Rose should be applauded for this move, too

A Monday afternoon report finally gave some critics something to criticize Derrick Rose for.

The Bulls’ precocious point guard reportedly will attend a Barack Obama fundraiser Thursday at Navy Pier.

To some basketball fans, Rose should be focusing on the imminent NBA playoffs rather than on politics.

To some Republicans, if Rose is going to pick sides it should be with their party.

To some in the media, something will be wrong just for something to be wrong.

To me, hurrah for Derrick Rose!

As smarmy as political fundraisers can be, they’re still a half step above other athlete hangouts like strip clubs and reality-TV shows.

I applaud Rose not as any sort of political statement. An event for Sarah Palin would be OK, too.

If Rose is a photo op for a Democrat one day, a Republican the next, then back, then forth, then an Independent … whatever he feels at any particular time is acceptable.

Politics are fluid. Wasn’t Ronald Reagan a Democrat before becoming a Republican? When Charles Barkley’s mother said voting Republican is for rich people didn’t he say, “But mama, we are rich now”?

If Rose wants to be for smaller government or bigger government, for or against the wars, for collective bargaining or weaker unions … good for him for caring about something bigger than basketball.

If a person — any person in any field who believes in something and wants to be influential — all the more power to him or her. Heck, if Rose just wants to see from the inside what a political fundraiser is like, that’s a good sign too.

Derrick Rose isn’t the first athlete I thought would become publicly involved in an event like this.

Rose’s reputation is all basketball all the time. But he does have outside interests, including maximizing his income outside of the game.

In a way, that’s the shocker. Nobody wanted to increase his financial net worth more than Michael Jordan, whose strategy included avoiding public stands on social or political causes.

This always seemed odd. A lot of courageous men and women, including Jordan’s college coach Dean Smith, took stands on controversial issues that helped pave the way for His Airness.

I don’t know what Jordan should have supported. Champion something, though. Use that sports pulpit to support cancer research or literacy or something or anything.

Jordan didn’t, at least not overtly, which I guess was OK. If he isn’t comfortable speaking out he shouldn’t. Meanwhile, Rose should if he’s comfortable doing so.

Who knows what Rose’s motivation is for attending the fundraiser? Maybe a little wager was made when he and Obama played pickup basketball together. You know, like if Obama made a single basket, Rose would have to attend a fundraiser, and then the President closed his eyes, sank a 20-footer and won the bet.

Seriously, most surprising is that Rose is doing what he’s doing at his age. He’s a young basketball player, much less a young activist.

At 22 my most pressing social issue was lowering the drinking age to 18 so the freshman girl I was dating could get into taverns.

Derrick Rose is ahead of the game of basketball and now perhaps this new game he’ll play this week, too.

mimrem@dailyherald.com