Though he did apologize, New York Islanders goaltender Thomas Greiss doesn’t owe anybody an apology for his actions.
Thomas Greiss has come under fire from the German media these past few days, for reasons having to do with his social media accounts.
According to multiple sources, Greiss ‘liked’ content equating former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to former Nazi Party leader Adolf Hitler. However, the Islanders’ netminder never posted anything that mentioned the infamous German chancellor, these same sources confirmed.
The starting goaltender for Germany at the IIHF World Championship made a public apology, according to Newsday:
“I apologize for interacting with several posts that appeared in my timeline, which were wrong to engage with,” Greiss said through the team, via Arthur Staple of Newsday. “ ‘Liking’ these posts was a mistake, and I sincerely apologize again.”
The New York Islanders organization issued a statement regarding the goalie’s actions as well:
“The New York Islanders do not condone the actions of Thomas Greiss on social media and are addressing the situation internally, and Thomas regrets his actions and recognizes that he made a mistake.”
Truthfully, and not in relation to the content in question, Greiss’ and any other players personal life should not follow them back onto the ice. It’s one thing to publicly associate oneself with the Nazi party, as was hinted to in some German news outlets, but to like an image that is provocative is an excessive tie-in on a point that is not there.
The German-born goaltender simply liked two politically related images. There should be no distinction between his life off the ice and who he is while he wears a uniform. To scrutinize his activity on social media is reaching. Now, it’s understandable that he plays for Team Germany, but nonetheless, to force him to apologize for outstanding opinions that do not reflect back onto the team is simply asinine.
The fact is, what the players do in their private lives, as well as their personal opinions, is none of our business. As long as Greiss doesn’t carry it out onto the ice, which he doesn’t, it is not worth bringing up.
Sorry, but you are wrong. To "like" a picture that compares Hillary Clinton to Hitler may be seen as "freedom of speech" in the US by some, but it's an abuse of that right and everybody knows that. It's neither funny nor true, it's just hate.
Add this to the fact that Greiss is German and "belittlement" of Nazi crimes etc. is against German law and can be punished in Germany, he made an idiotic mistake and the apology was necessary. In Germany, Clinton could even sue Greiss just for the fact that he liked that picture and therefore made its statement his own (according to German law).
Of course it's his own business what he thinks and likes - but if he makes it public, it's public and people will react.