The Power Of Q....

This blog is brought to you by the letter "Q" (not pictured).

It's a rating used to determine the favorability of an athlete, celebrity, or politician.

This week, we learned that LeBron James' so-called "Q" rating had him as the 6th least popular athlete in America.

I will attempt break down what that means to LeBron by looking at a few other events in the news and how "Q" colors perception.
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Today, Udonis Haslem was cleared of a pot charge.

He was pulled over, there was weed in the car, U-D said it wasn't his.

The state attorney agreed.

Throughout his legal process, however, people weren't THAT mad at him.

On one level, it was weed.

While illegal, having a little green in your possession doesn't exactly incite the moral police.

Secondly, Udonis had just lost his mother and I think people felt badly for him.

But most of all, I just think Udonis is beloved in South Florida.

He's a team captain and Mr. 305.

He's been the heart and soul of the Heat franchise for a while, and people simply liked him.

Imagine if Michael Beasley had been pulled over for the same violation?

The power of Q.
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Let's stay with the Gators getting arrested theme.

This week, Urban Meyer had his... what is it... 30th player arrested.

Chris Rainey allegedly sent a text that read "Time To Die" to an ex-girlfriend and has been charged with stalking.

Urban Meyer has two national titles.

So while the thought is naughty-naughty, no actions are being taken.

He wins, therefore he has Q.

If Randy Shannon had 2 players arrested, there would be calls for his firing IMMEDIATELY.

Thug U would be back, and Randy would be unemployed.

Different standard because of Q (just to clarify, Gators fans like Meyer the coach, not the person. By all accounts he's a surly dude).
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Derek Jeter did something shady the other day.

He was up against the Rays in a critical game.

A ball clearly hit his bat.

He acted like it hit his wrist, the Umps awarded him first base.

To me, it was sad because he's so bad these days, that's his only way to get on.

While there have been a few columns calling him "Jeter Cheater"... the outrage has been tempered by his likability.

He has enough stored up Q that while people roll their eyes, they don't REALLY care.

Substitute in Jeter for AROD?

Woody Paige's head would explode right on the "Around The Horn" set.
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I think you get the point I'm making.

While it's fine and even fun to be the bad guy sometimes, it puts you in a dangerous position.

LeBron James' margin for error in the public sphere is nonexistent.

The stakes are higher than he's ever had to deal with.

The sad part about reputations are they take a LONG time to make, and just seconds to lose.