American Morning
Karl Malone speaks out about Wizards gun incident
The case of Washington Wizards star Gilbert Arenas is putting the spotlight back on a problem that's been around for years: NBA players and their guns.
Arenas has admitted to bringing four guns to a locker room, part of what he now calls a bad joke. It was first reported Arenas and another teammate, Javaris Crittenton, drew guns on each other.
Former NBA player Karl Malone, who had a legendary career with the Utah Jazz and is a member of the National Rifle Association, joined us on Wednesday's American Morning to discuss the matter.
Related: Wizards player calls gun incident 'a mistake'
SI.com: NBA legend Malone offers thoughts on alleged Wizards gun incident
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Wow. Some of the comments above come from people even more ignorant than Gilbert Arenas. What nationality, race, gender, or whether they came from the "hood" has absolutely nothing to do with the responsibilities of owning a firearm. For the record I think he should be suspended for at least a season without pay and demonstrate awareness of what a stupid thing he did. But to make an example of one player when there are plenty of other lower profile cases of people acting irresponsibly with firearms, to me, is unfair. Notice the repeating theme in my post because that is what this is really about: RESPONSIBILITY OF OWNING FIREARMS. I have hunted all my life and own multiple firearms. Never once have I pointed a gun, loaded or not, at a person. Never once have I handed a person a loaded gun. These (among others) are things that should be hardwired in a persons brain before picking up a firearm. If you're not taught this as a kid, then maybe you should have to demonstrate you have the proper education at a safety course before being allowed to own a firearm. I'm all for gun rights, but with those rights come responsibilities.
This is not about black or white.. it is about wright and wrong. What Arenas did was so wrong it was reckless. He should not be part of the NBA or any corporation. This should be the end of his career, end of story.
It's amazing how people like to charcterize everyone as a single group. I just resently saw a judge with a gun on her in the court room on CNN. I know several lawyers who carry guns with them as they walk down the street.I'm not saying it was right for Arenas to bring the gun in the locker room as a joke, but us to say he is from the Hood, had no father figure, and that's his a thug is going a little to far. I remember awhile ago of the story about the NFL player being shoot and kill and robbed in is gated communinty. Remember these guys make large sums of $$ and are targets for thives.
Most of the players now days with all the tattoos and in your face attitute look and act like hoods. I miss Russell, Kareem,Walton, Bird and an army of players of the past. I don't watch these clowns any more.
Karl Malone was brilliant in his interview, I am so impressed. There are good, smart, articulate and law abiding people in all races. If you consider one race to be only one way and one race to be only another way, then you are ignorant and stupid and I pity you!
It seems like there is a double-standard when it comes to black folks and guns in this country. A black athlete carries a gun, he's a thug. A white athlete carries a gun, he's exercising his 2nd Amendment rights.
I'm not condoning what Gilbert Arenas did; he had no business bringing his guns into an NBA facility and he definitely had no business pulling a gun on anyone except in self-defense. He should be suspended the rest of this season and part of the next one, and made to do PSAs on gun safety to be broadcast nationwide.
But let's face facts – celebrities are targets, and as citizens they should be able to carry firearms legally without having their rights questioned or dissected. If they're not carrying firearms, then they can hire security personnel to protect them. At least they have the money to afford that, and they should take advantage if they feel they should.
Hey Timmy,
The internet isn't America.
Just so everyone can have the facts
Arenas was raised by his single father after his drug addict mother abandoned him. He went to Grant High School in Los Angeles. He went to the University of Arizona on a basketball scholarship.
He is close friends with P Diddy (Sean Combs) and The Game (Jayceon Taylor) both of whom have been involved in several gun related incidents including shootings and killings.
When you lay with dogs you get fleas.
Good for Karl Malone. Although I hate guns in general, it is refreshing to here the objective and insightful comments from Mr. Malone regarding the infantile and dangerous behavior of a spoiled brat.
Does he have a permit to carry a concealed weapon? If so it should have stayed concealed unless his employer does not permit it on the property.. Guns are not toys.I have a permit to carry a concealed weapon but by employer still does not permit me to bring it into my office. We have the right to bear arms but we must still obay the laws.
