Offended Yet?

During his team's 17-10 win over the Tampa Bay buccaneeers on saturday, Washington Redskins' safety Sean Taylor spat at Michael Pittman of the Bucs.

Taylor was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct and subsequently fined $7,000, which is, incidentally, the amount he earned for playing in that wild-card game.

The rationale is that spitting on or at an opposing player disgraces not only the spitter and his team, but the National Football League, which would prefer to be seen as a collection of all-American lads who unwind after a week of working with children and otherwise serving their communities by playing football on Sunday, rather than as a horde of jacked-up mercenaries on the edge of felonious assault.

So it is not surprising that sean Taylor was fined for spitting on Michael Pittman.

What has been and remains a little surprising, given the National Football League's concern with image, is that the team for which Taylor plays continues to be known as the redskins.

Over the last couple of decades, college and high school teams known as the Warriors, the Indians and such have dropped their nicknames and mothballed their mascots. "Redskins" would seem to be more offensive than "Warriors" or "Indians," no? And yet the Washington franchise rolls on as the Redskins.

Since quiet suggestions that the name constitutes an insult have generally been met with shrill cries against political correctness, it is perhaps time for people who wish the Washington Redskins were the Washington something elses to change tactics. along that line, let me suggest that as pro football lumbers and crashes through this series of weekends when more and more people tune in the games, Washington should adopt twin mascots: Scalper and Firewater. At halftime, the former could race around the field with a bleeding trophy, perhaps spitting from time to time, certainly whooping, while the latter could stumble up to the European head linesman, throw up on his shoes, and pretend to give away some land for beads, then die of smallpox.

Offended yet?

I would think so. these are insulting and disgusting suggestions based on degrading stereotypes...trotting them out is kind of like naming a team the Redskins.