MEDIA WATCH

NO TOLERANCE FOR ...

First off ... Zach Christie getting suspended for bringing his Boy Scout knife to school was dead on. One of the things that was lost in the hub bub over the six-year old, is the essay written by Dylan Klebold's Mom for 'O' magazine.

Susan Klebold said she had no idea of what was going on inside of her son ... and I believe her. Who knows what is going on inside of ANYONE at any given time? And with a 6 year old, anything can enter their empty little minds.

Maybe the policy needs to be reviewed. Zero tolerance policies often fail to produce the desired results. But what got me was the attitude of Zach's Mom. She was outdone that her little angel was lumped among delinquents. But good kids have moments of poor judgement too.

What if some other kid starts to wrestle him for the tool and gets hurt? Or someone spirits it away from him and uses it to hurt someone else? 'Weaponizing' of innocuous objects is a common enough occurrence with kids as they try to gain an advantage in defending themselves. Was the Mother willing to be responsible for what in my mind, is not a stretch, what damage her son's scout knife could have brought?

TYSON ON OPRAH

Sat and watched the interview on the tele yesterday. Say what you want about Mike, but you have to credit him for being real and owning what is his. One of the things that I personally find fascinating about Mike, is that you can see his continued growth as he struggles with making a life.

I think that Mike understands that you can forgive but you don't forget. He spoke about Evander Holyfield and while he mentioned the head butts (which IMO, happen when you fight someone who is trying to fight you ... not that it is part of their strategy or anything ...) he did credit Holyfield with being a very good fighter.

Oprah asked him if they ever really made peace regarding the ear biting and Mike said they hadn't. He mentioned how Evander still seemed leery around him. And that made me think of Oprah and some of the comments she has made in the past about Mike, linking his marriage to Robin Givens and domestic violence discussions.

Do I think that Mike had forgotten about that?? I want to say 'no'. In fact, I would not be surprised to see if she pursued the interview. I don't think that Mike has deliberately tried to maintain a profile in the public eye. In fact, the interview confrimed things that I have always suspected about him.

WHY PONDER LIFE'S COMPLEXITIES?

It would be neat if Mike could find a measure of peace with his chaotic life. I don't know how different his life would have been had he not been 'discovered' in the boy's home and given the opportunity for a different kind of existence. For me it has always been about whether he was rescued from one kind of torment only to experience another. Did Cus D'Amato really want to make a full human being or was he out to create a fighter who would represent his legacy?

Mike speaks lovingly of their relationship and always has. With D'Amato in the Catskills, he first experienced a different way of living. That was where he became socialized and had someone invest in him. But it wasn't something that he was willing to do for himself. He responded to the interest, but was the interest for his well being?

Whenever I have thought of the victimization (because I do think he was taken advantage of WAY more than anything he got from anyone else) Mike Tyson, it was when he was discovered at the Tryon Boy's Home that I think it began. I don't think that anyone saw more into him other than a chance to make a name for themselves.

There were gaps in his development that I recall from my 'brushes with greatness'. I do allow for the continued development of his personality had his mentor lived longer. But at the same time, the strain of developing a whole person in the public eye had started to show cracks in the paternal relationship. Who is to say what kind of person he'd have become, had Cus D'Amato lived longer?

That is pretty much it for me ... still trying to get used to being 'here'. There is a lot of Texas between here and Lubbock ... but it is all good and expected to get better!!