I wanted to talk today about the Pens heading down to Carolina to try and continue their hot start for the month of March, something that seems to be a bit of a tradition in the Burgh as of late.  But no, instead I feel compelled to address another issue; the issue of Steeler’s Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and the reaction of some people here in Pittsburgh to another accusation of sexual misconduct.

A year ago a fruit loop in Tahoe accused Big Ben of rape.  That case holds about as much water as a sieve.  The woman openly bragged about having Ben’s baby and was, by all legitimate accounts not all that stable mentally.  Now we have another case between Ben and a woman where all sorts of accusations are flying.  And along with those accusations come the inevitable calls from the Ben haters for the head of the Steelers star QB and for him to be run out of town on a rail.

I honestly don’t get it.  The man is accused of a serious crime.  He is not convicted of one.  Sure the accusations are serious but if Big Ben is not guilty of them should he be punished and the target of scorn?  Scorn, I might add, that I think comes from people who never really liked Big Ben and have for years been putting him down since (and even before) that terrible Super Bowl he had against the Seahawks where the team won in spite of him.

I hear the rumors about Ben every day.  Someone’s sister’s best friend didn’t get an autograph when they approached Ben while he was trying to enjoy a dinner in a local restaurant and he is the worst thing since Hitler.  Then there are the ones where people claim he runs out on the check and worse.  These third party sources and callers to sports talk shows around town always seem to have the story but never much to back it up.  The restaurantand the actual people involved are never mentioned and we are given sweeping generalizations.  And to those who bitch about Big Ben not giving you an autograph when you disturb him when he is trying to enjoy a meal?  I personally think you should thank your luck stars that he didn’t put you through the wall for being just that rude.  Yes he is a star quarterback.  But he is not your personal slave who must just at your command.

Yeah, I really do think these same people who are jerks like that or just the type that don’t like Ben and make up all sorts of stories about him are the same ones in overdrive now.  What is worse, I hear that the Steelers organization is a little miffed at Ben too.  But if he isn’t convicted of a crime or doesn’t admit to something why?  Do the brass really hate him all that much?  Is Coach Tomlin that much of a Dixon guy that he would help fuel such animosity?

Hey, if all it takes is an accusation to get someone run out of town here in the Burgh then maybe I should start some really unsavory rumors about the Bob Nutting!  If all it takes is a rumor, true or not, that say Mr. Nutting likes to eat puppies after boiling them alive then maybe we could get someone who gives a damn about baseball into an ownership stake in the Pirates and shed our losing ways at PNC Park.  But no, Pittsburghers seem more than willing to endure a pathetic franchise taking up residence on the North Shore and even an admitted wife beater in one James Harrison than wait until all the facts are in on Ben Roethlisberger.

I mean for Christ’s sakes!  The man won us one Super Bowl and in the case of the game against Seattle played well enough not to lose another.  He lit the league on fire this year and kept Pittsburgh alive in games when the defense, the defense so many can never say a bad thing about, couldn’t have stopped the offense of a junior varisty squad from any local high school.  And what does he get for that?  He gets a bunch of haters who can’t wait to get him out of town and will use anything to justify their burner hate for him.

Ben gets charged and convicted I say you’re right all you naysayers.  He should be gone.  But until that time I want him treated the same way I would want to be treated – innocent until proven guilty.

Stop hating just to hate.  Hey, it’s not Big Ben’s fault he can get a girl ten times hotter than you just by flashing his smile and it is certainly not his fault that you couldn’t even hold his jock strap.