[News] Brandon Univ. issues statement condemning honorary doctorate recipient Theo Fleury

[Kasi]

I worked at 7-11 in Ramsay over the hill from the dome back in the late 90s.
He came in once to buy smokes and didn’t seem too nice. Not surprised tbh even though it’s a bit sad.

[Snuffleupagus]

GP - 1084
Goals - 455
Assists - 633
Points - 1088
8 time NHL all star
WJC, Canada Cup and Olympic Gold medals
Stanley Cup

He was a great player on the ice, any other player with these numbers and awards would be in the HOF and have their jersey retired.

There's a reason he has neither post career accolades and likely wont ever.

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by Goriders

Why do you guys care so much about what Fleury says? If you don’t agree with it just ignore him.

End of the day he can still say whatever he wants. As long as it’s not against the law.

Not every person has to be burned at the stake. When did everyone turn to sugar?

lol, does anyone here agree that pedo's are using vaccine passports to track children? Its not a difference of opinion the guy has ####ing lost it and much of what he is saying is indeed harmful to others. Spreading this garbage is costing people their lives every single day.

[Lanny_McDonald]

Hero worship of athletes is a very bad thing. Professional athletes are NOT heroes and should never be placed on a pedestal, no matter what they do on their field of play. Most are mercenaries who have been brought up to put themselves above all others. Most are poorly educated and have lived in a bubble their whole lives, being told how special they are and how infallible their actions are. Ego and ignorance is an incredibly dangerous mix.

This is where Theo Fleury has always found himself and why he is, has been, and always will be, a self-centered egocentric jerk. This is why the Flames won't retire his number. He's not a role model. He doesn't care about the community at large. He doesn't embrace the values of lifting all others when opportunity arises. His values are not those of the Calgary Flames, and not the values of the average Calgarian. Fleury is about Fleury and staying in his insolated world where he is the authority and the master of his domain. What he promotes is dangerous, but consistent with the ignorance he has always displayed. His twitter account should be a reminder of why professional athletes should just shut up and play, then fade into obscurity once their playing days are over. Don't go away mad Theo, just go away.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

This slippery-slope garbage is a tired over-reaction.

There is a world of difference between attempting to erase or rewrite one's history, and distancing oneself from an individual with a toxic media platform. How is it so difficult for some to grasp the utter canyon that separates these two actions?

I guess the question is what's to distance from? Do you live next door to Theo? Do you work or have business dealings with Theo? Is Theo in your circle of acquaintances? The reality is that this is a "Theo is a bad person because his beliefs don't align with ours or most of society" thread as I assume nearly all of us are already distanced from Fleury.

[edslunch]

This is similar to the statue debate to me. I can praise Sir John A for his role in confederation and strongly condemn him for his role in residential schools. Neither position colours the other. I loved Theo as a player (from the highlights I remember) and hate him as a person (from what I’ve seen and heard). Neither opinion is changing.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

I guess the question is what's to distance from? Do you live next door to Theo? Do you work or have business dealings with Theo? Is Theo in your circle of acquaintances? The reality is that this is a "Theo is a bad person because his beliefs don't align with ours or most of society" thread as I assume nearly all of us are already distanced from Fleury.

He’s obviously talking about the Flames, not your physical distance to Theo.

[The Cobra]

I got to know Theo when I was involved with the Hitmen in their initial seasons before the Graham James fiasco and the sale to the Flames, as he was one of the initial owners.

I found him quite business minded and very likeable.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

He’s obviously talking about the Flames, not your physical distance to Theo.

I was actually talking about Brandon University, but yeah.

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[undercoverbrother]

Originally Posted by Goriders

Why do you guys care so much about what Fleury says? If you don’t agree with it just ignore him.

End of the day he can still say whatever he wants. As long as it’s not against the law.

Not every person has to be burned at the stake. When did everyone turn to sugar?

Riders fan.

Amirite, eh?

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Lanny_McDonald

Hero worship of athletes is a very bad thing. Professional athletes are NOT heroes and should never be placed on a pedestal, no matter what they do on their field of play. Most are mercenaries who have been brought up to put themselves above all others. Most are poorly educated and have lived in a bubble their whole lives, being told how special they are and how infallible their actions are. Ego and ignorance is an incredibly dangerous mix...

