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Originally Posted by ThomasL
Honestly I dont think that should matter, nor should a persons voting record or who the stump for politically. Pragmatism of voters should look past that kind of thing and doesnt fall into the purview of the moral clause as who is to dictate who someone can vote for? Say you replace the "issues" with Schilling over to Mike Trout, if we all agree Trout is a lock HOFer would he then not be one simply based on who he voted for or supported as president? Or some jack-assy things he says after his career is over? I argue it shouldnt and this is an ugly precedent being set by voters and a misuse of the morality clause (in Schilling's case). But that's just my take right now.
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I hear you and don't want to go down the political rabbit hole here, but I think the case against Schilling isn't necessarily his politics.
I posted something to this effect on CooperstownCred earlier today:
I agree about the larger world of politics (blue/red, Dem/Rep) being kept out of the discussion when it comes to the HOF. Although I see the situation differently regarding Schilling, because his comments have denigrated groups of people (Islam, for instance). That’s not politics.
Along these lines, I think that some players have earned something with voters for having endured racial prejudices in society during their career. Hank and Jackie are two obvious ones. Furthermore, I think that in the future, a number of candidates who will be considered during Eras Committees will be discussed with the context of racism and social justice. As examples, Dick Allen, Minnie Minoso and Buck O’Neil are three potential candidates that could be discussed as early as later in 2021. These players all experienced racism, and I expect that experience will be considered when they are up for Era Committee election.
So in the same line of thought, shouldn’t electors also consider when a HOF candidate contributed (and continues to contribute) and promoted racist rhetoric? If some players are honored for their perseverance in the face of societal racism, shouldn’t those players who helped create that same societal racism have repercussions?