Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: Will Smith Did a Bad, Bad Thing

[jcgoldie]

13. violence is never the answer

This reminds me of an incident a month or so ago that received quite a bit less attention when Jawon Howard, Michigan basketball head coach, similarly lost his temper and slapped a Wisconsin coach in the postgame handshake line. The debate about who was right or wrong or whether the actions of either party were appropriate is over as soon as you decide to take a swing and escalate a verbal argument into a physical confrontation. If Will Smith felt so emotionally overwhelmed that he had to leave his seat and respond immediately to Rock's joke and say his piece that would be one thing and still debatable. But the reaction with violence was just completely uncalled for and there is no place for it at the Oscars or anywhere else.