Bob Boone isn’t the first and won’t be the last.
According to an AP source, Boone, the Washington Nationals’ Vice President has informed the team that he’s resigning.
It’s not because the Nats are bad, or because the team traded away its stars players at the trade deadline and clearly has thrown in the towel on competing.
Nope. Although, that would have been noble.
Instead, Boone, a member of a famous baseball family who has spent 50 years in the game, is done with the Nationals because he doesn’t want to comply with the organization’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate.
In July, Minnesota Vikings assistant coach Rick Dennison had to find other work after he refused to take the COVID-19 vaccine.
At the MLB Network, according to the New York Post on Wednesday, analysts John Smoltz and Al Leiter, have been banned from appearing in-studio after refusing to comply with the company’s new policy.
And before the “personal freedom” people chime in, people and companies should have the right to not want to work in a potentially dangerous situation. And that includes co-workers NOT vaccinated.
Everyone is wearing a mask in public for the safety of others, not you.
People can refuse to wear masks. But they also won’t be able to buy food, fly in a plane, go to a gym or a sporting event indoors. Sadly, Boone, 73, is a part of the herd that has lost its way. They pick principle over science.
We’ve seen many go this route and end up regretting it. Podcaster Joe Rogan, who was dismissive of the vaccination, now had COVID.
In the last month, we saw three anti-vaccine radio talk show hosts succumb to Covid, including conservative Florida host Marc Bernier a few days ago. He was 65.
The take that the pandemic isn’t real, it’s phony, is played out.
Thank goodness for the people who run the Nationals.
Boone wants to damn them for wanting to do what’s right, to help end this pandemic that has gripped the world and changed all of us for the past year and a half.
“As a company, we have a responsibility to do everything we can to keep one another safe and felt that mandating vaccines was the absolute right thing to do for our employees and our community,” the team said in a statement that was released last week.
At first, the people who didn’t want to get vaccinated used the excuse that it was an experimental drug and hadn’t been approved by the government.
Strange. The people who don’t want the government to tell them what to do, used the lack of government approval as their basis to justify not doing their part.
And when the FDA finally approved one vaccine – the other approvals are on the way – now they still don’t want to get in line and get a shot.
That’s all fine. People have a right to choose.
But others, the people vaccinated and trying to stop this terrible scourge, have a right of choice as well.
Enter companies and business owners.
They also have the right to dictate who can and can’t work within their company, especially when talking about the health of others. That’s the part so many forget.
It’s not just about you. It’s about the people you work around and their families and loved ones.
This dilemma isn’t going anywhere in sports. This is just the beginning.
The NFLPA is investigating comments from Jacksonville coach Urban Meyer who said openly that vaccination status factored into the team’s roster decisions.
For sure, no NFL team is going to dump a star player who isn’t vaccinated. But if all things are equal – talent-wise, there’s a better chance of a vaccinated player getting a spot over a player without the shot.
The Jaguars issued a statement. “Availability is one of the many factors taken into account when making roster decisions,” the team said. “We have vaccinated and unvaccinated players on our roster and no player was released because of their vaccination status.
“Ultimately, decisions are based on a player’s ability to help the Jaguars win. We educate our players and respect personal decisions as it pertains to the vaccine. We want to keep our players, staff and families safe as we comply with protocols related to both health and safety and competition on game days.”
The NFL should be onboard with requiring all players to be vaccinated.
It isn’t there yet, but the league has incorporated strict protocols for players who aren’t fully vaccinated.
Soon, if things worsen for those not protected from the virus, there won’t be a place for people like Boone to hide.
Need to find a place to get vaccinated near you? Go here or text your ZIP code to 438829 or call 1-800-232-0233 to find vaccine locations near you in the United States.
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