The errors in my post immediately below are a result of wireless keyboard problems. I apologize.

In regard to Tiger's apology, some of think God appointed us a deputies to sneer and judge the apologies of others as if He is incapable of determining the sincerity Himself.

But, how awful if we have to open our minds to even consider that an apology could be actually sincere.

There is absolutely nothing to learn from this apology. It was PR firm written apology. The sole purpose of it is the restore Tigers earnings potential. If somebody thinks otherwise please let me know. I have some invaluable beach property in Hyderabad I would like to sell to you.

What Tiger did was commonplace and understandable. It is those of you who type and type about him who need therapy.

A final thought, Farnaz, before I ignore your misandrist, racist, anti-Christian hatred forever.

My father fought and was wounded fighting the Nazis in WWII. I, too, volunteered to fight and die for my Country willingly and with full knowledge of it's political policy to defend Israel at all costs.

You don't know how offensive and hurtful your comments here are. I guess I expected too much from what you yourself described as "a Jew's page"

Why does Tiger Wood's so-called apology have anything to do with faith? After all, this supposedly a faith forum.

Mr. Woods cheated on his wife, failed as a role model to his family, and lost lucrative endorsements with major corporations. This presumed morality tale is mainly about responsibility, maturity and self-discipline, not faith. Why should faith automatically be associated with fulfilling the duties of an accountable adult?

Is the public voyeurism that Mr. Hershfield acknowledges have anything to do with faith? The climate that requires a public apology for what is basically a private and corporate conundrum
is as much a serious issue as Mr. Wood's behavior.

Personally, I don't need, require, or want an apology from a sports figure. His demonstration of public penance does not affect me, nor should it.

In another of Rabbi Hirshfeld's colums, Farnaz worte:

"Oh, and Dog? Every time you go onto a Jew's page to spew your nonsense, you will get a reaction like this one.

And every time, you start up on another page, you will get a reaction like this one.

And this time, don't bother apologizing. We know who you are, Gauleiter. Your name is Legion.

Posted by: Farnaz1Mansouri1 | February 21, 2010 12:13 AM
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Dog,

Yes, you are a Lutheran, a follower of Martin Luther, author of "The Jews and Their Lies," a favorite of Adolf and the rest of your co-German nazis.

You can say you no longer believe, but that isn't the point, is it? It's a heritage thing. Gauleiter. And you do believe. Your nazism is everywhere apparent.

Posted by: Farnaz1Mansouri1 | February 21, 2010 12:11 AM
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Dog,

Shove it in your mayonnaise sandwich with Bud.
You're a Jew-hating, Catholic-hating, Muslim-hating, sexist moron, unable to think, let alone write.

Drink your bear, and leave the rest of us alone. Don't forget to put the bottle cap back on the Hellman's, Gauleiter.

Posted by: Farnaz1Mansouri1 | February 21, 2010 12:09 AM

---------------------------------

How pathetic and sad for her, and how embarrassing for her Jewish sisters (for whom she perpetuates wrong negative stereotypes) that this Christian-hating racist (against Northern Europeans and Northern Americans), misandrist woman is psychotically obsessed by stalking my posts in these forums and viciously attacking a Christian religion I was brought up in (through no choice of my own), that my parents chose at random and not by "heritage", and one that I have long since renounced.

Where is the apology from Rabbi Hirschfield and Jews for allowing this to continue? This is just as offensive as mainstream Muslims not renouncing their murderous terrorists. If some poor, hapless Lutheran is murdered because of her terrorist rants calling them "Nazis" and linking them to Hitler, there will then be something real to apologize for.

I will not be bullied into silence by this woman who throws out the tired old anti-Semite card anytime anyone comments about Israel or disagrees with America's entanglement with them.

You have universal health-care in Israel, Farnaz, (thanks, in part, to the generosity of your American tax-payer patrons who don't have it here"). Use it to get some psychiatric help.

PS: Farnaz, you looney, please tell me how I drink a "bear"

Well, Tiger's Wood has certainly changed the image of golf for generations.

Golfers can get laid!! Who knew?

A message for those who believe that public figures have a resposibility to your children... whatever your child believes or does not believe, and whatever your child does or does not do is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY. If you are too busy making SkiDoo payments to raise your own children, then you own the outcome, not society.