I agree that Arenas was just plain stupid, but the jungle comments are just completely racist. For the US to be considered the greatest country in the world, it concerns me that the US is the most racist country. I know you guys see these incidents and say to yourselves, "There goes another one", and talk about how stupid blk people are. Some of you guys are just sick. The sad thing is that you are not man enough to express these comments without hiding behind forums like this. You guys are cowards.
As disappointed as I am with Arenas, I'm even more disappointed in the Wizards management. Why did they wait for the NBA to hand out the suspension? What kind of message are they sending to the other players & (like it or not) the young people who idolize these players? They should have stepped up and suspended him immediately pending further investigation.
Next question – Were these guns registered? Did he have a permit to carry? If the collective bargaining agreement specifically addresses weapons, does it also state the penalties for breaking these rules?
I'm happy to hear a figure like Malone step up and address the "race card". He's absolutely right, race has nothing to do with it. Trash comes in all colors, good people come in all colors. We need to move past the "us vs them" mentality and address problems regardless of color. That's what racial equality is all about.
All else aside and unless you are a cop or a PI; what would happen to you if you did the same thing he did? You would be in jail looking to get out on bail. We would all be in jail because we are not a STAR and have money. I believe he should be baned and go to jail for the crime, that if any of us little people did, would go.
Hood seems like a cover-up for most individuals on here...come out and say it black people. Let's be real, but Gil has no previous criminal incidents and has contributed a lot of his time to giving and helping others. But he is 27 years old and none of us are perfect...the guns weren't loaded and he was getting rid of them to get them away from his children, that LIVES WITH HIM AND TAKES CARE OF, and Karl "deadbeat dad" Malone did not take care of 2 of his kids when they were growing up..so please I don't wanna hear him talk about this..lets talk about him no taking care of his kids and responsiblities..he has no comment on that one...but my question is who leaked this to the press..thought things werent supposed to leave the locker room...snitching on your teammate is bad man..that's low
You know the thing that just astounds me is the suckers that go
out and pay to watch the NBA in the first place.
As far as safety at NBA games, and many other sporting events for that matter, let us not forget this great moment: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/12/16/national/main2274507.shtml
This is a behavioral issue not a ghetto or racial issue. Punishment should be based on what he did, not where he came from. This was not an act of a silly man. He is intelligent and usually well mannered human being. Regardless, this must be punished strongly without prejudice.
Who the hell listens to Karl Malone. He is a sellout.
I wish they would have just gone ahead and shot each other in sort of a Quentin Tarantino movie style. Then they could pull the surveilance video and use it to teach kids about the dangers of guns and basketball.
Hopefully he will pull the trigger the next time!
Why brandish a pistol if you do not intend to fire?
A shootout in the locker room would be good for basketball!
It's sad to see that David Stern would stoop so low. David exposed himself as a racist by violating procedure. Let there be light. Oh yeah, there's enough money in the black community to start our own league. The NBA would look sad without us.
Will we ever get passed the racial overtures. Could now am I to believe that just because an idividual is of African-American descent and has a God-given talent to suceed in life. That he has to have been raised in the "Hood", without Father prescence, and his Mother was on Government aid, and he associated with his peers. That he is labeled a "Thug" just because he has access to a weapon? Granted it was an irresponsible act that he committed but haven't we all did something foolish before?
Did not they know that they must bow down to the god of political correctness. A person with a gun....oh my.
I say throw him out of b-ball. The better they are, the more disrespectful they get. It's time to make an example for bad behavior. One gun, four guns; it doesn't matter. Watching the privlidged fall on their faces is the food people crave!
This player should lose his job and never be allowed to play any sports again due to his dangerous behaviour. He obviously has no regard for the safety of others or takes it as a light matter.
To try and turn this into a "racial" typecasting is stupid! Wonder how many "pro sports players" have guns, carry, etc., but do not talk or show?
What continues to amaze me is that those that have a "gift" to play sports, are paid big money, can afford those things that the vast majority of us can only dream about, coninually "loose" their sense of who they are and the consequences of their actions. Some of you have, I guess, forgotten the fact that more & more states are allowing anyone to carry guns just about anywhere!
