Where do you begin? When did Adam (Pacman) Jones begin to think it was okay to carry around $81,000 in singles? Okay, so let’s just say that makes sense. When did he begin think think that after throwing $81,000 in singles into the air in a strip club at 5 a.m. (the lunch crowd is much more erudite than the breakfast bunch) that he was supposed to get it back? I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do with all this information. A 23-year-old knucklehead member of the Tennessee Titans has become the poster boy for all that occurred on the dark side of the NBA’s All-Star Weekend. Reports of all kinds of debauchery are poring in, and black folk are beginning to complain privately about the behavior of their own. Pacman says he didn’t do anything wrong, thathe had nothing to do with the guy who shot the bouncer and left another guy paralyzed. Maybe so. Considered everything I’ve said thus far prefaced with “alleged.” I get that. But dang. What do I do with all this information? If I’m David Stern, I lay low because he ain’t one of ours If I’m Roger Goodell, I send flowers to David. ( NFL spokesman Greg Aiello says the league is “looking into” the incident) If I’m Jeff Fisher and Titans owner Bud Adams, I hit “Game Over.” If I’m Pacman, well, I donate $81G to a fitting charity, stop whining about getting the trash-bag full of cash back from the police, then sit down and think about what I want to be when I grow up. And I start getting home by midnight. Just so I can continue to have $81,000 to “make it rain.” The Nashville Tennessean: Pacman’s own uncle says he’s “damn out of control.”
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Ballers, Gamers and Scoundrels 
That does not bother me actually. He can piss his money off in whatever manner he sees fit. Whether he chooses to spend his bread on this or a yacht, I could care less. I’m not going to tell another man how to spend his cheddar.
However, I’ve got a problem with him being involved in an incident where three people are wounded.Sounds like he was in the middle of some bad stuff.
This is what happens when the young and the dumb become “the rich.”
Fee, Fi, Fo, Figga…
See, that’s why I didn’t go to Vegas. I’m way too old to have that “damn, this party is fun but who’s going to start shooting” tension in my shoulders. Ah Pacman. Entitlement run amuk? Bad parenting? No morals? Brain damaged child in a man’s body? All of the above? Again, I’m not smart enough to process all of this. But I do know this: Pacman is a bad man that likes to hit women.
Lawrence —you just made me laugh out loud.
I feel you on that sentiment. Damn… I’m grown. can I just go somehwere without fear of my life? My boys wanted to go to Vegas last weekend for that, but I said “nah.” It would have been stupid.
To finish, I think it’s “ohhh, I like this movie… I’m gonna bust a cap in here.”
The condition society’s in is sad, and Pacman’s behavior and mindset is a reflection of that, but I can’t help but laugh at the individual stories.
When Odell Thurman is arrested for drunk driving (while serving a suspension for substance abuse) and a sober Chris Henry is riding in the passenger seat, it’s funny to me. When I heard that Pacman had been making it rain and then expected his money back…I’m still laughing at that. I feel bad for the security guard and the stripper, but Adam Jones is a walking joke.
btw – You know if it’d been a basketball player, all the talking heads would be out already blaming the incident on hip hop’s influence on the NBA. “What’s more ‘gangsta’ than ‘making it rain’ and then shooting people? That’s what all the rap videos tell them to do.”
I made a post about it on my blog: http://sjh42.wordpress.com/2007/02/24/make-it-rain/
we’re heading down shit alley friends SHIT ALLEY society is hurtin man … this crap has got to stop …but i guess big boy attorney will make sure nothing happens … 81,000 in a strip joint ….guns? what happened to our role models in this country? these guys are to be looked up to? i quit !!!!!!!!!!!
The Titans need to cut “Thug-man” loose, and send him packin’ back to the ghetto he crawled out of. Spring training is right around the corner for the penitentiary football team. And that’s definetly where Pacman’s headed.
Who cares about whether he goes to a strp club with 81K
i’m more concerned with the presence of guns in this incident.
