Lawyered
Hey,
I have a few friends that are lawyers and I always give them crap for it. I wanted to be a lawyer growing up after reading the biography of Thurgood Marshall but I never followed through on it. It’s not that I don’t respect lawyers. The great ones are damn good at what they do. Unfortunately, great lawyers are always behind some of the most questionable loopholes in the business world.
This week, Dish Network announced that they were partnering with DraftKings to advertise betting lines on their cable sports broadcasts. In some instances, they will even allow live bets to be placed through the television. This is for states where gambling is legal of course, but this list is rapidly increasing as states look for new ways to generate revenue. Even though gambling is highly addictive, as long as sports books tell people to “gamble responsibly” everything is business as usual.
Also this week, Texas Governor Greg Abbott has lifted the state’s mask mandate and allowed 100% of businesses to open up March 10. Despite health officials warning against this and Houston being the first American city to record all three variants of the Coronavirus strain, Governor Abbott believes that Texans know how to avoid Covid during their daily lives. This lack of government oversight includes advising business owners to operate using proper precautions, along with telling people to assume personal responsibility to keep themselves and their loved ones safe. This allows Abbott and his staff to maintain plausible deniability.
This upcoming weekend, the NBA will hold it’s annual All-Star game. The NBA has been lauded for mastering the concept of the “Covid bubble” and housing and playing all of their games at Disney World in Orlando. Unlike the NFL’s Pro Bowl, the game will actually be played along with a skills competition but not in Orlando. No, the game will be at Atlanta’s State Farm Arena. NBA commissioner Adam Silver and Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms have both stressed that this is solely an event for television and no ticketed events are sanctioned by the league, but that’s like saying only 21 and up people drink alcohol. By saying that the city and league aren’t sanctioning any parties, it’s absolving them of any legal consequences when NBA All-Star weekend becomes the super-spreader event it was destined to be.
Liability is a contentious subject among many, but especially among lawyers. Governments, corporations and the wealthiest of individuals hire top notch legal teams to help craft all of their communication with the outside world so that they will always have a leg to stand on in court. We’re witnessing doublespeak from gambling companies, big tobacco, alcohol manufacturers and many other industries where the voices of lawyers outweigh the voice of reason. And this weekend in Atlanta will be more of the same.
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