As Charles Barkley said, "I get paid to play basketball; I don't get paid to raise your kids".

I am withholding judgment on Tiger until the final outcome of Howard Stern's Tiger Wood Mistress Beauty Pageant. $100k prize, all they have to do is come on show and win votes to win.

I don't think we can judge a man's misdeeds until Howard judges his MISSdeeds.

Funny that the sponsor is ashley madison dating website for married people...the idea is that if Tiger used their service, his partners would have as much to lose as he did...yeah right.

Thank you, Mr. Hirschfield, this was a nice piece. There were many things wrong with or lacking in Tiger's apology, but these points are, indeed, three things that everyone can learn from him.

It's time to say enough, yes he made mistakes, and only time will tell what happens. None of us have a crystal ball, and very few of us are able to cast stones. As one human being to another, I hope that whatever happens, that he and his wife understand that together, they will need to love their children, and help them esp. in their teen years to become responsible adults. As committed parents, this is possible regardless of their marital status.

"Did everybody see? Did everyone see me apologize? I went on TV so everyone could see!!"

Puh-leaze! There was no reason in the world for Tiger to go on TV to apologize except to begin to rehab "his brand." The only people he really needed to apologize to are his family; the businesses he asked to invest in him and then embarrassed; and all the women he slept with in his plan to sleep with all the beautiful women he could. And he didn't need a TV for that. He could have done that on the phone. (I assume he still has their numbers.) To do it on TV was a marketing decision, not some great stride in a personal journey.And

Sorry Brad but I think you must have bumped your head at birth. I hope you get better. TFL, Ken

CCNL/YEAL:

'Higher standard? Being honest and practicing self-control are somehow higher standards? These are basic standards most parents try to instill in their children. Having the likes of Tiger Woods et al violating these standards does not help.'
______________

Ok, you can get off your holier-than-thou high horse now and join the real world - the world that thrives on the scandal of celebrity sex.

Woods was made into a mega-millionaire Nikki advertising icon and turned out to have feet of clay. That's the bigger story .... another fallen idol from the Olympian sports pantheon.

The USA is utterly ridiculous with it's juvenile preoccupation with 'illegal' sex and the media loves to stoke those libidinous fires. This wouldn't make front page news in Europe, I can just about guarantee.

In a year or two, his wife will have walked away with a few 10s of millions and moved on to her next celebrity husband. Poor old Tiger will still be stuck trying for par or better - and will have recouped his alimony paymonts by about 10 fold......

I mean, the guy is sorry!! What more does he have to say?! And he controls a smirk pretty well too......

Tiger does not owe me, nor anyone else, save his wife,an apology for his womanizing! I think that all who are making judgement, newspeople included, should sign a statement that they have never been guilty of sex outside of their marriage! I am sure that this would include most of Congress, most (or all) of the TV commentators, and at least some of you who have written critically of him, in this venue! I feel slighted that nothing has been written about my own similar conduct (when I was much younger).

I, for one, doubt the sincerity of those here who doubt the sincerity of Tiger Woods's apology. It's obvious that rather that all of your self-serving comments are intended to draw attention to yourselves.

This thing has gone on all winter. Enough already! It's a special time of the year for all of us. Springtime is around the corner, time to do spring plantings, time for spring training, and it's time to have some fun. The Master's is coming up soon.....and Tiger should be part of it. He should play golf, take the lumps from the press and get on with it. Please, let's all get a life.

One has to wonder if he has learned anything from this as all of his remarks were self-centered ad nauseum. Never once did he say that he wanted to save his marriage because he LOVED his wife and children. His tone was, "Oh poor me - look at me - think good things about me." That still smacks of his view that the world revolves around him.

HERE2DAY HATES BLACK PEOPLE AND IS A RACIST.

If one thinks that Tiger's private life is off-limits or has no news value, fine that's one position ( and one I tend to agree with ). However, the point that is missing from this discussion is: . . . . . .

. . . . . . TIGER WOODS HATES WHITE PEOPLE AND IS A RACIST.

. . . . . The one thing you won't hear or see the media reference is that it is so very hard to find one black face among Tigers' conquests. Note how columnist Brad Hirshfield puts it: . . "If Tiger Woods were not a hugely famous athlete who slept with a seemingly endless stream of women. . . ."

