Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson Reinstated by MLB

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Originally Posted by jayshum

I don't think you can blame Rose for the current level of sports gambling and how it's become intertwined with professional sports. Once the states (other than Nevada) were able to legally offer it, the amount of money to be made by the states and the leagues led to where we are today. Remember, all the leagues were against legalizing sports betting, but once it happened, they saw there was money to be made and decided to accept it.

I don't blame Rose for the current level of gambling in sports, but I do wonder whether a player of his stature would have made a difference if he educated people about the dangers of problem gambling. It might have become politically toxic to bring gambling out from the shadows of the sport if Pete Rose used his popularity to turn voters against gambling as a general matter.

I mean, I remember distinctly that people used to equate HIV with being gay, but after Magic came out and talked about it, if you walked around school making fun of AIDS and gay people, it all of a sudden wasn't cool or funny any more.