporter. God damn, the lack of human decency in this thread is alarming...

 

This entire thread? Right now you have posted 4 times in a row with no end in sight?

God damn the amount of virtue signaling and caffeine you are on this morning is alarming...

 

I do not regret putting certain folks on ignore for the last few months. I pity Corey Julks-stans.

 

I promise you, the Astros players do not give a **** about this. They will treat her with the same respect that they do all media members.

Let's be very clear: the Astros cheated. Jose Altuve was on the team that cheated. This was always going to be an issue for him (and others) long before Jomboy peddled his conspiracy bullshit.

But her role in this is negligible. I'm guessing she has a few thousand followers, mostly (if not exclusively) Rangers fans whose opinions were already tainted. She didn't break any news to them. She, like any fan, jumped onto low-hanging fruit to trash her favorite team's greatest rival. The consequences of it should've been zero. But Astros fans are gonna Astro fan.....

 

Hey, I've got to answer the fans! But yeah - there are 4-5 pages of whiteknighting for Jose Altuve - so to point a finger at me and claim I'm whiteknighting for a public figure is pretty rich.

Asking that people be decent is virtue-signaling?...

 

There’s the parade of usual right wing dipshits, sure. But none of my comments have been in defense of Altuve (although I do think he’s a good guy and love watching him play) or “justifying” the behavior of the people going after that reporter. My intention has only been to highlight the reporter’s clear poor decision making.

 

When will people learn to stop saying stuff on social media that will come back to haunt them? I guess she never thought she would get hired to cover a team from Houston. Just really stupid on her part.

I have no interest in harassing her, but I won’t be able to read anything she creates without immediately remembering her opinion of Altuve. But, she’s entitled to her opinion.

 

Yeah, sure. Being a member of the sports media - or wanting to be (I'm not familiar with her to know where she was when she made the Altuve tweet), it's probably not a great look to fan too hard (though....... it didn't seem to bother the Chronicle?....) I think we can all agree there. But that should be the end of the story. The behavior that was unfolded as a result of her tweet is indefensible, and it extends a very persuasive narrative that Astros fans are, more and more, becoming entitled, spoiled, self-righteous assholes. Not all - maybe not even a large segment. But online.... it is a thing.

 

As you know, I rarely agree with you but I do on this.

As much as I hate it, she did nothing "wrong"

The Chron made a bad choice IMO and now we see if the organization and players make her pay for it or move on.

This thread should be ready to be retired.

 

They will not, I promise you (assuming she's a professional who does her job well/fairly, etc.) The scandal almost always has been - and certainly is now - purely fan-driven. The players, both here and throughout MLB, do not give a ****. There may be pockets here or there - but watch the way they all interact. They've moved on. They know the truth - and that's why, other than some in the immediate aftermath chest-thumping to throw media off their own scent - they've rarely mentioned it.

They are not going to freeze out a reporter - especially a local one doing her job.

 

You are probably right.

But I will continue to point out that her sin was not calling Altuve a cheater.

Her sin was saying Altuve does not deserve any respect because he cheated.

Maybe a subtle difference, but it's big and important to me.

 

"Sin"?........
I recognize that may be shorthand and I'm being a tad pedantic - but language is important and we shouldn't inflate what she did. It wasn't a "sin".

Again, I don't know in what capacity she tweeted it - as a sports journalist? Yeah; bad look. As a fan? Eh.... I mean, that's what fans do.

 

She's a proven liar and liars deserve the repercussions for their actions. I've got very little sympathy for liars.

BTW, I think she's lying about the death threats, once a liar always a liar. The Smollete of journalists.

 

I wish Luhnow was still the GM so she would be treated like the liar that she is.

 

Apparently you haven't ever read the 10 Commandments. Not surprising.

 

Thou shalt not bear false witness (a perfectly apt description of her offense). Look it up, its on the top ten last of sins.