Comments on: Josh Hamilton’s sobriety is not a black and white issue

By: ermur22

ermur22 — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 16:46:13 +0000

He could have bought a six pack and hid out somewhere to drink but nooooo one of the most famous alcoholics in his state went to a popular bar. He must have wanted to get caught. It is pretty sad cause when he is just an old ex ball player no one will care if he drinks or not and he could just drink himself into oblivion

By: johnnyb1976

johnnyb1976 — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 03:40:52 +0000

This is the reason why the reds traded him. They feared relapse.

By: realirvine

realirvine — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:16:07 +0000

BRILLIANTLY STATED Craig.

There is no right answer here.

I do hope Hamilton wins his battles wherever and whenever possible…even on a day by day, minute by minute basis.

By: jimbo1949

jimbo1949 — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:17:20 +0000

Yeah, and everyday you go to your workplace there’s a statue staring at you.

By: annes22

annes22 — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:48:07 +0000

Good for you Brian. My son still has to go more than 3 months and he has another relapse.
It’s a horrible illness, and I have now watched it for 4 years. He’s been through rehabs, he knows
what to do, but you know it just happens in a moment. I have a problem with people criticizing alcoholics when they have no clue what it’s like to be one. One drink is all it takes.
good luck to you.

By: banjojones

banjojones — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:45:28 +0000

Addiction is never “conquered.”
It’s managed, on a day to day basis.
Relapses, if only a day long, are common.
It’s a good sign that he’s honest about the relapse. Self honesty often is not easy. I wish him well.

By: annes22

annes22 — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:42:02 +0000

I know something about this addiction debate. My son is an alcoholic, and I can tell you that he graduated college with 2 degrees at Christmas and a week later was completely “smashed” for 4 days. When I speak to him about it, he knows what he should do, but something happens to their brain, and they have to have a drink for no reason. One drink is all that is needed before it’s a complete disaster. He says he has no idea why he has to do it, but he can’t handle birthdays, holidays etc anymore. He has been in rehab 3 times, and it works for a while, but their brain is not the same as a person who can drink sensibly.They do lose their friends, don’t want to go out, and certainly don’t want to go near a bar. Very seldom will he come out to dinner with us, it’s just a miserable existance and I feel bad for Josh Hamilton that this has happened again for him. Being in the public eye has to be much worse, I just hope he has some help right now, because he needs it.
get it together” soon again.

By: owenpoin

owenpoin — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:56:07 +0000

I’m going to partially stick up for frank z. here My reaction to hearing that Hamilton was seen drinking was that there’s maybe an 85% chance that’s bad news for all the obvious reasons. I also thought of a friend who was an alcoholic and into hard drugs for years, then spent the next few years not touching anything except cigarettes and coffee, and only recently has started to have the occasional drink again. I’m not in his mind, but it seems like the occasional drink (assuming that’s what it is), is a sign of increased stability, not decreased. I don’t know if that’s the case for Hamilton, but I don’t know that it’s not. Again, it’s probably bad news, but I don’t think any of know for sure.

By: psousa1

psousa1 — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:47:45 +0000

Unbelievable. From where I sit it seems like th DFW has a stranglehold on the idiot sports media personalities. First thing I thought of is the foul ball. We all know what the family is going to go through for the rest of their lives which is unfathomable and we just wish them as much happiness as they can ever have for the rest of their lives but I cannot even imagine how many times Hamilton, no matter how many home runs, pennants, world series, replays that moment in his mind knowing that flipping a ball in the stand to make someone’s night went so wrong.

By: evanhartford

evanhartford — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:43:48 +0000

Craig, I agree with you in that people shouldn’t be looking at this as a “black and white” issue. There are degrees to EVERYTHING in life, including addiction.

My biggest problem with the A/A and N/A message is that IS black and white. Essentially, you’re either an addict or you’re not. You have the disease or you don’t. You’re either recovering or you’re relapsing. You’re striving for a cure and yet you are never cured. Fundamentally, this runs counter to reality. There are different degrees to everything. Addiction is no different. Some people should never drink or do drugs again, because they will spiral out of control. Others can and do. I don’t really know a lot about Josh Hamilton but if he feels he can handle a drink, let him have a drink. Being a public figure, it will probably be obvious if he can’t handle it and needs to go to more meetings.

