Let #42 Stand Alone!

[DODGER DEB]

Last night, at the ESPN Zone resturant in NYC, a celebration of JACKIE ROBINSON was held to commemorate what would have been his 87th birthday, come January 31st.

During the course of the celebration, his daughter Sharon made a statement that the retirement of her Dad's #42 should stand alone. Read more....

[url]http://www.nydailynews.com/front/story/385326p-326967c.html[/url

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[runningshoes]

I'm going to have to agree.

Jackie Robinson not only paved the way for African American players; he did so for anyone who was not white, including Hispanics.

The name Clemente cannot lay claim to that same honour; only the name Robinson can and that's why his number transcended the team retirement.

[shlevine42]

Sharon Robinson displays a sense of history as well as a daughter's pride when she says that "the league-wide recognition currently reserved only for her trailblazing father should remain so."

And while I share her respect for Clemente's accomplishments, she's correct when she notes that "when you start retiring numbers across the board, for all different groups, you're kind of diluting the original purpose."

Jackie Robinson holds a singular place in baseball history, and tributes to him should be equally unique.

What's more, if this country has seen fit to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. (as it has wisely done) with a national holiday in his name, it would be equally fitting to establish a national holiday in honor of Jackie Robinson, whose accomplishments in the struggle for racial equality are no less significant.

[Bluesteve32]

Sharon Robinson displays a sense of history as well as a daughter's pride when she says that "the league-wide recognition currently reserved only for her trailblazing father should remain so."

And while I share her respect for Clemente's accomplishments, she's correct when she notes that "when you start retiring numbers across the board, for all different groups, you're kind of diluting the original purpose."

Jackie Robinson holds a singular place in baseball history, and tributes to him should be equally unique.

What's more, if this country has seen fit to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. (as it has wisely done) with a national holiday in his name, it would be equally fitting to establish a national holiday in honor of Jackie Robinson, whose accomplishments in the struggle for racial equality are no less significant.

I agree that Jackie Robinson did n=more for Civil Rights in this country than almost anyone, but a National Holiday to honor a man is something we have not even given the Great Emancipator and preserver of this Union, Abraham Lincoln.

As of this moment, the only men so honored has been George Washinton, and even his day has been bastardized into an unofficial Presisdents' Day (it is still by law, Washinton's Birthday observance), and for all intents and purposes, Washington is the key to the founding of this Nation. Leading the victorious Contenential Army aganst the world's strongest nation for eight years, presiding over the Constitutional Convention in which his presense willed that document that is the cornerstone to our system of government, and as first President of this Nation under that Constitution.

George Washinton could have done what several of the Latin American and Napeleon, himself ended up doing by usurping power and becoming an emperor or King, but refused to become a planter and had to be almost draggged from Mt Vernon to particiapte in the Constitutional Convention. He was the one of the only Founding Fathers to free his slaves, and did it on the death of Martha, as not not be accused of doing so for political purposes.

Jackie Robinson's accomplishments are truely great, and his name should be on every final US History exam and even in my opinion, his major accomplishment was before Dr King and Rosa Parks. I even believe that Jackie's demeanor on the ballfield emboldened many Blacks to take a stand in the unjusticness of their plight in that era. As far as a National Holiday, Dr King did receive that honor and if any holiday is named for a person, political pressure would make it someone like Cesar Chavez or another important Latino. I do not think Mr Chavez's accomplishments warrant a national holiday, and to just pass one out to be politcally correct, would be folly.

[Shotgun Shuba]

This is a VERY slippery slope. I love Jackie, and feel he is a true hero. However, was Larry Doby less of a man, did the insults hurt him LESS? Jackie was NOT the first player of African descent in MLB, look it up. In the early days many players said they were hispanic while they were really Black. That isn't the point though. Once you did it for Jackie the barn door was open. How about Pete Gray for the disabled etc. Jackie was a great man in every sense of the word but he was not deserving of a holiday and his heirs should not now adopt the attitude that now that Jackie came there are no more deserving heroes. Clemente is a true humanitarian.

[tonypug]

I do not agree with a holiday in Jackie's honor, I do believe the retiring of his number throughout the majors should be a singular honor and not done again. The blacks that followed Jackie had to endure a lot also, but someone had to be the first and for that he is honored.

[The Real McCoy]

We need only heed Mr Emerson's words: "Do not go where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." Jackie Robinson left a trail that was followed by many wonderful ballplayers, including Roberto Clemente. Baseball got this one right, No. 42 is the only number that should be universally retired.

[runningshoes]

This kind of reminds me of Wayne Gretzky in a roundabout way.

His number is not retired in the NHL and even though it may be a unique number, just the same, no one in the league dares put it on his body.

Too bad MLB players couldn't adopt this "unwritten rule" with #42.

[KCGHOST]

Robinson's number should remain the only retired number. We are honoring a man who had a unique opportunity for greatness and achieved it. With Clemente you would be honoring a man who had the sad misfortune of being on the wrong plane at the wrong time.

A national holiday is out of the question, though.