. . . . . The reality is that it was not just women, but white women. . . . Many men use sex as a form of aggression, and Tiger is one of them. . . . . . Note his over-reaction to incidents after his first Masters win, and then his disregard and disrespect to his white wife. . . . . . In short Tiger is a racist.

. . . . . Elin Nordegren is crazy if she ever goes back to him.

The PGA needs Tiger more than Tiger needs the PGA...

I'm 64 years old and fortunately do not need role models to live my life by.

Mr. Woods teaches me nothing.

But what I did see at Tigers "apology" was just simply a slick attempt of marketing of the "new and improved" Tiger Woods product.

Since the last Tiger product has been recalled by the factory for "character defects" we are now supposed to embrace the up coming release of the 2010 Tiger model.

Equipped of course with all newest character, moral and personal qualities .

I think I will pass and go look at a new Toyota instead.

"Tiger's apology and what it teaches"

1. He thinks NOTHING of the dozens of non-prostitutes he slept with - as he failed to apologize to them for exposing them all to STDs and worse.

2. It is just as important to image to work in the denial for using performance enhancing drugs such as steroids and HGH as it is to apologize for infidelity.

3. Not matter how much you pay Madison Avenue flecks to rehabilitate your commercial image - not all publicity is good publicity.

4. It would be good to practice reading your apology letter BEFORE appearing in front of the national TV cameras.

TIGER WOODS HATES WHITE PEOPLE AND IS A RACIST.

The one thing you won't here the media reference is that it is so very hard to find one black face among Tigers' conquests. Note how Brad Hirshfield puts it: . . "If Tiger Woods were not a hugely famous athlete who slept with a seemingly endless stream of women. . . ."

The reality is that it was not just women, but white women. . . . Many men use sex as a form of aggression, and Tiger is one of them. . . . . . Note his over-reaction to insidents after his first Masters win, and then his disregard and disrespect to his white wife. . . . . . In short Tiger is a racist.

Elin Nordegren is crazy if she ever goes back to him.

Interesting there wasn't the same Huckabee sneering and judging when white Christians like Sanford and Ensign made their apologies, or even for the intolerant evangelical "Pastor" Ted Haggard whose behavior was even more egregious as he committed homosexual infidelity while bashing gays from the pulpit.

Do we hold Black Buddhists to higher standards?

Tiger didn't apologize; he thinks he apologized and a few have accepted it, while others have not. I have not. I've seen apologies and that was not an apology. Rather, it was a weak first attempt to deflect bad publicity. Tiger has a long way to go and from the looks of it he's following the classic 12-step program (they're all the same). I watched my brother go through the 12-steps of AA. Seeing Tiger's brief appearance on TV brought back memories.
Oh, and a word about "entitlement". He didn't feel entitled, he felt he could get away with it. Every cheating husband feels the same. If he felt entitled, he would have been open with his wife and simply told her to suck it up and that he was going to cheat; so F-you honey. To the contrary, he hid it from her and the world (who gives a crap about the world). I think he was more ashame of being found out by the world than he was from being discovered by his wife.
We will see if he's truly contrite, his actions over the next few years will be the judge of that. Tiger's become an A-hole, i.e., fake and obsessed with money, power, and image. I hope that one day I could feel better about seeing Tiger on TV. Like how I feel about my brother today. After the 12-step program he slowly striped away the "crap" and started from scratch, both financially and personally. Today, it is a pleasure to call my brother my friend, someone I admire and even like.

He apologized and he should. But because of who he is, does he get a pass to return to prosperity? Here is where the the Bible teaches us differently. But all religions have taken the road of hypocrisy as to who passes the biggest plate around.

We have governors, senators, congressmen and presidents that have all done wrong things that we teach our children not to do.

But in this day and age, Rush Limbaugh does drugs and people believe everything he says.

It is one thing to apologize, but to give that person the same level of trust and level in life, one must forgive the drug dealer selling drugs to your kids.

It's OK!
I got to go, American Idol is on.........