Well it is still early but, I think we may have a winner for sports idiot of the year award already.
I was in Las Vegas, and it was exactly how the column was written. I always tell people that a person with millions of dollars can be dangerous if they are not taught the value of respect. Strip clubs have always been a dangerous haven for people,like pimps, players, nba, nfl,and the good old boys clubs that frequent them.
Why everytime there is a event that involves black people there is always something negative about said about it, but Hugh Heftner can have The Girls Next Door flaught their goods, and nonething is said about that, so if you ask me shows like that contribute to certain peoples behavior. The world is becoming so dumbed down it’s a shame!
Why everytime there is a event that involves black people there is always something negative said about it, but Hugh Heftner can have The Girls Next Door flaught their goods, and nonething is said about that. If you ask me shows like that contribute to certain peoples behavior. The world is becoming so dumbed down it’s a shame!
Just my opinion Roy. I’m a news junkie, and I watch how the media portray certain events, or people. I agree with you it is warranted in this case, and we should be more responsible, but want is the root of this behavior?
Ok Roy maybe I became overzealous with my opinion,and I agree with you everything you wrote about is warranted, and Pac Man should be banned from the NFL period to send a message that this type of behavior should not be tolerated, but I’m an avid media watcher, and the way certain groups are portray are so negative, and others are given an excuse on why they acted that way.
I totally agree with you, I was born in the 60’s and we were taught respect, and you are right we have to represent in a positive light when we step out the door.
Look, I don’t care. If you hit a woman, you’re a bad person. If you get your boys to shoot someone else and that person’s spine is severed, then that person is a bad person. I don’t care if he’s black, or if the media goes nuts.
I know the bias in reporting, whether it’s the simple writing of the crime blotter for a local newspaper (which I used to do when I was a cub reporter) and terrifying the local community about minorities committing crime, or darkening a picture for Time. But sometimes, the coverage is deserved, and Pacman is one bad egg.
This situation is tragic and sad for the individuals they were injured/life permanently altered…over what? FOOLISHNESS!
Bottomline, Pacman didn’t have the 81 G’s to “make it rain” or he wouldn’t have needed/wanted it back, therefore causing a riot.
Moreover, he should have stayed his behind at home instead of trying to front in Vegas like he has it like that when it is obvious to “the world” now he doesn’t.
Common sense isn’t always that common….
i really enjoyed your piece on the allstar game. yes there is a problem with the ghetto going main stream (Pacman Jones). i am from florida and the every year we have all types events in my home state. have you ever heard of bike week, white college week, all of these take place in daytona beach. there is all types of trouble that is going on there for this weekend. never is it brought mainstream for the public to give their opinion. i really believe that it was more good things being done in Las Vegas than Jones raining on some stripper. please note that baseball and hockey has jerks in there league as well but we never put their game under the media microscope. it was great when Mcguire bought baseball back to the national spotlight but its a problem for barry bonds to break the untouchable record. lets face the facts that crime is apart of “OUR” society. until this become a nation problem instead of a Ghetto problem we will never reach the goals we have set out and thats to be equal. and don’t forget the closer for the Detroit Tigers that killed his workers in his home land. if the media is talking about violence lets not limit it to just the sports that african american dominant.
Ray, I agree with you wholeheartedly. This situation is tragic, however it is not a black or “ghetto” issue. This is a problem for all of society. This younger generation has been raised by the media which is truly sad to say. And now everyone is wondering why or how are things of this nature occurring. Let’s stop our children from idolizing professional athletes, movies stars, rapstars and singers. As parents we need to teach children that these people are just like everyone else. Lets go back to church. Teach these babies about idolizing God and the teachings of the bible.
But here’s the deal. I’m not interested in a race to the bottom when it comes to comparing fucked up behavior. I honestly don’t care if white NASCAR fans drink themselves to overdose. But I do care about my own African American community. And these cats are pathogens within our community. Period.
