cscoug wrote:
Maybe I missed something you guys didn't, but Via was talking about Atuiua being overlooked with the Cahoon hiring, not DuPaix's. He wondered why Cahoon didn't become a GA while Atuiua became an assistant. Via repeatedly admits DuPaix was more qualified.
Now that Vai has noticed that he has both spinach AND his foot in his mouth, he is backpedaling like crazy.
The Cahoon thing is simply laughable. What Vai is now saying is that BYU should have put Dupaix coaching WRs and let Atuaia coach RBs. Does that make sense to anyone? Does that make our staff any better anyway you spin it? What do you think helps our team win more--Dupaix coaching WRs and Atuaia taking the RBs, or Dupaix over the RBs and Cahoon over the WRs? I don't think there is even a sensical argument to make that doesn't involve back-patting and bonus consideration of polynesian heritage. Even if Vai now want to draw his line in the sand with Cahoon/Atuaia, it fails. Cahoon with his lack of coaching experience is nevertheless much more qualified to be a WR coach than Atuaia is with his years of part-time volunteer work with RBs.
Vai came across as a "culturalist" (read: "bigot") in his first blog, and he is trying to save face without admitting his own prejudice here, but he's making completely different assertions, and his positions in this article are so contradictory that it is laughable.
Here's a summary of what Vai says in his latest entry:
1) I think I'm a really good writer
2) I like Mark and have a vested interest, but I have white and black friends I have helped out too (As if this changes the fact that his first blog was about how Atuaia's race should have netted him the job)
3) Even though I spend my entire first column talking about race and how it should have gotten Mark the job, now I will state that Mark earned it because he is a COUGAR (as if Ben Cahoon isn't a COUGAR? Give Mark the job because Ben Cahoon had the misfortune of playing his position well enough to have one of the most successful pro careers among BYU grads instead of going back to Provo to get a graduate degree and volunteering?)
4) Race should totally be considered, but only as a bonus for minorities AFTER everything else has been considered. (Read as--"tie-breakers or close calls should go to minorities"--once again he is (a) being racist, and (b) ignoring the fact that even a decision between Cahoon and Atuaia would not have been close. No matter where in the though process race comes into play--beginning, middle, or end (as Vai proposes), you're still making a decision on the basis of race.)
5) Atuaia would've been HUGE is recruiting the islands (but he doesn't bother to note that polynesian recruiting went downhill under Anae and Atuaia the past 5 years.)
6) Andy Reid promoted a minority who has been an NFL coach for almost 20 years to be DC even though he hasn't coach defense in the league before. Therefore, Bronco should have turned down better qualified individuals to give Mark the RBs job. (This completely ignores the fact that Bronco and Reid have each worked with Mark and Jose, respectively, for years and are probably keenly aware of their capabilities. I doubt Andy Reid's thought process was "Jose has been working for me for years, so I probably should reward him with a promotion, plus, he's Mexican. Well, we DO have an opening for a DC." I would put money on the thought process being "We need a DC. Jose has always been impressive in film sessions in breaking down defenses and pointing out what they could or should do given our myriad defensive alignments. He's a sharp guy and I bet he could get the job done as well as anyone else available." Likewise, I think Bronco's decision was guided by familiarity with Atuaia's performance and his potential. I'm glad he didn't limit his decision to the criteria of "who has worked hard?" and "who is not white?")
7) I'm not a bigot, and I don't think Bronco is either (Even though I have now twice expressly lobbied for a polynesian to get added consideration on the basis of race, and despite all my insinuation earlier that Bronco had racist spinach in his teeth.)
8) Mark really wants to be a coach and other lawyers have been coaches too! (?? Ben Cahoon really wants to be a coach, and other former players have been coaches too. Again, Vai trying to play a non-sequitor sympathy card.
9) Bronco's not infalliable. (Once again, a non-sequitor. We know that Vai---didn't Bronco just spend the last half of this season correcting a mistake in the Jaime Hill to DC promotion? The issue you have made here isn't whether Bronco made a mistake or not, the issue you created was whether or not Bronco was a racist for not giving a handout to Mark because he is a minority.
10) I still love BYU.
Anyone who read both blogs will realize that Vai is simply backpedaling and trying to take the spinach out of his own teeth.
