Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost.

Now, I know it’s a national pastime to criticize referees. But for some reason, I’ve never been all that big into it. I mean, never in my heart have I ever believed that the Dolphins won or lost a game based on a poor referee call. I recognize the fact that I’m emotionally involved and probably not thinking clearly and objectively. When I have seen questionable calls in the past, I recognize that…well…stuff happens. And that—over time—these bad calls tend to balance out. Miami gets screwed one week, but gets away with one the next week. It’s how things work. Never have I ever detected an intentional slant by the officiating crew towards one team.

Yesterday, however, I had no emotional investment one way or the other. I wanted Seahawks to win for Mike Holmgren, and Darrell Jackson, and Shaun Alexander. I wanted Pittsburgh to win for Bill Cowher, Jerome Bettis, and Hines Ward (and the AFC!) . What I did not want to see was the Seahawks lose because of a concerted effort on the referees’ part. I’ve never seen anything like it, and frankly, I’m shocked that it can happen in an organization like the NFL.

I know that I’m talking like a crazed conspiracy wacko, but I think the evidence is overwhelming:

• The ludicrous offensive pass interference call on D-Jack in the endzone.
• The phantom holding call when Jerramy Stevens caught the long ball on the one-yard line.
• The Benefit-of-the-Doubt call given to Roethlisberger’s “Touchdown” run, after the ref had to think about it for a while.
• The penalty called on Warrick’s (?) return that made it down to the Steelers' 45 yard line.
• The numerous convenient penalties that arose whenever the Seahawks had momentum.

So the question arises: What does the NFL have to benefit from the Steelers winning the Super Bowl that’s worth risking the integrity of the league? Well, lots:

• Bill Cowher gets his first SB win.
• Jerome Bettis retires a hero.
• Hines Ward gets his well-deserved SB win.
• The Ben Roethlisberger fairy tale continues unabated.
• One of the top 5 teams in selling merchandise gets to sell a whole new slew of “SB Champion” t-shirts.
• The AFC gets to continue its dominance over the NFC for another year.
• Detroit is spared being lit on fire by all the Steelers’ fans who made the 4-hour trip to Ford Field.

The game, for me, was flat-out embarrassing. And I feel that I was cheated out of seeing these two teams compete on a level playing field.

I think my good friend, Troy, sums it up nicely:

I find that the Steelers fans are saying "Well, the calls were questionable" or "well, the call could have really gone either way." The Seahawk fans are saying... nothing, because I have yet to find one. And the rest of the people I talk to are saying...'wow, those calls were really bad'. I could not believe what I was seeing. I was actually even shocked to see the Hasselbeck fumble reversed, even though I knew that it should have been. With unbiased officiating, this game should have been a tie at worst for the Seahawks. In reality, the Seahawks would most likely have won. I am embarrassed for the league, for the refs, and for the Steelers. I really hope that Cowher or someone owns up to the fact that the game was handed to them. I doubt it will happen, but I can dream.

No doubt.