While most people will forever remember Super Bowl XLVI as that time that the New England Patriots still couldn’t beat the New York Giants, a few people out there still might talk about it as that time that rapper M.I.A. flipped off the camera and mouthed “I don’t give a sh*t.” Actually, those people do exist and they’re lawyers, because the NFL and M.I.A. are still locked in a bitter battle over that stupid, forgettable moment.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, the NFL is still suing M.I.A. (real name Mathangi Arulpragasam) for $1.5 million and a public apology because nobody defiles a wholesome family-oriented NFL broadcast. NOBODY. Except for the players, coaches and owners, according to M.I.A.’s attorney, Howard King.
“She is going to go public with an explanation of how ridiculous it was for the NFL and its fans to devote such furor to this incident, while ignoring the genocide occurring in her home country and several other countries, topics she frequently speaks to,” King says.
“Of course, the NFL’s claimed reputation for wholesomeness is hilarious,” King tells THR, “in light of the weekly felonies committed by its stars, the bounties placed by coaches on opposing players, the homophobic and racist comments uttered by its players, the complete disregard for the health of players and the premature deaths that have resulted from same, and the raping of public entities ready to sacrifice public funds to attract teams.”
King is also calling on fans (or more likely people who hate the NFL) to submit videos and other examples of “how the actions of the NFL, its stars, coaches, advertisers, broadcasters, team doctors and owners have damaged or destroyed any vestiges of any reputation for wholesomeness ever enjoyed by the NFL.” And there are plenty.
I’m pretty torn on this whole thing, because on one hand, this is old f*cking news already. On the other hand, M.I.A. knew what she was doing and she knew it was wrong, and last time I checked, flipping the bird live during the biggest sporting event of the year has never made someone say, “You know what? You’re right, I should stop being evil.” However, on one foot I’m an NFL fan, and on the other foot, I get the whole “Roger Goodell is a hilariously terrible hypocrite” routine.
So I don’t really know how to feel about this and will simply forget about it by the middle of next week. Great job, everyone.
