When Charles Barkley was an NBA star, he used to agitate and entertain people with his unorthodox, aggressive, one-of-a-kind style of basketball. He still does that now as a commentator.
Thursday night during the “NBA on TNT” broadcast, Sir Charles had a interesting take on who in this country should be prioritized to receive COVID-19 vaccinations now. “I think they should let NBA players and coaches all get the vaccine. That’s just my personal opinion. We need 300 million shots. Give some thousand to NBA players … NFL players, hockey players … As much taxes as these players pay, let me repeat that, as much taxes as these players pay, they deserve some preferential treatment,” Barkley said.
Granted, it wasn’t met with universal approval from his co-hosts Ernie Johnson and Kenny Smith, and predictably, social media trolls crawled out from their caves to inform Barkley how wrong he was, but give Barkley credit for flipping conventional wisdom on its ear, and not being afraid to speak his mind.
With stories almost daily circulating about wasted doses of vaccination being thrown out, and the overall lack of coordination for mass distribution, on some levels a reasonable argument could be made that in a nation that has had a majority of its entertainment outlets taken away, it makes sense to provide protection and the vaccine for entertainers traveling the country constantly in order to bring people a diversion from the intense daily news cycle they are subjected to.
Thanks, Charles. The world needs your unique perspective now more than ever!
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