Bill Maher's reaction to Artest Punishment on Larry King Live right on!!!

WEEKENDALKI · Nov 24, 2004

He really did nail it when he said that Artest had the right to defend himself after a fan threw a beer on him from the stands. Do people really think that it is fair for athlets to be subjected to that kind of abuse merely because they are paid astronomical sums of money to play. Even larry King said that he would have gone after the fan. At some point the fans have to be culpable for their actions IMO. Being suspended for the season in light of the fans' behavior seems excessive. Just my .02. :icon_conf

wilheim · Nov 24, 2004

Speaking of beer cups

Cup thrown at Artest for sale on e-Bay, then taken off

[size=-1]By Associated Press, 11/23/2004 23:24 [/size]

<WIRE_BODY>The cup that ignited the biggest brawl in U.S. sports history could have been yours.

An item purported to be the cup thrown from the stands at Pacers player Ron Artest last Friday night was on eBay for less than 24 hours after bidding went out of control. The cup, listed for sale by someone from Sterling Heights, Mich., was put up for auction Monday, but the bidding was closed Tuesday afternoon when the price went to $99,999,999.

In the description of the cup, the seller wrote: ''No sports collection will be complete without the addition of this vintage championship collector's edition beer cup. Simply a must for all Artest fans.'' There also were several photos of the cup hitting Artest, though there is no way to prove its authenticity.

After Artest was hit with the cup, he went into the stands, setting off a melee between players and fans. Artest was suspended for the season, while teammate Stephen Jackson was suspended 30 games and Jermaine O'Neal 25.

</WIRE_BODY>

5teamparlay · Nov 24, 2004

I agree

#1 what would artest's penalty be if this happened in february, march, or the playoffs.

#2 I ASK WHAT WAS HE SUSPENDED FOR????? imparticulary what 1 action.

he was held beck once in the stands and did not get a punch in.

then going in the stands == 1 years suspension. Anything on the court can be dismissed as preventative or self defense.

lander · Nov 24, 2004

Ladies,
I'm not sure how its self defense when you attack somebody that didn't do anything -- that's called assault (well, unless you are a cowardly Red Stater -- then it's called a "war on terror", but still).

TheGeneral+ · Nov 24, 2004

I have no idea why anyone would feel the need to fight over a thrown cup of beer. Self control and humanity is not even considered anymore. It's not even courage. This is a pro athlete going after a DRUNK in rage, no matter who is in the way, women or children, and how many fines and suspensions has he had before?

PatPatriot · Nov 24, 2004

Fxckin Bill Maher is a half a communist anyways.

Self defense from a half a plastic cup of beer?...What he can't swim?.. He could have drowned??..He could have caught a cold??

Fxckin ******* couldn't make it as a dishwasher on the real world.Fxckin sociopath should be in a jail.He can have that marxist Bill Maher as his Hebitch.

Lawrence · Nov 24, 2004

lander said:
Ladies,
I'm not sure how its self defense when you attack somebody that didn't do anything -- that's called assault (well, unless you are a cowardly Red Stater -- then it's called a "war on terror", but still).

Wow, an un-necesary shot at the red states.

charleslanger · Nov 24, 2004

Maher musta also been over-beered... another inane talking head:

Artest had no clue who hit him: he immediately climbed / trampled over several fans-- threatening along the way the wrong one. Without getting into the subsequent fisticuffs, how many of those were hurt just from that-- before he even began to fight? Thankfully no seniors, pregnant women or kids were maimed in the process......

Yes some, maybe even many of the fans were idiotic yahoos who deserved to be stomped & taught a lesson, but come on....
This is one of the things that has made us much more civilized than most other countries: that line hasn't been crossed before.