Martin Luther King's best friend, Ralph Abernathy, wrote that the night before he was killed, Martin Luther King cheated on his wife three different times with three different girlfriends in three different places.
Abernathy’s eye-witness account of King’s last day on earth was recorded in his original 1989 hardback autobiography, “And The Walls Came Tumbling Down” (Pages 433-441).
Hypocritically, the two-faced media constantly promotes King as a wonderful role model for the public, while bashing Tiger Woods for his unfaithfulness to his wife.
According to Abernathy, King spent several hours with one girlfriend in the bedroom of her home, several more hours with a second girlfriend in a motel room, and then beat up a third girlfriend in his own motel room.
Just hours later, King was shot, as he stepped outside his motel room to talk to Jesse Jackson.
Had Tiger Woods committed the sin of adultery with three different girlfriends in the same night, perhaps then the media would be clamoring for a national holiday to be named for Woods and promoting him as a role model like they do Martin Luther King.
Jack Nicholas still holds the record for the most golf tournament wins, while Martin Luther King still holds the record as a public figure for the most unfaithful husband.

I love America, but we're the world's biggest hypocrites about sex.

What are we teaching out children?

Work hard, make a ton of money, and then ???

JFK was a great president and slept around.

GWB was a horrible one and probably couldn't even get sex from his wife.

99% of all men are sexually frustrated becsause their wives won't put out or won't give them a BJ.

If making a Billion dollars means that you don't get to do anything more fun than a guy making $50K, why work that hard to make that much money?

Robin Williams said it best --

Our county was founded by people too uptight for the British.

Even they've got a more enlightened view of sexuality than we do.

Now that's pretty sad.

Its like being beaten by the French military.

Though Tiger Woods did not owe me an apology, I am glad that he has started to realize that fame and fortune can be evil if you abuse it.

To those people who expected Tiger Woods to be super-human, perfect, and entitled to adultery and other excessive behaviors because he is a good golfer and has earned himself a large amount of money---SHAME ON YOU!!! You are in some ways guilty of encouraging Tiger's behavior, as Tiger is himself.

To those women who pursued him, despite knowing he was married---YOU ARE DIGUSTING SHAMELESS TRAMPS!!!I hope you hide yourselves in embarrassment, but instead I know you'll just be out looking for the next man off which you can seek money and personal 'fame'.

So, when is 'w' going to apologize?

I just have one question, why do we care what he does in his own time? I'm not saying i support his attitude, I just don't care. He's an athlete, if he can run fast enough (well, he's a golf player, isn't he? but it's a manner of speaking) why do we have to be judgemental on his personal affairs? I want a cook to be able to cook, a singer to be able to sing... wheather they're good or bad people is beside the ponit.

Americans have finally suceeded in transforming sex into a serious sickness in need of rehabilitation. What next?

The only limits Tiger Woods need(s)(ed) to observe were those imposed on him by his wife, Elin. If she were not judgmental of him, then it would be safe to say that Tiger could probably live like thousands of other professional athletes who have multiple relationships, some with their wives' approval or a casual indifference. Since Elin expects him to be monogamous, however, he cannot venture outside of their relationship without severe repercussions to their marriage.

Of course, Tiger must now also watch his public image. However, his public image suffered not because of his behavior -- indeed, he probably lived this way for years and enjoyed a stellar public reputation nonetheless -- but because he got caught. Had he not gotten caught he probably could have continued living a life of polygamous skirt chasing as so many other athletes do and would have been none the worse for it public image-wise.

As Americans, our religious puritan impulses lead us to condemn people who stray so far afield as Tiger has done, but Tiger is not and never has been necessarily bound by any religious convictions so far as I can tell, and certainly not by our Western puritan convictions.

In short, sex is healthy, relationships are fragile. If one is going to delve into the former, one has to take care that the latter do not suffer accordingly.

Tiger Woods was in rehab for 45 days prior to his public statement. Most rehab facilities include The 12 Step Program as a part of an individual's recovery. While originally developed as an aid for recovering alcoholics, this program has proven to be effective with other addictions as well. I have no idea if Tiger Woods is 'working the program'. However, his statement included comments that indicate he is. I will not quote the steps in full, but here briefly are the 2 steps I consider as possibilities:

8. Make a list of all persons we had harmed - - -
9.Made direct amends to such people whenever possible- - -.

If he used those 14 minutes to fulfill the goal of the 9th of the 12 Step Program, it would indicate that he feels he has been hurtful to his disappointed fans as well as to his family and friends. The acts of judging, analyzing, moralizing on the part of the media and individuals perhaps tell us more about the speaker/writer than it does about Tiger Woods. Only he can change his wrong choices. Time will tell.

