Today, we get the autopsy results that showed Fernandez was legally drunk (twice the legal limit!), and had cocaine in his system, as well. So instead of being a mere tragedy, we see that this was a totally preventable incident. However, instead of people addressing the cause of the accident, they are making excuses for Fernandez, summing up his actions as 'youthful indiscretion' and other such ridiculous excuses.
In an article this morning on MSN Sports entitled, "Autopsy Can't Alter Grief in Jose Fernandez Death," the writer of the article, Bob Nightengale from USA Today Sports, asserts with an attitude that can only be described as sensational excuse-making writes,
"Still, no matter what comes out of all of the investigations, one thing will never change: It won’t bring back Fernandez, 24, or his two friends.
It also should not change our feelings, the excruciating heartbreak, the outpouring of grief we all felt when the moment we found out he was killed.
Sure, Fernandez and his buddies never should have been on that boat that night, stopping first at a bar, and then getting back into his boat at 2:30 in the morning, speeding along Miami Beach, until hitting that jetty at full speed, instantly killing all three.
Still, haven’t we all done something stupid in life? Haven’t we all been careless?
It was no different two years ago when St. Louis Cardinals prized prospect Oscar Taveras was killed in a car accident in the Dominican Republic during the World Series. We grieved, and several weeks later, the autopsy report revealed that he was drunk when he crashed, killing himself and his girlfriend.
“People make mistakes,’’ St. Louis Cardinals GM John Mozeliak said. “But when you’re dead, you’re dead.
“The worst part about Oscar’s death, is that another person died.’’
...That Fernandez had cocaine and enough alcohol to significantly impair his decision-making shouldn’t take away our pain.
...Sure, we can be mad. We can scream to the heavens, asking why no one bothered to stop these three young men from getting into that boat? We can direct anger towards Fernandez for being so careless, particularly as a soon-to-be father with a girlfriend five months pregnant.
But, please, don’t let the results of an autopsy alter your grieving process.
When Cardinals pitcher Josh Hancock was killed in a one-person car accident on Interstate 64 in St. Louis in 2007, the Cardinals were devastated. When it turned out that his blood-alcohol level was 0.157, nearly twice the legal limit, with 8.55 grams of marijuana found in his SUV, nothing changed.
“Everybody makes mistakes,’’ said Hall of Fame manager Tony La Russa, who was arrested for drunk driving a month before Hancock’s death. “Most times, you don’t pay that kind of price.’’
Cardinals scouting director Randy Flores, one of Hancock’s closest friends, who spoke at his funeral, called it one of the most difficult, challenging times of his life. When the autopsy report came out, it didn’t change a thing.
The tears didn’t dry up. The heart didn’t hurt less. The pain remained the same.
“All you knew was that your friend, who we all loved,’’ Flores says, “was gone.
“That’s all that mattered.’’
It’s no different now.
All that matters is that Fernandez, Macias and Rivero are gone.
And no amount of autopsy reports, lawsuits, or blame, can ever bring them back.
That’s the tragedy."
The tragedy here, unlike the assertion that Nightengale makes, is that the death of Fernandez and friends was 100% preventable. Making excuses for bad choices only exacerbates the problem of drugs and alcohol.
I made the following comment on the story:
"Excuses, excuses, excuses.
With this revelation we now know that Fernandez made an obvious series of choices that led to his death, along with two others.
I hope this is a wake up call to people who believe themselves above the consequences of poor decision-making. It may not catch up to them now; but it WILL catch up to them, leaving families to grieve, and/or be impacted financially for decades with hefty medical bills in order to care for a son or daughter, husband or wife left paralyzed and unable to breath on their own, move or speak.
Excuses for Fernandez's behavior will only encourage similar choices in others.
This needs to be talked about frankly, openly, truthfully and in no uncertain terms...directly and bluntly. Maybe, if talks about this happen in that fashion, a few teens/young adults/everyone else will make better choices when it comes to using drugs, alcohol and anything else they use to "have fun."
Let's hope so."
With this revelation we now know that Fernandez made an obvious series of choices that led to his death, along with two others.
I hope this is a wake up call to people who believe themselves above the consequences of poor decision-making. It may not catch up to them now; but it WILL catch up to them, leaving families to grieve, and/or be impacted financially for decades with hefty medical bills in order to care for a son or daughter, husband or wife left paralyzed and unable to breath on their own, move or speak.
Excuses for Fernandez's behavior will only encourage similar choices in others.
This needs to be talked about frankly, openly, truthfully and in no uncertain terms...directly and bluntly. Maybe, if talks about this happen in that fashion, a few teens/young adults/everyone else will make better choices when it comes to using drugs, alcohol and anything else they use to "have fun."
Let's hope so."
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