Re: The Widow Lewis At It Again

[Snoopy the Celtics Beagle <snoopy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

At 02:10 PM 9/12/03 -0400, Dan Forant wrote:

>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Snoopy the Celtics Beagle" <snoopy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>To: <celtics@xxxxxxxx>
>Sent: Friday, September 12, 2003 1:35 PM
>Subject: Re: The Widow Lewis At It Again
>
>
> > At 12:31 PM 9/12/03 -0400, Kim Malo wrote:
> >
> > >At 09:21 AM 9/12/2003 -0400, Way Of The Ray wrote:
> > >>  Just give it up lady. Be happy you got a huge insurance payoff.
> > >>Other people who loose their loved ones aren't so lucky
> > >
> > >I don't often wholeheartedly agree with Ray, but he's dead on here. While
> > >all these serial lawsuits have done is the opposite of what she claims
> > >she's trying to do, which is to restore Reggie's reputation. Talk of
>drugs
> > >was little but a murmur, with people concentrating more on the tragedy
> > >until she started this. Although back to the drugs - FWIW, I've always
> > >wondered if any of Reggie's problems go back to damage done in utero from
> > >his addicted mother, especially with his brother also having heart
> > >problems. Anyway, while one lawsuit was probably inevitable and seen as
> > >such, this refusal to let it go does no own any good.
> > >
> > >Donna isn't stupid, even as she continues to act stupid about this. I
> > >don't think it's just about money. All I can figure is that she's trying
> > >desparately to get official  endorsement that it's all someone else's
> > >fault and her own role in Reggie's care had nothing to do with his death.
> > >Whether just for herself or to prove something to her kids and/or
>Reggie's
> > >family, with whom she never got along. She's never going to get that
>though.
> > >Kim
> >
> > In addition to the drug question is the fact that when he initially
> > collapsed, the doctors at the hospital told him the problem was
> > serious.  The Celtics' team doctor said it was serious.  But Reggie kept
> > shopping for second opinions until he found one he agreed with.  Then, he
> > kept relevant medical information to himself.
> >
> > Frankly, I'm amazed the insurance policy even paid at all given his
>obvious
> > refusal to treat his condition seriously.  Various doctors, including
> > Mudge, tried to minimize the question of drug use--mostly, I think, for
>the
> > sake of Reggie's kids--but they couldn't very well ignore it.  Donna made
>a
> > big deal of it.  She kept pushing and if there's a public perception of
> > Reggie Lewis as a drug user, it's because of her.
> >
> > I keep trying to give her the benefit of the doubt.  Maybe she just lost
>it
> > when he died. It does happen.  But at this point, I'm impressed at the
> > restraint shown by Dr. Mudge in not filing charges of his own against
>Donna
> > for harassment.  His rep is ruined by the repeated trips to court.  I'm
> > sure his legal fees are impressive after ten years of this.
> >
> > About the only positive in all this is that Reggie isn't around to see
>this
> > idiocy take place in his name.
>
>Uumm, isn't Reggie the idiot in all this????
>
>DanF


AN idiot, yes.  But not the only one.  Sometimes I have a tendency to 
sidestep the facts that indicate that Lewis' drug abuse almost certainly 
helped kill him.  It's hard enough realizing Len Bias died because he was 
an idiot, and sometimes I suppose I want to rationalize that there couldn't 
be two people that unutterably stupid on the same team.

In other respects, I'm sure both Bias and Lewis were reasonably intelligent 
people.  But when it came to drugs, and thinking of the possibilities of 
guessing wrong--i.e. the "it won't happen to ME" syndrome--they were both 
idiotic.  Their lives were ended, their potential wasted and their 
families, friends and teammates bereft of them.  And it didn't have to happen.

Yep, sounds like idiocy to me.

Snoopy the Celtics Beagle
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