By: stewfarm

stewfarm — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:26:46 +0000

Mr. Calcaterra, Excellent insight into the JH drinking problem. Thanks for being informed before you open your mouth. An appreciative alcoholic.

By: Chris Fiorentino

Chris Fiorentino — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:04:14 +0000

This is a great point about the importance of anonymity. It is likely that Hamilton will never be able to stay away from alcohol for more than a year until his playing days are over. Because he spends so much time during the season busy with baseball, he isn’t thinking as much about his next drink as he is when he is off from baseball. Whereas the “normal” person works 40 hours a week and has a more standard schedule year-round, it is “easier”(not easy by all means, but easier) to get into a routine than some like Hamilton.

Of course, the other side of that is that when his playing career is over, he won’t be hurting for money and the question becomes if he falls off the wagon, does he even bother to get back on it or does he do what he did a few years back and just piss his life away?

Either way, this is a truly tragic story and Passan’s article, while it may have parts which are true, is totally insensitive and, to a certain degree, condescending to anyone who has experience with someone with an addiction.

By: theswoop27

theswoop27 — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:04:05 +0000

I comment as a recovering alcoholic, with almost 26 years of sobriety, and a man who loves baseball. Craig C is correct, and all people not afflicted with the disease of alcoholism are in the same boat, a layperson does not understand the dynamics of addiction/alcoholism. Josh H has the double burden of recovering without anonymity, an important tradition for us in the fellowship. Relapse occurs, regardless of how much “time” we have in sobriety. We get a daily reprieve based on our spiritual condition, we maintain our spiritual condition by interacting with other alcoholics. May Josh H get a daily reprieve today……

By: paperlions

paperlions — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:01:35 +0000

Good for you. Don’t let the facts get in the way of a good opinion. These sound like tweets from a wife that is definitely having marriage problems:

“Truly appreciate all the encouraging & supportive tweets we’ve been getting”

“God is Faithful and forgives — so thankful that you all are”

“Showing us such love and encouragement during this time”

By: poseidonsfist

poseidonsfist — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:41:30 +0000

Passan is a fantastic writer when he writes about issues that allow for time to be well researched, prepared and measured. In my opinion, his greatest weakness is reaction pieces to big news. He jumps at being first to get bold reaction out there. He did the same last offseason to the Tulowitzki, claiming it was a terrible choice for Tulo to forgo potentially being Jeter’s heir. But it can’t be a mistake to forgo that opportunity if Tulo would never want that anyway. Passan realized that and wrote weeks later his conclusion was wrong.

Here, again, Passan is putting himself in A player’s shoes. His own desires, knowledge and feelings. It isn’t equitable.

As an aside, it is possible for an alcoholic to recover and enjoy an occasional beverage without ever relapsung. But especially with his history of an addictive personality beyond alcohol, I wouldn’t bet $20 million on it, much less $100 million.

By: kingjoe1

kingjoe1 — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:36:39 +0000

Alcohol won’t kill him, it is heroin which is the real danger.

This overreaction to a person with a drinking problem having drink is precisely why so many try to give up drinking on their own, without help. Once you say you have a problem starts watching as though one drink will kill a little baby in Sweden. Lighten, and help people learn that they can live without it, but never act as though one drink automatically puts them back at square one.

By: paperlions

paperlions — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:29:37 +0000

Just be a man and decide to stop being an ignorant jackhole….it’s that simple.

By: detroitcityryda

detroitcityryda — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:25:08 +0000

If you haven’t been addicted to alcohol, ciggarettes,pills,or any drug then you should not comment anything negative about this man

By: frankvzappa

frankvzappa — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:22:00 +0000

I’ve been working so much lately, and what with the offseason and all, I almost forgot how much fun it was getting a rise out of all you guys.

