Yesterday we had a feel-good story story about a world-ranked high school high jumper from a no-name place in western Colorado. Today’s is a feel-bad story – a cautionary tale.

I wrote a few days ago about another victim of gambling, a young NBA player, banned for life, for violating “gaming rules.” (Can you say, “Bet on himself to underperform”? That’s gambling, not gaming.) It was Jontay Porter, brother of Michael Porter, Jr., who is a key part of the NBA Champion Denver Nuggets.

When it rains, it pours, Michael has another brother, Coban, who was just sentenced to six years in prison…

…for a drunken driving crash that killed a woman in Colorado last year.

The January 2023 crash in Denver killed Kathy Limon Rothman and seriously injured her passenger. Porter…caused the crash after he ran a red light and slammed into the other vehicle… According to The Denver Post, prosecutors on Friday said Porter was speeding and had a blood alcohol level of .19, more than twice the legal limit of .08. – ESPN, April 19, 2024

And it’s exactly as I told my Air Force students back in the day: “If you drink and drive, I’m not worried about how much you might be fined or that you might mess up your career. I’m worried that you might kill someone.” Coban Porter remorsefully grasped the gravity of what he had done:

All I can really say is that I’m sorry. I know that I’m never going to be able to right that wrong. … I never thought I’d be standing here. I thought I was invincible. It wasn’t the first time I chose to drink and drive. I’m so sorry.

And the problem is that it’s hard to watch any sporting event without being encouraged to drink beer and gamble. Alcohol consumption is also a conspicuous and expected part of most TV dramas, even for our favorite characters. These behaviors have egregious downsides, but they are encouraged and normalized at every turn. And young people, like Coban, are paying the price, along with his victims.

These vices aren’t new…

For behold, in those days and at that time, when I restore the fortunes of Judah and Jerusalem, I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. And I will enter into judgment with them there, on behalf of my people and my heritage Israel, because they have scattered them among the nations and have divided up my land, and have cast lots for my people [gambling], and have traded a boy for a prostitute [sex], and have sold a girl for wine and have drunk it [alcohol]. (Joel 3.1 – 3, ESV)

Speaking of gambling, sex, and alcohol, I found it interesting that a research study on church attendance reported the following:

The intensity of religious observance correlates with a host of other activities. For example, relative to non-attenders and infrequent attenders, frequent religious attenders are less likely to go to strip clubs, liquor stores, and casinos. – Religious Worship Attendance in America: Evidence from Cellphone Data

I’m glad for the result, and I’m intrigued that this research study identified the same “big three” vices: sex, alcohol, and gambling.

Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise. (Proverbs 20.1, ESV)

Leaders can’t afford to make fools of themselves, gulping wine and swilling beer, lest, hung over, they don’t know right from wrong, and the people who depend on them are hurt. (Proverbs 31.4 – 5, MSG)

PS I’m well aware that it is possible to drink alcohol in moderation and not be a danger to others. However, this article from UC Health, a network of hospitals, should give one pause. The main idea?

The newest research shows alcohol use is not good for your health. Even red wine has lost its halo, and the toll of heavy alcohol use is on the rise.

PPS Yesterday, yet another brother of Michael Porter, Jr., the Porter brother and NBA star who is NOT in trouble, was arrested for DWI:

The younger brother of Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. was arrested early Sunday morning in Missouri on investigation of driving while intoxicated. Jevon Porter, 20, was arrested at 1:31 a.m. in Boone County, Missouri. Porter, who was released, also was accused of speeding. – Denver Post, May 1, 2024

You would think that Jevon’s brother Cabon’s 6-year sentence for killing someone while he was DWI would give him pause. Apparently not.

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction…They hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices. (Proverbs 1.7…29 – 31, ESV)