These sweeping generalizations are just as disingenuous as the hero worship.

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[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

These sweeping generalizations are just as disingenuous as the hero worship.

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Right. There are plenty of athletes, as well as other entertainers, who have taken the time to familiarize themselves on a pet subject (often their charity subject), and are pretty knowledgeable about it. If they are a serious person, which is the key.

[CroFlames]

Originally Posted by Lanny_McDonald

Hero worship of athletes is a very bad thing. Professional athletes are NOT heroes and should never be placed on a pedestal, no matter what they do on their field of play. Most are mercenaries who have been brought up to put themselves above all others. Most are poorly educated and have lived in a bubble their whole lives, being told how special they are and how infallible their actions are. Ego and ignorance is an incredibly dangerous mix.

This is where Theo Fleury has always found himself and why he is, has been, and always will be, a self-centered egocentric jerk. This is why the Flames won't retire his number. He's not a role model. He doesn't care about the community at large. He doesn't embrace the values of lifting all others when opportunity arises. His values are not those of the Calgary Flames, and not the values of the average Calgarian. Fleury is about Fleury and staying in his insolated world where he is the authority and the master of his domain. What he promotes is dangerous, but consistent with the ignorance he has always displayed. His twitter account should be a reminder of why professional athletes should just shut up and play, then fade into obscurity once their playing days are over. Don't go away mad Theo, just go away.

If your kid loves a player, do you tell them to quickly stop because is a very bad thing?

[cannon7]

Originally Posted by The Cobra

I got to know Theo when I was involved with the Hitmen in their initial seasons before the Graham James fiasco and the sale to the Flames, as he was one of the initial owners.

I found him quite business minded and very likeable.

It's almost as though a person can both hold unpopular opinions and still be a good person. Weird.

[DeluxeMoustache]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

If your kid loves a player, do you tell them to quickly stop because is a very bad thing?

Was that your takeaway?

Isn’t the point to steer the kid towards admiring the way the player plays, and not to put the person on a pedestal and get invested in their non hockey related opinions?

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by cannon7

It's almost as though a person can both hold unpopular opinions and still be a good person. Weird.

It's almost as though people can change over the course of 27 years.

[CroFlames]

Originally Posted by DeluxeMoustache

Was that your takeaway?

Isn’t the point to steer the kid towards admiring the way the player plays, and not to put the person on a pedestal and get invested in their non hockey related opinions?

I would let the kid feel however they want.

I thought Theo was a hockey god when I was little, which is of course absurd. I was devastated when he was traded.

Why try to instill a rational approach to a kid's sports fandom? Let them love or not love whatever they want. I remember my sister bawling her eyes out when Neiwendyke left (I was too young to understand).

[DeluxeMoustache]

Originally Posted by cannon7

It's almost as though a person can both hold unpopular opinions and still be a good person. Weird.

Sure. Also some people that come across as nice can be bad people. People are complex.

The main point is articulated very well by U Brandon

Fleury deserves credit for the good things he has done. He deserves condemnation for very specific things, which they called out, and they called on him to appreciate his platform and use it responsibly

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by cannon7

It's almost as though a person can both hold unpopular opinions and still be a good person. Weird.

Does being "quite business minded" mean that Fleury is a good person?

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[DeluxeMoustache]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

I would let the kid feel however they want.

I thought Theo was a hockey god when I was little, which is of course absurd. I was devastated when he was traded.

Why try to instill a rational approach to a kid's sports fandom? Let them love or not love whatever they want. I remember my sister bawling her eyes out when Neiwendyke left (I was too young to understand).

Hyperbolic intro:
If we want to discuss it that way, then why parent at all?

How you felt about Theo as a kid is one thing. He was perceived as a scrappy underdog and none of the type of information we have on his recent actions was available then

If your kid idolizes an athlete that is not an admirable person, you probably as a responsible parent, should be monitoring these kinds of things

If my kids were to repeat some messaging that is wrong, dangerous, or morally offside, I wouldn’t let that go because they like a hockey player. That’s bad parenting