Hey Kalfa, you have a hard time excepting the truth! Thats too bad and it expresses your ingnorance to the subject! I kknow for a fact that the majority of people raised in the so called hood are not raised with parents who care! They are primarly raised by parents trying to scam the system instead of working an honest job! Their theory is why work if you can get it for nothing! Thats a fact! You do have your few exceptions! When we watch the news and see high schools being locked down because of students rioting and street fighting in the halls these are schools who house kids from the hood period! Check your facts before you spew crap from your mouth! One last thing if you dont like the truth and you do nothing to change it then you are part of the problem as well, not the guy who acknowledges the actual truth! Dont hate the game hate the players!
Agent Zero did not shoot anyone. How many hunters killed someone this season? How many cops shot an unarmed suspect? How many kids found their parents gun and shot themselves? These are the stories that we don't hear about. A somewhat prominate figure owns a gun and brings it somewhere public becomes a huge outcry. There is no doubt that him being african american plays a huge factor in this. Also the association with NBA basketball players being "thugs" helps smear the whole story. ITS HYPOCRITICAL people... Why wouldnt this story get national attention!?!??! A black professional brings a gun to work. Its perfect right?!?! Isnt everyone in the MLB on drugs??? Professional athletes arent role models. the media however, frames them to be that way. At the end of the day they are human beings that make mistakes which makes it immpossible for them to live up to the expectations of a national audience. Lets move on
I think the issue is being blown way out of proportion, and it shouldn't result in something like an indefinite suspension.
Hey Sweet Scientist, you are so full of crap, what I said is so much the truth it hurts people like you to admit it! I grew up in poor neighborhoods that had parents who actually raised their kids the right way despite being poor! Beinng poor is no excuse and as long as you need an excuse racism will always exsist! Put the crack down and raise your kids with dignity and respect!
protection is the reason for Arenas carrying a gun right? maybe he has enemies or he gets threats we never know. I think he is a good person and a basketball star. If he brings a gun with him, there must be reason.
Role models, huh? I personally think the only way these celebrities should be role models is in their work ethic, playing ability, and sometimes business prowess. Concerning the guns, let them have them, as long as they are responsible with them. Pulling them out in the locker room as a joke does not count as responsible. As a side note: I think it'd be a lot cooler for people to carry around swords. Like in a video game. Some guys would have katanas. Some would have huge swords most people couldn't carry. I think THAT would be cool. =)
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It's a sign of the times with too many young men growing up without a father and a mother to teach them right from wrong. I bet Father's Day was the most confusing day of the year where this thug grew up.
Malone is the man–indeed, stop playing the race card!!
Malone is right, this guy should be fired. ZERO tolerance.
Don't really understand where all the other biases are coming from. What I heard Karl Malone say is that the NBA players ARE role models, whether they choose to be or not. And, I heard him passionately make his point that, as role models, the NBA players can and should do better. Who can argue with that?
Another Michael Vick scenario is playing out. Arena's going down because he's being stupid. When will these guys learn that just because you're making millions of dollars and people come to watch you play, YOU'RE NOT ABOVE THE LAW!!! Some of these guys are making the big dollar that could change their lives and yet they can't get past the ghetto thug mentality, which is really sad. Well, sometimes you'll learn life's lesson the hard way. Welcome to our world.
Timmy said a bunch of stupid stuff. I wonder what he said when a couple of hockey players beat a poor defenseless cabbie within an inch of his and life for what??? Because he did not have the correct change. I wonder if he used words to decribe them like 'blue eyed devils' with criminal and psychological genetic deviant behavior. You know like most mass murderers and pedophiles...
Now of course that last description is no more relevant to an entire race of people or segment of society than Timmy's stupid rant.
Hundreds of players in the NBA and a handful get in trouble yet 'Timmy' is such a bigoted piece of work all he can do is rant and spew nonsense about the jungle.
What the heck does that mean anyway? I would think if you're going to be bigoted and racist the best you can do is come up with some new material. You must be stupider than you sound if you think you've said something cute and witty.
Oh, by the way. I'm not being overly critical...just making an observation...you know my personal opinion.
the sad fact that everyone here is having a hard time with....
the truth hurts.
its time that the world acknowledges it....only then can it be fixed.
its like alcoholism....wont get better until the problem and the source are acknowledged.