By: paperlions

paperlions — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 16:12:30 +0000

Oddly enough…what Passan wrote isn’t nearly as ignorant as the garbage you wrote.

By: thefalcon123

thefalcon123 — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:53:52 +0000

@frankvzappa

So…you go the alternate route. IE, “well, if it worked this way for me, this is how it works for everyone!”. Congratulations on having such a simple time beating addiction. If this is how it actually worked out for you…just “being a man”, then you are an extreme rarity amongst addicts, not the norm.

By: dsimp724

dsimp724 — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:41:28 +0000

Cheers!!

By: frankvzappa

frankvzappa — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:33:32 +0000

C’mon, that comment about the Rangers was pure hilarity. If you didn’t think that was funny, then I am not sure what you believe qualifies as humor. Maybe you should go see the latest Adam Sandler movie or something…

And furthermore, I regard Mark Twain much too highly to have people like you debasing his memory by using his quotes to attack people who don’t think exactly as you have been brainwashed to think.

By: frankvzappa

frankvzappa — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:27:41 +0000

And for the record, I left my personal history out of my original post because I figure nobody gave a damn, but since you attacked me personally I felt compelled to respond.

By: ThatGuy

ThatGuy — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:26:10 +0000

This is exactly what I thought of when I heard this. During the season, they are so busy with a set schedule and everything, the whole weight of it was probably shifted a bit. Now with 3 months off and plenty of time to think, its not out of the question that it contributed to his falling off the wagon. Obviously thats pure speculation, but it is what popped in my mind.

By: frankvzappa

frankvzappa — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:25:02 +0000

Ive been addicted to all sorts of things, so I can say whatever the hell I want about this subject, thank you very much. I smoked two packs of marlboro reds a day for years, and I was addicted for years after college to much worse than that. I havent had a sip of hard liquor in over half a decade but am able to enjoy beer when I want without going overboard, so all of you high-horse riding d-bags can just shut up now.

By: burgundyandgold

burgundyandgold — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:20:20 +0000

As a friend of Bill W. myself I know this to be a complicated issue. I have had one relapse in my 8 years of sobriety. When I did I made sure I would be caught by my wife because I knew if I hid it, which I could, it would destroy me. Moments of weakness catch all of us and if I ever fall off the wagon again I hope I have the foresight to be stupid enough to get caught again.

By: Sean Boulton

Sean Boulton — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:18:54 +0000

“Just be a man and control yourself, it’s that simple”? “…maybe the Rangers would have tried harder… if they knew they had a champagne shower to look forward to…”?

To paraphrase the old Mark Twain saying, congrats on opening it and removing all doubt.

Wow. I mean, just wow…

By: thefalcon123

thefalcon123 — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:14:09 +0000

“. It won’t be some huge deal all of the time. Just be a man and control yourself, it’s that simple.”

What…the…huh? You seem to not understand very much about the nature of addiction. There are many factors that go into it, including a genetic factor. Yep…some people are *far* for susceptible to addiction strictly based upon their biological makeup. It’s not nearly as simple as “just be a man”. It’s a compulsion…something that sits just below the surface of your mind every single moment.

I’ve never been addicted to hard drugs or alcohol. Though I did spend 10 years as a smoker. Though the short-term stakes aren’t *nearly* as high, cigarettes are extremely addictive. When you’re trying to quit, the withdraw process is very, very unpleasant. You feel terrible, can’t sleep, can’t focus *and every single moment, you know just a one cigarette can make it all go away*. The strong urge to drink or do hard drugs sticks with you much longer. It can appear, you can’t stop thinking about, you feel terrible and you know, just KNOW, you can go have one drink and make all of that stop.

If you know anyone who an alcoholic or drug addict who has stopped completely, they are already more of a man than you because they’ve already accomplished something far more difficult than you ever have.

By: Kevin S.

Kevin S. — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:09:39 +0000

For what it’s worth, after an extended back-and-forth with Old Hoss, he did say that if people were interpreting it the way Radbourn was, he probably didn’t do a good job conveying his point.