Conspiracies start quickly.
The story broke on Friday morning that billionaire Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots, was caught in a prostitution sting operation in Florida. Dozens of men have been arrested, with warrants out for nearly two hundred more… and more warrants may be coming.
Another prominent person caught in the sting is Johnny DelPrete, long-time boyfriend of LPGA star Jessica Korda.
These are all facts. More facts continue to be released.
One reporter, Adam Schefter from ESPN, released some second-hand information on television. “Robert Kraft is not the biggest name involved down there.” “Involved” means involved in human trafficking.
Note, he is not talking about this specific bust. He’s talking about human trafficking.
Nevertheless it was enough to start people speculating. Because of the connections to Kraft, their poor histories with relationships and properties owned in the vicinity, Donald Trump and Rush Limbaugh were among the most popular assumptions of who the likeliest”bigger names” would be.
This, in the combination of limited available information and massive publicity, is where conspiracies breed.
But the “secret” identity of at least one more famous name is not the only seed of conspiracy here.
Defenders of Kraft like Tucker Carlson and enemies of Roger Goodell like Barstool Sports’ Dave Portnoy have joined in suggesting that Kraft is being unfairly treated… possibly by being set up by Goodell.
There’s nothing wrong with speculation. It must be done, however, with a recognition that speculation on its own has no absolute bearing on the truth. More information will be coming out about this. It is the duty of any person who is theorizing to drop their pet suspicion and accept reality as it is presented.
People who suggest specific names about the “bigger names” quote are granting absolute authority to a person who is admitting he’s getting the information from another source, and who is not even stating it’s definitely associated to this case. If no names of greater prominence are released among the perpetrators, it will not mean that there was a cover-up. It will mean that either his source was wrong, or he was correct but the people in question have an operation unrelated to the Kraft bust.
And when more than 200 other people are caught in a sting operation and people who are stuck in sexual slavery are freed, this is not a “setup”, and Robert Kraft is not the victim.
