[magnet 2.0]

Originally Posted by Questdog

Lats I looked, $5,000 is money and he took it. And the gamblers stiffed everyone, not because Joe did so well, but because they could. They were big time bad guys, not the local bookies Pete was in with.

He "took" it insofar as he didn't return it when it was left in his room. Not the same as having it handed to you. Regardless, a Bad Thing but you paint it a little darker than reality I feel.

You should read my entire post. I said that he probably did not do anything to actually throw the Series.

This would be the most important thing. If he didn't actually throw the series...why is he punished for throwing the series?

This is absurd if you think being involved in an actual scheme to throw the World Series is less of a sin than putting yourself in a position where the appearance of impropriety can be raised against you.

Betting on a game you're involved in is not "the appearance of impropriety", it is impropriety. What was the old saying from Reds' fans in 1986? "If Pete put himself in the game today, he's got money on tomorrow"?

I have never said that what Pete did was not serious and I really don't care if he is ever enshrined officially in the Hall of Fame or not. But 25 years seems like a strong enough sentence for what he did. The average time a convicted murderer spends in prison is about 7 years....

Did you really just compare a lack of Hall of Fame enshrinement to going to prison? What? Also, he knew the punishment when he visited his bookie; he saw it in plain English every time he entered his clubhouse.

I also do not care if Joe Jackson is enshrined or not. The Hall is full of guys that do not belong there and there are many guys that deserve to be there that are not. Hall of Fame enshrinement means nothing to me in deciding who I like and don't like in the history of baseball.

This quote (minus caring about Jackson) I'm in 100% agreement with.

And there is not one of those conspirators in the Black Sox scandal that I like. I can empathize with the temptations they were subject to, but not a one of them ever took responsibility for their own actions.

Didn't Joe readily admit to the $5,000 and being generally aware of what was going on and not telling anyone? That testimony is what prevented him from reinstatement later.