Ted Uchida comments

Thank you Tim Dahlberg. Best assessment of the situation I've read so far because your focusing on actual behavior.  In another article, I stated "Under mental stress? Go get some professional help. You don't have to tell anyone about it, and it's none of anyone's business." Naomi Osaka seems like nice person, an exciting tennis player. Of course we should all be rooting for her if she indeed has problems. However, she knew the conditions of her job and her deals with her sponsors. She should expect to be treated equally. I completely agree that her handlers really failed her, especially probably her boyfriend.

Press conferences are part of the job. Professional tennis is entertainment that needs to be promoted. Naomi Osaka does not know how difficult it was for Billie Jean King and her fellow pioneers to grow the game into what it is today. Spoiled is the only word I can think of concerning her actions. She'd be a natural in today's woke college campuses. The whole society has to be responsible for someone to grow up? Her mental stress as one of the richest athletes (apparently made $50M last 12 months) is so great that she needs to be treated specially? Under mental stress? Go get some professional help. You don't have to tell anyone about it, and it's none of anyone's business. Real stress is being a laborer hoping the stupid governor of your state doesn't arbitrarily shut your industry down. Don't like the questions asked at interviews? Get a coach to help you deflect them like a good politician. Or are you so cheap that you won't hire one? I used to be a big fan. Now I realize she's just an arrogant, entitled, whiny superstar just like LeBron, Serena, etc. I will not support, to the best of my ability, any of her foolish sponsors. Nike is the easiest one to ignore. If you don't like your job, quit. If you don't want to conform to the requirements of your job, fine. Fire her ass.

Japanese are overreacting. California reporting roughly 2000 cases a day. Japan is reporting about 5000. If CA were the size of Japan, CA would have 6000 cases a day. The foolish governor who has needlessly destroyed countless businesses is nonetheless reaffirming a 6/15 end to restrictions in CA. Japan is reporting a surge from very low levels to low levels. Everyone wears masks. Overseas fans are not coming to Japan. Japanese baseball has fans in the stands. A few thousands athletes and staff who will most likely be vaccinated and will be restricting their movements is not going to endanger the general population. Asking an overly frightened and misinformed general population their opinion on the Olympics is ridiculous. Let the athletes compete.

Time to defund Naomi Osaka. Congrats to her, but fans have a choice too. I've been a huge fan, but I will be less so from now on. Anyone who goes out with a boyfriend (rapper Cordae) who wears "Defund the Police" t-shirts is an ignorant fool who will ultimately do more damage to the health of Blacks. Her Tamir Rice mask also shows how equally uninformed she is. Rice was only 12 when he was shot, but he was a Black male weighing 195 lbs (see "official" autopsy report) pointing a fake gun at people when police shot him. Of course, no one was prosecuted for murder because when the orange tip is removed it is difficult to determine if a gun is real. https://legalinsurrection.com/2015/12/no-indictment-of-police-in-tamir-rice-shooting/ The rest of her masks (Elijah McClain, Ahmaud Arbery, Trayvon Martin, George Floyd, Philando Castile) also show that she is uninformed. McClain's case is still under investigation; Arbery was not shot by police and the case has not gone to trial yet; Martin was also not shot by police and the accused was found not guilty (Martin was pounding on the gunman); Castile was shot by police but officer was acquitted (Castile said he had a gun but refused to comply with repeated instructions not to reach for anything). The George Floyd case is also still under investigation although we've all seen the video. I feel badly for Mr. Floyd and Mr. Walter Scott, but I'm sick and tired of all these anti-police protests. Sometimes tragedies happen. Sometimes there are bad cops. I wish Miss Osaka all the happiness in the world. I respect what she has done. She has carried herself with class that Serena Williams lacks. She is free to associate with anyone she likes and is free to express herself, but I am also free to express my displeasure with this anti-police atmosphere that she is promoting. It may result in being less of a fan (I was pretty indifferent as to who won in the final) and being angry with any companies who want to be associate with individuals who are anti-police. I don't have to buy Nike (already didn't), Yonex and Cup Noodles.

There is no doubt that there is racism. At the same time, just because a Black man with a warrant out for his arrest for 3 charges including sexual assault is shot after forcefully resisting arrest, including being tased twice and attacking an officer, and told to drop the knife that he had, does NOT mean that this was an act of racism. The police were requested to be there, presumably by his Black girlfriend, because there was a disturbance. Racism is when Senator Scott, a Black man, is stopped for no reason. These knee jerk reactions to every Black man resisting arrest and getting shot is ridiculous. Then the protests go up of "no justice, on peace." How uneducated. There is a criminal justice system. If there is a crime committed, it will be investigated and prosecuted. The mobs out in the streets essentially aren't willing to let the system do its job. Some of them are out trying to kill police. They are not that far removed from the days when Blacks were lynched by mobs. Osaka is just another uneducated, uninformed member of the mobs. She may not be out there protesting in the streets, but she's essentially saying that she does not believe in democracy and the U.S. constitution. Listen to the thoughtful ones out there like Mr. Floyd's brother, the Atlanta mayor, and Robert Woods of the LA Rams. All are Blacks who know getting hysterical with these protests will not produce real change. They have all told everyone that if they want change, they need to VOTE!