Donald Sterling appears to be a racist. He told his girlfriend that he didn't want her to post photos of herself with black men, and didn't want her to invite them to the basketball games with her, because it might make people think less of her, and by implication him.
It appears that having that conversation has certainly made people think less of him.
When a covertly made recording of his conversation was released to TMZ he became a pariah. He was fined $2.5 million and has been banned for life from the NBA. He may be forced to sell his franchise. Because of a private conversation.
I'm not going to condone what Sterling said, but I do think that it is interesting that all of this is happening as a result of a private conversation that he probably never intended for public consumption.
The big issue is that he has come across as holding beliefs that go against the NBA's core values. It is not a statement or an action that he is being penalised for. It is his thought crime that he is being punished. He has revealed what was inside his head and now the thought police in the media are out to make him pay.
After fining him, exiling him and potentially stripping him of (some of) his assets, he should now be ready for re-programming. While this process is taking place, perhaps he could be made to serve the greater good of society. Perhaps a spot working in a salt mine might assist in his rehabilitation.