The problem in the black community begins and ends with respect for one another. Our people lost that for one another years ago. Now we have three different societies of black america. The african-american whom carries himself as a upstanding citizen moraly and politicaly. And they try to distant themselves as far as possible from to ghetto and those that live there . They also tend to criticize more than any other segment of society. Then we have the niggas a direct opposite of the african-american. They hold on to their ghetto mentality regardless of what successes life brings them. For the most part they are selfish, and only are concerned with their immediate wants or needs and anything outside that means little or nothing. A better term is ghetto fabulous, or wanting your name to ring in the streets. The middle ground is the black man. He has a foot in both worlds. A black man usually keeps a job and handles his responsabilities. His job may not pay him what the african-american does, but he’s going to make it with what he has, while trying to expand on it. He has mentality to deal with and understand the ghetto and the common sense and respect to deal with the world outside the ghetto. The bottom line is we as a people have to figure how to save ourselves from ourselves. Which means all the three parts of our community has to come together. The african-americans can’t sit in their gated communities with their white neighbors and say that doesn’t affect me because I’m not in the hood. Relize this when your neighbors in that gated community see the news. And see those niggas doing what they do. They don’t seperate african-americans from blacks or niggas. They look at it as them niggas are out there messing things up. This is still america and racism is still here, and as long as that is. We will still be looked at as either a good african-america or a bad nigga.
It’s time that blacks stop being our on worst ememny. I bet he will be broke by the time he’s 40. Not planning for the furture and still hanging witht the boys from the hood. Not that you should forget where you came from but it just like recovering addicts you first must change your friends. You a fool and his money will soon part.
You have hit the nail on the head with this one. I agree. The NBA weekend fest has turned into the worst party of them all. It has become a free for all and fund raiser to exploit women, get your freak on and then some.
It is no longer about viewing the most talented player, or the player whow can perform the best dunk. It has turned into a meat market fest where the black haves and have nots can mix and mingle.
What in the world was that boy thinking about when he decided to flip out $81,000. Just cause I can, but oh I want my money back. Where was his accountant and his budget??? That is what happens when you give someone a contract for money that he has never seen in his life. I bet his agent is also smiling at the bank just like those girls.
Would one of you older brothers out there in the NBA “school” the kid on maintaining finance and how to keep money for the rainy day? For the league is not obligated to do so.
AKA
Keeping it in my pocket and the bank!!
Will you negroes ever stop using one another like a cudd. There is enough white folks to go around and they are not any better. If you really care about your people just shut your mouth. There is no good thing that can come out of it. No matter how many of your own you condemn, in the morning you will still be black. I assure you!
Like a cudd? What is a cudd? Cod? Is that what you are trying to say?
Dude, I don’t get you at all….Lawrence.
I think you are trying to be insulting, while trying to give us advice on how to live, but I don’t get your take.
Big Murdoc, I like what you’re saying – Piggybacking off that Chris Rock skit. But how are the 3 supposed to come together? How can the successful African-American keep niggas from, well, being niggerish? I live in the north Bronx and my neighborhood is between Riverdale (upper-class, mostly Jewish area) and Kingsbridge/University Heights (hood). If a polished Riverdale African-American went down there trying to preach, there’s a good chance he’d get jacked. I don’t know if you follow rap music, but I’ve heard that Memphis Bleek used to get mugged all the time when he went back to Marcy Projects in Brooklyn. Often, the nigga knows only immediate needs (wants) and doesn’t care about much else. The African-American probably knows this, therefore his mindset is, “I like my gated community and peaceful neighbors. How can I help the hood when the hood shuns me? Why should I? Fuck the hood.” And the black man in the middle probably sees the nigga as a threat to his and the African-American as out of touch.
