Rick Tocchet's victimless crime...

There's no use defending Rich Tocchet, who will unfortunately have to pay the price for taking judgement lessons from Michael Irvin. Should have known better, Rick.

Without going into one of the gambling hypocrisy tirades that made Mort famous, all I'll say is that I continue to be amazed how the MSM can sit to left of Russ Feingold on so many issues, yet act as if inspired by Ralph Reed on the subject of sports gambling.

In the grand scheme of things, Tocchet's story is not newsworthy, especially in comparison to the baloney that happens on a daily basis in corporate America and Wall Street. That Tocchet faces any punishment or scrutiny whatsoever, while any fat cat (or not so fat cat) who has anything to do with the raping and pillaging of any pension system, or any CEOs who get eight-figure golden handshakes while their companies lay off hundreds, or thousands, of workers, go on their merry way, really rankles. Those are only a couple of examples. I could talk all day and night about things far more worthy of scorn than Tocchet's gambling circle of friends.

Tocchet's "gambling ring" is a non-story. That many will wrongly brand him as a criminal of sorts from now on is going to be the sad epilogue. I guess the MSM, and most of the general public, for that matter, don't connect how many local and state governments are involved in all sorts of gambling activities. Pari-mutuel wagering at race tracks? State lottery games, many of which are simply keno with window dressing? That's all okay. And if playing the options market on Wall Street isn't gambling, I've got some oceanfront property in Phoenix that I'd like to sell.

The Tocchet story is victimless. Of course, there are dangers in gambling, and I am not naive enough to ignore the dangers of abuse. But too much of anything, even drinking water, can be bad for you. I'd say alcohol abuse is about a thousand times the problem as gambling abuse. And back to the Tocchet non-story, who are the victims?

The fact is that gambling is one area where we could, and should, take a look at how England handles things. Because I work at TGS, I'm about as welcome at an NFL game as Osama BL. I go to England for a soccer game, and by comparison I get the red carpet rolled out for me at Chelsea, Leeds, Tottenham Hotspur, and whatever other stadium I might visit for a game. Heck, when I was back there a few years ago, I went out to Leeds' training ground (Thorp Arch, Leeds United's answer to the Eagles' Nova Care facility) the day before an FA Cup 4th round game vs. Liverpool, met manager David O'Leary (who's now at Aston Villa), given a quick tour of the facility, and sat front and center in an informal press conference, asking any question I wanted. Then, almost the same nice treatment the next day at the big match! They treated me almost as if I was a darned celebrity, happy to host someone who had come so far. I could only dream of being treated the same way over here, especially at an NFL game.

People don't bet any more in England than they do over here, it's just an accepted and even honored business. It is something to see betting shops on seemingly every-other corner, not to mention betting booths on site at soccer games, cricket matches, etc. Why it gets subject to religious right-type scrutiny over here, by many of the same people flocking to buy lottery tickets, heading to casinos, and betting on the horses and dogs at numerous race tracks, should really grate any sensible person.

Bad to bet on the Cleveland Browns! Okay to bet on Giacomo in last year's Preakness, or buy a ton of lotto (keno) tickets, or spend an afternoon or evening playing the slots at an indian casino. Where's the difference?

And speaking of that oceanfront property in Phoenix, I've got another lot for anyone who doesn't believe a lot of those NFL owner fat cats, throughout history, haven't had their hand in the "illegal" side of gambling on their games. Their position is a charade. And they know the wild appeal of their league is based a good part from people betting on their games. If there is a more hypocritical stance than the NFL's anti-gambling crusade, I'm still waiting to see it.

P.S...by the way, mentioning Janet Jones' name in any story, gambling ring or whatever, and not running her photo is like sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner, and the turkey doesn't show up...

P.P.S...Paulie, for what it's worth, we also liked St. Joe's plus the 8 points last night, and like you felt pretty good at the half. Credit Nova's amazing resourcefulness, which was also on display in an even-more dramatic comeback last Saturday vs. Marquette, a game I had put in the Nova loss column late in the second half. This is a pretty special Villanova bunch, and just imagine if the Wildcats had a healthy Curtis Sumpter this season...