Aaron Hernandez and the jersey thing

P. T. Barnum had it exactly right. There's a sucker born every minute. I'll go one step further and say it's scary how many people will believe anything they hear or read -- particularly when the source is someone in a position of authority. Like politicians, cops, corporate execs, and the otherwise usual gang of users, abusers, liars and deceivers that prey on the masses in various ways to enhance their own standing.

And now yet another example has come to light. After former New England Patriot tight end Aaron Hernandez was charged with a variety of crimes, the most serious being murder, the team quickly released him. Yes, yours truly pays attention to the news updates and, yes, the initial reports don't appear to bode well for Hernandez. It looks bad. But did he really commit these crimes? The honest answer is -- at this point we have no idea. Yes, there will always be the zealots that, in their ignorance, rush to judgment and want to start warming up the electric chair, prepping the gas chamber, or getting the needles ready before all the evidence, or lack thereof, has been presented in a court of law and a jury has duly deliberated. One would like to think the days of lynch mobs and vigilantes are a thing of the past -- and hopefully they are. But the mentality remains amongst some.

In an obvious PR move, the New England Patriots are currently hyping a program whereby anyone that had purchased a jersey with Aaron Hernandez's name and number on it could trade it in for any other jersey of their choice. In my world, this is called a feeble attempt at damage control. Somehow the brain trust of the Patriots must think putting a "recall" on Hernandez jerseys will distance them from any affiliation with their former tight end.

And you know what's amazing? Like lemmings, the people are standing in line to do just that. They can't wait to trade in their Hernandez jerseys for another one. Phineas Taylor Barnum is smiling somewhere. Yet another generation of suckers is alive and well.

Why do I say that? Because potentially a Hernandez jersey could soar in value. Particularly if he's convicted of the crimes he's been accused of. That would put him on the list of notoriety.

Sure, most people would be turned off at the thought of owning a pair of Hitler's cufflinks, a Stalin military uniform, or perhaps even a lock of Charles Manson's hair. But guess what? Whether you like it or not, there are those out there that would pay a small fortune for such items.

And for the New England Patriots and/or previous Hernandez fans that had previously purchased a Hernandez jersey -- what exactly do they get by trading it in? A Tom Brady jersey? There's a million of them already out there. They're not worth squat.

Hernandez may or may not be the monster he's accused of being.

But if I had one of his jerseys -- I'd hang on to it just in case.

Remember OJ? Think of him what you will, but how much do you think one of his original USC or Buffalo Bills jerseys would fetch on eBay right about now?