Leave Shank Alone!

At least that's the battle cry from local political reporter Jon Keller, who for some unexplained reason comes to Shank's defense after the latter's Sunday rip job / bulletin board material for the Houston Texans.

BOSTON (CBS) – I knew when I read Dan Shaughnessy’s column in the Globe the other day that it was going to have ugly repercussions, and I was right.

...

Shaughnessy is taking heat from some fans right now for supposedly “jinxing” the Pats with what he wrote, but I have to side with him on this one.

For most, if not all sports fans, trash-talking an opponent – as long as it doesn’t cross basic boundaries of taste – is an integral part of the fun.

And for many Boston sports fans, trash-talking comes naturally as an extension of the art of the “rank,” the pointed but essentially-friendly insult shared between friends. I know some folks get upset when Red Sox fans chant “Yankees Bleep,” but they don’t understand that it’s really a sign of respect for their most-feared opponent.

So, leave Dan Shaughnessy alone. He’s just doing what comes naturally.

Which is pissing people off; this isn't exactly a news flash around here.

The question I would pose to Mr. Keller - is it, or should it be, the columnist's perogative to engage in 'trash talk'? And I don't mean criticising a team's abilities (for instance, their QB is untested in playoff games, etc.); the snide use of 'tomato cans', 'fraudulent', etc. is what I'm getting at.

It used to be in the old days that a columnist could write something like this and not be held accountable; the advent of the internet and blogs allow for a generous amount of pushback for us to point out when a columnist is writing like an asshole, as Shank did with decent amounts of Sunday's column. I respectfully disagree with Mr. Keller's plea to leave Shank alone. Shank asked for it; let him enjoy the consequences.