Ozzie Guillen's recent comments

[YankeeDJW]

Quick summary for those who missed it:

Guillen told Time magazine for an article published last week that he loves Castro and respects him for staying in power so long. The Marlins subsequently issued a statement clarifying that the organization has no respect for Castro, calling him "a brutal dictator who has caused unthinkable pain for more than 50 years.

Given the market he is in, I think the Marlins would be shooting themselves in the foot if they don't fine and suspend him. With the off-season rebranding and big spending, the Marlins can't afford the boycotts that are already being talked about in Miami.

Do you think his comments are some of his most offensive, or at least his most boneheaded based on where he is? How should the Marlins react, besides issuing a statement apologizing for Ozzie?

[m8644]

you pretty much have to be braindead to get a job in the city that hates Castro the most of any in this entire country (and it's obviously not even close) and make comments like that.

It's almost unbelievable how dumb you actually have to be. You can't make this stuff up sometimes....

[Dude Paskert]

I think Chavez is using one of his citizens to stir up trouble in the US...

[RaysFan_98]

Ozzie already starting a **** storm and were only 3-4 games into the season.

[Seattle1]

Hey Guillen is entitled to his opinion. It's a free country, and there's a thing called the First Amendment (free speech).

Just think of all this hatred for Castro precipitated one of our own Presidents getting murdered. Because the CIA tried to assassinate Castro, Kennedy left them hanging on the Bay of Pigs and then began working toward eliminating the CIA altogether, which in turn contributed to the internal decision within the CIA to turn around and kill Kennedy themselves!

All this contempt for some dude with a beard on an island out in the Caribbean.

[RaysFan_98]

Hey Guillen is entitled to his opinion. It's a free country, and there's a thing called the First Amendment (free speech).

Just think of all this hatred for Castro precipitated one of our own Presidents getting murdered. Because the CIA tried to assassinate Castro, Kennedy left them hanging on the Bay of Pigs and then began working toward eliminating the CIA altogether, which in turn contributed to the internal decision within the CIA to turn around and kill Kennedy themselves!

All this contempt for some dude with a beard on an island out in the Caribbean.

Are you another consperciy theroiest?

[EdTarbusz]

Hey Guillen is entitled to his opinion. It's a free country, and there's a thing called the First Amendment (free speech).

.

Nothing about this has anything to do with the first amendment.

I don't think Guillen's comments are offensive, but considering the market he is working in they weren't very smart.

[YankeeDJW]

Hey Guillen is entitled to his opinion. It's a free country, and there's a thing called the First Amendment (free speech).

Legally he can say whatever he wants. But he's employed by the Marlins and made comments that could be extremely offensive to their fans, potentially costing the Marlins organization millions of dollars.

Just because you can say something doesn't mean their are no repercussions for it. If Ozzie gets off with an apology, he's lucky.

[GiambiJuice]

Hey Guillen is entitled to his opinion. It's a free country, and there's a thing called the First Amendment (free speech).

Just think of all this hatred for Castro precipitated one of our own Presidents getting murdered. Because the CIA tried to assassinate Castro, Kennedy left them hanging on the Bay of Pigs and then began working toward eliminating the CIA altogether, which in turn contributed to the internal decision within the CIA to turn around and kill Kennedy themselves!

All this contempt for some dude with a beard on an island out in the Caribbean.

Here we go....

[ol' aches and pains]

Do you think his comments are some of his most offensive, or at least his most boneheaded based on where he is? How should the Marlins react, besides issuing a statement apologizing for Ozzie?

Offensive? No, not to me, anyway.

Boneheaded? Yes, amazingly boneheaded. Cubans love baseball. I would assume the Marlins have a huge Cuban fan base, and none of them agree with Ozzie on this point. Not the first time he's spouted an opinion in public without thinking or evidently caring about the possible repercussions.

[bluesky5]

Legally he can say whatever he wants. But he's employed by the Marlins and made comments that could be extremely offensive to their fans, potentially costing the Marlins organization millions of dollars.

Just because you can say something doesn't mean their are no repercussions for it. If Ozzie gets off with an apology, he's lucky.

They'll make that money back when they sell off this team in 1-3 years.

[AJbaseball00024]

What a freaking idiot!!!!!!! You cannot praise a guy as brutal as Castro especially in a city which is loaded with Cuban refugees.

[Bigfoot 88]

I'm sure he could easily be replaced. His intelligence level surely cannot be that high.

Bring back McKeon.

[Rich the Giants fan]

Hey Guillen is entitled to his opinion. It's a free country, and there's a thing called the First Amendment (free speech).

Just think of all this hatred for Castro precipitated one of our own Presidents getting murdered. Because the CIA tried to assassinate Castro, Kennedy left them hanging on the Bay of Pigs and then began working toward eliminating the CIA altogether, which in turn contributed to the internal decision within the CIA to turn around and kill Kennedy themselves!

All this contempt for some dude with a beard on an island out in the Caribbean.

Well that statement hardly takes into consideration all the lives Castro has affected negatively in 60-years of harsh dictatorship. And yes, Guillen is entittled to free speech, but he should be prepared to accept the consequences of his words, and in that part of this country, those are some hard words to hear. A lot of people suffered a lot of hardship because of that man, and Guillen has ruffled a lot of feathers, feathers of people who buy tickets and merchandise I might add. I would not be surprised if Ozzie is unable to ride this one out.

[Rich the Giants fan]

Offensive? No, not to me, anyway.

Boneheaded? Yes, amazingly boneheaded. Cubans love baseball. I would assume the Marlins have a huge Cuban fan base, and none of them agree with Ozzie on this point. Not the first time he's spouted an opinion in public without thinking or evidently caring about the possible repercussions.

Maybe not to you, but to a whole lot of people they sure as heck were.