[shlevine42]

Originally posted by KCGHOST
Robinson's number should remain the only retired number. We are honoring a man who had a unique opportunity for greatness and achieved it. With Clemente you would be honoring a man who had the sad misfortune of being on the wrong plane at the wrong time.

A national holiday is out of the question, though..

You obviously appreciate Robinson's contribution, but you state that "a national holiday is out of the question."

Why? Because you don't think it's warranted, or because you don't think there would be Congressional support for such legislation?

[runningshoes]

I posted this another thread:

I'm Canadian, but I'm going to try and put myself in an American's shoes, and I want those shoes to belong to Robinson's daughter:

Baseball is American. My father is an American who made our national pastime inclusive of Americans who were shut out of thier own pastime for more than 100 years, and in doing so he made it possible for anyone who can swing a bat or throw a ball at such a level that he can play alongside those who oppressed us for so long regardless of his ethnic background.

My father made it possible for Clemente to ride the wave he set in motion. Why would we propel him to same level as my father?

My father is an American icon.

[Yankeebiscuitfan]

I posted this another thread:

I'm Canadian, but I'm going to try and put myself in an American's shoes, and I want those shoes to belong to Robinson's daughter:

Baseball is American. My father is an American who made our national pastime inclusive of Americans who were shut out of thier own pastime for more than 100 years, and in doing so he made it possible for anyone who can swing a bat or throw a ball at such a level that he can play alongside those who oppressed us for so long regardless of his ethnic background.

My father made it possible for Clemente to ride the wave he set in motion. Why would we propel him to same level as my father?

My father is an American icon.

This is a post like I would expect from VTSoxfan. I did not know that you were a poet like this. WOW.

I wish I could do that. Most of the time I can not come further than a lot of nonsense.

[runningshoes]

This is a post like I would expect from VTSoxfan. I did not know that you were a poet like this. WOW.

I wish I could do that. Most of the time I can not come further than a lot of nonsense.

But I write for a living, Chris..that's what I do and to be honest; if I had to anything else I would be in big trouble.

And to be even more honest, I have to be in a zone to write like that off the top of my head. I'm not always there.

[CaliforniaCajun]

If the Martin Luther King holiday is any indication.......

This is a VERY slippery slope. I love Jackie, and feel he is a true hero. However, was Larry Doby less of a man, did the insults hurt him LESS? Jackie was NOT the first player of African descent in MLB, look it up. In the early days many players said they were hispanic while they were really Black. That isn't the point though. Once you did it for Jackie the barn door was open. How about Pete Gray for the disabled etc. Jackie was a great man in every sense of the word but he was not deserving of a holiday and his heirs should not now adopt the attitude that now that Jackie came there are no more deserving heroes. Clemente is a true humanitarian.

.......it's never going to happen. I work in the private sector and have never gotten MLK off. My wife works in the public sector and she does. Someone on the Angels MLB board deeply resented being off that day because it will cost him Friday after Thanksgiving. My company gives us Columbus Day off but my wife doesn't get off. Here in Louisiana I used to have to work Good Friday so that people here could get Mardi Gras off (now I lose President's Day because of Mardi Gras).

The bottom line is that MLK day is not universally accepted and it has nothing to do with Dr. King. It's right after the Christmas holidays and in the dead of winter. Generally speaking, public businesses observe it and private businesses do not. Most people won't burn a day of paid vacation to have the day off. The reason I get Columbus Day off has nothing to do with Columbus. Unlike MLK day, Columbus Day is the date is perfectly placed in between Labor Day and Thanksgiving because the 10 paid holidays are then evenly spaced throughout the year.

The reality is that most people don't use the day off to pay homage to MLK, Washington, Lincoln, or Columbus, even if they loved and admired these people.

Jackie Robinson was born on January 31, which means it is doomed to fail.

To succeed, a holiday has to be observed by both the private and public sectors, it has to be at a time when most people want to be off, and it can't rob people of traditional holiday time. The problem is that there are too many holidays now.

Whatever happened to Veterans Day?

Do any workers in the private sector get ticked off because of the number of days there is no mail service, or banking service, or someone you need to talk to isn't in that day?

[Bluesteve32]

[QUOTE=CaliforniaCajunWhatever happened to Veterans Day? [/QUOTE]

Back when they put these three day weekend holidays, Veterans' Day was moved to the third Monday in Ocatober and the old Armistice Day which morphed into Veterans' Day was lost. Veterans' groups were not happy and by public pressure, Veteran's Day was returned to 11-11 (11th hour of the 11th day or the 11th month in 1918, the Great War, which is the war to end all wars, ended). Naturally, Federal employees "needed" that day off in October (most schools in California do not get Columbus Day off, so those kids miss that "Dora the Explorer" marathon on Nick, Jr).

Remember when we used to get Washinton's Birthday off on Feb 22, no matter what day of the week it was on? We all knew exactly when his birthday really was. Now, it is some Monday in February now called, unofficially, Presidents' Day.

Here is Dora: