Today's Truths will be a potpourri, touching on my favorite topic, the NFL, and my favorite passion, HBO's "The Wire." But before we get to any of that, I have to share my thoughts on the "lynch Tiger Woods in a back alley" controversy engulfing the Golf Channel's Kelly Tilghman.


Staying quiet is the most sensible play for Tiger Woods. ( / Getty Images)
10. Despite Tiger's insistence — speaking through his agent — that Tilghman's inappropriate comments were a non-issue, the Golf Channel did the right thing suspending her for two weeks.

Al Sharpton compared Tilghman's on-air remarks to Don Imus's "nappy-headed ho" controversy. Sharpton, as is normally the case, is wrong.

What Tilghman did, despite her 12-year friendship with Woods, was much worse than what Imus did. Imus, a radio shock jock known for crude attempts at humor, cracked a bad joke on a morning radio show. Tilghman is an anchor on the Golf Channel. No one expects her to be racy, controversial or stupid.

Also, Tilghman can't argue that she picked up the notion of "lynching Tiger in a back alley" from black popular culture. She came up with that nonsense all on her own.

Do I think Tilghman is some bigot extremist? No. I think she's incredibly stupid and perhaps unqualified for her job. She's in good mixed company in that category.

Should she be fired? No. She made a mistake, apologized to Woods privately and publicly and should be granted the opportunity to rebound. We all make mistakes. A decade ago, I screwed up in a New England press box, cracked a joke about Drew Bledsoe that made me appear homophobic. I apologized, sat out a two-week suspension and moved on.

It is possible for people to learn from their mistakes. There is nothing positive to be gained from throwing a gigantic pity party for Tilghman or trying to bury her.

What should we make of Tiger Woods' decision to avoid dealing with this controversy publicly and personally? We, the media, make it too costly for public figures to express their honest feelings. We can't handle the truth. Tiger is best served saying as little as possible.

Can you believe Al Sharpton would grab on to this?! He NEVER stirs anyhting up!

Ridiculous. She will probably end up being fired for this and Sharpton will laugh all the way to Hymie town.

Sad, huh?

Very sad.

okay......I was out for a few days..........what did she say?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bim-EPwhGt0

Dumb thing to say on national TV, but she'll end-up keeping her job.

Fired Perhaps?

I don't think it was a clever thing to say.

As for worse than a direct insult to innocents? Not on your life. For the following reasons:

1. It was not a direct insult, just contrived to be one by third parties.
2. That the term was percieved to apply only to blacks shows racism on the part of the offended. Not just negros were lynched.
3. Tiger Woods is NOT african-american.

I totally agree with you applebutter. What puts an end to it for me is the fact that Tiger himself was not offended. I think it was a bad choice of words on her part, but maybe because she is friends with Tiger they can joke around like that. I think Sharpton and others just find reasons to start problems that aren't.

She was suspended, which is a good thing. I respect Tiger for coming out and trying to put an end to it. I wish he had done that with the Fuzzy Zoeller situation. In Fuzzy's case, he was rung over the coals, his kids were threatened, his family harassed, and Fuzzy didn't play golf for a while. It really hurt Fuzzy's career. Now anyone that knows Fuzzy, knows he will say just about anything. He is a funny man, and good for golf, but the consequences of his words were greater than anyone deserves.