Karl Malone? Inre to Al Sharpton?! "Let's stop playing the race card!" Go GET 'EM, my man! You are right, you are dead on and what you say makes sense! Great to hear a major figure (sports or otherwise!) stand up to the apologists and face reality! Good MAN!!
I understand Timmy and Fred's institutional BIAS. This is what we're taught by TV and all the media people in TV Land. Well these types of racial stereotypes are what's expected when you have a lot of Black Males that are very sucessful financially. They must all come from the HOOD. This is the typical stupidity that breeds prejudice and racism. I think there is a lot more institutional racism being fashioned in the media now than in the 1970's even. And as result these are the type of opinions and ideologies that come about. I remember when a white athelete named Fred Dryer got pulled over with a number of unregistered hand guns and 5lbs of Hippie Lettuce. Nobody ever questioned his upbringing. Nice anologies Fred & Tim. It would be a shame if either one of you are from the HoOD.
@mel – Karl Malone is definitely a role model for all children. How many bastard children does he have??? Just for the record, I'm not a racist, I OWN both a COLORED TV and a BLACK & WHITE TV
Since when is bringing a gun to work wrong? Having a gun is not the problem. It is not against the law to have a gun, it is against the law to commit a crime with a gun. The gun itself is not the crime. When will people stop believing that the "gun" is the crime. The "gun" is not the crime. Illegal activity is still illegal. Criminals have already proven that they are willing to break the law. If it is against the law to have a gun, then only the people who are already criminals will have guns.
Think people. Think
"Who brings a gun to work? "
I do. Every day.
In fact that's the only place where I feel like I need it. I carry it everywhere else because it's my right to do so.
Gilbert Arenas isn't a thug. He attended the University of Arizona and he didn't come from the 'hood.' What he did was stupid and when he was at the U of A he was a very classy young man. I think he made a very stupid mistake and needs to do some growing up. I hope he learns from this.
I am curious. Just how unsafe are the Basketball stadiums any way? Do these places have security personnel? Should I stay away? If the players are in need of a gun, do the people sitting in the stands need to have one as well? I am seriously asking these questions. I would love for Mr. Arenas, especially, to respond. I just do not understand and will not attend a professional sporting event until the players at the event no longer need to bring guns for protection.
What kind of prejudiced, racist people are you?! For certain, Arenas and Crittenton were wrong, out of order and silly to bring/pull guns, joke or no joke. But to assume that these men 1) came from "the hood" 2) that IF they did, they were not raised properly/or at all is offensive to all people who come out of poor neighborhoods of ANY color. (In case you were unaware, Black people aren't the only people there) People with "thug" behaviors or mentalities come from the suburbs (and trailer parks) as well. Furthermore the "jungle" comment definitely has racist tones.
However, to say the idiotic, ill thought behavior of Arenas is Not reflective of 1)Black Men 2) poor neighborhoods or the people in them 3) the NBA.
when do we become responsible.. these players should be kicked out of the league perioud.... who brings a gun to work??... these players are acting like children who have no home training or upbringing it makes me sad that they are black.. and so childish . this is not the way to behave in public kids are watching you imbeciles...
Come Come now timmy and fred lets not do profiling now these are poor people who have had bad up bringing.they grow up in the wrong hood,2 or 3 different daddy,mommie was a ho,and they could only steal on mondays.Guns where a perfect up bringing if day did nt make as a thief basketball was next in line.
when some players comes from the HOOD....
the HOOD stays with some of the players.....
when they have found out the difference between beer and cognac...
surroundings plus guns equal stupidty...
The old saying goes you can take the thug out of the jungle but you cant take the jungle out of the thug! This sums up all of these sports players who cant act like civil human beings, by the way that is all about upbringing period! These thugs come out of the hood being taught to act like that! It all starts at home and parents with the fortitude to actually do their job as a parent! Lots of straight up poor people all over the world, this is absolutely no reason to act like this! It doesnt take hand fulls of money for one to act right!
Why post a comment that you dont agree with or will post in the first place, talk about censorship, CNN at its best! Not everyone agrees with you and your opinions so stop acting like they do! Post all comments as long as there is no profanity, that would be the American way and not the CNN way!