Been reading a lot of back and forth here.
I really believe this kid is deserving of all the 'attacks' here - and he is becoming a victim now in every sense of the word. However, I do not feel sorry for him. Why?
He had the wherewithal to send letters to every team apologizing for what he has done. Anyone here believe he feels the slightest bit of empathy for his victim? Or is he just feeling empathy towards himself at this point?
Heck, the judge pointed this out and it was in the article. The victim came out and stated that he has yet to apologize to him. Yet, he apologized to every team?
What a crappy agent he has, seriously. Who is representing him? That's some lousy work right there. Perhaps the agent told him that he should find this kid and apologize directly, and the kid still refused.
Yeah, people deserve second chances - and third and fourth chances at that. However, these chances don't just magically fall out of the sky. You earn them. You at least make an attempt to earn them. All he has done is made an attempt to cover his own butt where his career is concerned.
This is telling.. no... this is SHOUTING at me that this kid is not remorseful, that he can not look past his own self and feel empathy towards another person even though it has been pointed out a number of times. You had the courage to bully this kid for 10 fricken years - have the courage to make one apology. One single apology.
No, this kid doesn't get a second chance until he earns it. You know what though? There is nothing stopping him from even trying to earn it. Until he does, sorry, I won't feel sorry for him, and he can continue being a 'victim' of this very public backlash now.
Earn the second chance, and things start changing. There will always be people who will want his head. However, those numbers will thin out. If he wants it to stop, he has to go so far in the other direction by apologizing directly to the victim and his family, and then put a tonne of work into anti-bullying programs. People will appreciate his sudden 'honesty', and the people calling for blood will mostly disappear.
This society is surprisingly forgiving (mostly, anyway - some people just want to stay in their own little corner). People have to earn that second chance, and keep earning forgiveness. Only then can he put this behind him.
At the moment, however, he doesn't seem remorseful to me. He just seems upset with his own circumstance.
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