The apology

Jim Joyce made a mistake. He made a bad call during a baseball game and the bad call cost pitcher Armando Galarraga a perfect game. When Joyce saw the replay of the play he admitted he had made a mistake but the results of his call remained the same. Armando Galarraga still missed his perfect game.

Mistakes happen in life. Everyone makes them and they move on to the next event in their lives. I would hate to always be judged by one event, one era in my life, or by someone else’s interpretation of what I did.

As I watched the news tonight, I was impressed by the character of both Joyce and Galarraga. Joyce apologized and admitted he made a mistake and Galarraga recognized that mistakes are made. Galarraga, although harmed by Joyce’s call, understood that sometimes things don’t turn out the way they are suppose to and he accepted the apology. The two men, then went out on the field and played ball again.

We need politicians and the media to take lessons from these two men. Greatness comes not from being perfect or showing an image of perfection but from recognizing that you have made a mistake and being willing to shake hands and continue to play the game. With the media harping on every mistake politicians makes, there is an increasing energy spent on spinning and protecting image. Politicians are human, they have made mistakes in the past and they will make them today and tomorrow. Good men and women do not run for political office because they do not want their past to be exploited on the news and their families to be targeted.

There is a difference in reporting the news and sensationalizing it. The media needs to look at how they report on candidates.

The other side of the problem is politicians. They need to do their jobs, make the best calls they can with the knowledge they have, acknowledge when they make a mistake, take responsibility for it, authentically apologize and move on and continue playing the game. They cannot become bogged down in the name calling that results when the game doesn’t go their way.

Maybe we should let Joyce and Galarraga teach them what is really important. Civility and understanding go a long way in making things better.