And niggas hate that African-American. Just a couple weeks ago, I was listening to a radio interview with 50 Cent and Styles called in saying that 50 “sounds too rich” and was knocking him for living in Connecticut. Granted, I don’t know if 50 qualifies as the “African-American” by your definition, but he’s a successful black man worth over $100M. And niggas knock him all the time for not keeping it gutter. Fat Joe was knocking Jay-Z for not being around the hood anymore.
I think it starts with realization and self-actualization. You’ll see change when black people, as a whole, finally wake up and start understanding what’s important. We’ve been singing “We Shall Overcome” for the longest. Are we there yet? Are we there yet? I don’t think we’ve even put our shoes on yet. It’s a slow process – it’ll take several generations – and it has to start from within. We need more intelligent parents (shit, we need more parents – plural – period), who understand how the world works and who’ll push their kids and teach them that there are alternatives to “slinging rock or having a wicked jump shot.” We need more ambitious kids. I also think we need to stop pointing the finger at outside factors as well. Yes, slavery and racism set us back, but there’s opportunities. It’s like we take the defeated “woe is us” stance right from the jump. Are we gonna be crying over that spilled milk 300 years from now, blaming Massah when Pacman IX robs the liquor store? We’re messed up within our own communities. We also need to stop blaming rap music (Whitlock), but I’ll get into that another time.
A cudd is something cattle brings back up to chew on. again and again. telling someone how the should live. How many ways are there to live. I thought there was only one. Do what white folks do. If you don’t, black folks will have somekind of ugly thing to say about you. Is there any other way to exist. enlighten me.
It’s not cudd. The correct spelling is “cud.”
Lots of ways to live. For example, some people choose to get formally educated and use correct spelling and punctuation, and others, well, not so much.
“Sometimes your gift can take you to a place where your character can’t keep you”. If you don’t believe that, ask Bill Clinton and Pete Rose.
No matter how much good Bill Clinton does in his lifetime, he will always be known as the president who had oral sex in the White House. Period. He’ll never live it down. The first thing you think about when you hear Pete Rose’s name mentioned is his gambling problem. He may never make it to the Hall of Fame. Character flaws transcend race.
I believe in destiny and purpose. I believe that every gift we need to be successful, we’re born with. Character, however, is something that has to be worked out. I believe that this young man had some character flaws that God has wanted to deal with for some time, but he refused to confront them and change them. The problem was the train left the station the day he was born, and he kept putting it off until he was exposed.
Pac Man Jones, like all of us, was made in the image and likeness of God. I don’t believe it gave God any pleasure to see him uncovered and go down like this. But he’s young, he’s alive, and where there is life, there’s hope. Sometimes when all hell breaks loose in your life it’s a sign of blessing. Maybe now, he’ll have to do something about it.
My son coaches Pop Warner football. He coaches the running backs and there are 5 boys that he has coached for almost six years now. His relationship with them doesn’t end when the season is over. He knows when the report cards are out, I have them over for dinner, he is close to their families and extended families. He has invested his life in their lives. I’m proud of my son. He reminds me of my father, which is the highest compliment I can pay any man. My dad cared about the young people in the neighborhood where I grew up.
Maybe Mr. Jones never had a real man invest in his life when he was young. I don’t know. But I do hope that he can take the “stinky” things in his life and use it as fertilizer to grow and change and become a better man… that he will take this incident and use it as an object lesson to reach young kids before they do anything stupid.
The behavior of our young people is the direct result of our indifference and the negative seeds that we as Elders have been planting in our communities over the years. When the Hip-Hop subculture emerged with its non edifying themes like; hatred of women, rebellion against society, the call to murder and the glorification of the “hood”, we as Elders remained silent. Our children played this music in our homes with impunity, and we said and did nothing. We are only reaping what we sowed as a community. The resolution is simple. If we want to change the societal outcome, we must plant positive seeds. Then we will gain the respect of our young people.
No, the chip does not fly too far from the stone. When we speak negatively about our young people, let us spend some time in personal reflection. Let us be men and women and make positive changes in our communites.