I thank Brad Hirschfield for his compassion in pointing out the lessons we all can learn!

Tiger is sorry that he exposed his wife and girl friends to Hep A, B, C, genital herpes, AIDS and several real bad diseases.
He is angry that he got caught. He is angry at Victoria for leaving a steamy message on his home phone.
Wilt Chamberlain had sex with thousands of women. Now, almost every college has a 7-footer. Tiger wanted to produce so many offspring that every golf course in the country would be terrorized by a sub-par golfer.
If you think Tiger, his wife and girlfriends are upset, wait until all of the lab test results are leaked to the press.

To be fair, the following:

"A meaningless farce - male celebrities have been banging female/male groupies for endless centuries. Why is anyone holding Tiger Woods to a higher standard?"

should be changed to read:

"A meaningless farce- male/female/LGBT celebrities have been banging female/male groupies for endless centuries. Why is anyone holding Tiger Woods, Bill Clinton, John Edwards, Revs. Haggard and Jackson, Henry VIII and most actors and actresses to a higher standard? "

Higher standard? Being honest and practicing self-control are somehow higher standards? These are basic standards most parents try to instill in their children. Having the likes of Tiger Woods et al violating these standards does not help.

A meaningless farce - male celebrities have been banging female/male groupies for endless centuries. Why is anyone holding Tiger Woods to a higher standard?

Total cheap media delusion - let his wife reap the spoils of his infidelity and let the guy get back to golf....which I could care less about.

Woods and his philandering are absolutely of no importance in the national scheme of things - other than as a diversion from insoluble social issues.

The media has become the worst of the worst - pale yellow journalism has turned chrome yellow, and is stupidly uninformative on important issues of the day and the moment.

Rome burned, and burns yet again...........

No apology was due and no apology should have been delivered.

The constant reinforcement of the groundling's notions that they are entitled to stick their noses into other people's business, fed by pandering media, is the poisonous issue here.

It takes two to tango!! What about all the bimbos who "fell" for all his "charm" and money??

You know, it is mindblowing to read the many comments from people who ostensibly claim to know what is in Tiger's heart or what his intentions were or weren't in today's apology. On the one hand, our misplaced sense of entitlement insisted that he owed the public an explanation or apology for his personal transgressions; when he finally did so, it was deemed a) too late, b) not heartfelt enough or c) opportunistic. Can the American public ever be satiated? It is disgusting to me what an unruly, self-entitled, puritanical, judgmental crowd we have become as a society -- all of which applies so long as it doesn't apply to your truly. Disgusting. No wonder polite societies think we are just insufferable.

How many pages has WP wasted on this subject ?
Tiger Wood who ??

Mr Hirshfield: First we must recognize that we are by nature sinners. Jesus Christ when called "good teacher" said no man is good. The Apostle Paul (Romans 3:23) said that "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God". A start for Tiger would be a simple admission of sin (adultry is sin)) and a plea for forgiveness from the One who is able to grant it.

"Tiger's apology and what it teaches"

His PR people are worth every cent that he is paying them.

Tiger Woods felt he was entitled every time he cheated on his wife, and probably now feels like he is still entitled. He is not sorry about what he did. He is sorry he got caught. We are a culture that treats entitled, insensitive, and unethical people like they are children. "I put Polly's braids in the ink well, and now the teacher makes me stand up in front of the class and say I'm sorry to everyone." What nonsense! Tiger Woods like any other adult, who cheats on his spouse, does it because they want to do it! Tiger doesn't need therapy. He needs a set of internal values to guide his behavior. That should have come from his parents along with a set of clubs and golf lessons. Apparently all he got was the golf lessons. That is the lesson in all this for anyone who is interested.

Mr.Hirschfield,
an important concept missing in Tiger's speech and in your article, is The Golden Rule. Had Tiger been from early age an enthusiastic follower of The Golden Rule, he would have hurt fewer or no persons. Yet neither you nor Tiger mentioned that the root of the trouble was the lack of following The Golden Rule. You know very well that The Golden Rule started being practiced in ancient times and in a wide range of cultures.It was first a family rule. Then a rule for a clan. Then a rule for a race. But now why not make it a word wide rule; we all have plenty to gain.