Thankfully this won't stop the NFL from proceeding forward with its onfield fan seating experiments.....

soli · Nov 24, 2004

just for the record...if you see me at a game and throw a cup of beer on me..i'm whippen your azz. we can talk about the lawsuits later but at that time your azz is mine.... just keeping it real and not saying things that sound good on the forum to make me "elite". and to put it in its proper perspective, most of you would react in the same manner but have the opportunity now to sit back and judge. lol..yeah i know yall wouldn't react that way....you would just sit there and wait for security to come and find out what happen, write a police report and let it go. get real..lol

DickyW · Nov 24, 2004

Soli

Next time you play a game of hoops tell me where toughguy. I'll be there with a fresh 40 ouncer to dump on your head:drink:

gijoe · Nov 24, 2004

i agree if he would of hit the guy who threw the cup but he didnt. here is a guy who got pushed in face by a player and didnt do anything and a paper cup hits him and he hits the wrong guy. i just wish that wrong guy was me because he is going to be into some big money. wrong guy already has lawyer and the CHECKS are in the mail. artest will be wrong guys favorite player when the money starts rolling in here.

PatPatriot · Nov 24, 2004

soli your talkin about a player that makes 10 mill or so a year,who next line of employment would be to mop the floors at a peep show.He didn't deserve to have beer thrown on him.But it ain't up to him..as a matter of fact he just made some people very rich in the process.A guy who makes 10 mil. a year for throwing a rubber ball through an iron hoop should have a lot more respect for the team and league that allowed him to make such a good living for what amounts to nothing, by showing at least some restraint.

Fan on fan is a different story.

volhound · Nov 24, 2004

"civility is the last bastion of the coward"
oscar wilde

soli · Nov 24, 2004

DickyW said:
Soli

Next time you play a game of hoops tell me where toughguy. I'll be there with a fresh 40 ouncer to dump on your head:drink:

LOL...who is your beneficiary...sounds like a suicide attempt. Make that Heineken so i'll have something to drink if i get tired. lol

soli · Nov 24, 2004

All i'm saying is this man made a decision based on natural reaction under extreme circumstances. He attempted to do all the right things by staying out of a fight with Ben Wallace however maybe that beer throwing was the last straw. I wonder how things would have been stated if it was a bottle and it put Artest eye out. I guess everybody would be saying , well..he makes 10 mil a year he can get a new eye. The money has nothing to do with normal human reactions.

WorldRunner · Nov 24, 2004

Not surprised that Maher would say something such as this. Artest (And others) were attacking as many innocent people as anything else. That's inexcusable. They werne't asking "did you throw it... did you throw it...?" until *AFTER* they had thrown a melee of sucker punches on unsuspecting innocent bystanders.

What a crock of ****.

PatPatriot · Nov 24, 2004

All i'm saying is this man made a decision based on natural reaction under extreme circumstances. He attempted to do all the right things by staying out of a fight with Ben Wallace however maybe that beer throwing was the last straw.

Yeah your right sure.But the guy didn't show ANY restraint.Even if he ran up in the stands and started screaming at everybody or sombody, that would be out of line but it would have shown some restraint.He just started banging out people.
Jackson should be locked up too.

Kiss1 · Nov 24, 2004

This thug has a long history of being an A-Hole. When he laid himself out on the scorers table he was looking for trouble.

jjgold · Nov 24, 2004

How can throwing a beer on someone think that is some type of threat to them??

Artest was wrong, now if the guy came up to him and hit him it would of been different

Ron Artest provoked the whole entire brawl period

max1234 · Nov 24, 2004

Until the fans are held accountable for their actions this type of BS will continue. The fan has to know that just because they bought an over priced ticket they don't have the right to act like idiots. Listen to the language the next time you go to a game... kids, women, it doesn't matter who's around. And if you say something they get indignant.. "hey, I paid for this ticket and if I want to act like a f*Cking moron it's my right". BS... our society as a whole has declined over the past 20 years. Why? I feel it's our judicial system. Someone acts like an *******, gets clocked for doing it and then wants to sue. Hey, if you act like an ******* then I feel someone has the right to treat you as such.... my favorite is when a punk throws a punch at a bouncer, gets his ass whipped and then wants to sue everyone involved. For what? For giving him the ass whipping he was asking for? That's BS.