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In a pre-Super Bowl interview on Sunday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell refused to acknowledge that the game of football had any role in the brain injuries suffered by numerous players who are suing the league.

CBS host Bob Schieffer asked Goodell if he would let his son play football after President Barack Obama recently told The New Republic that he would have to "think long and hard" before letting his son play football.

"Absolutely," the NFL commissioner insisted. "I have twin daughters just like the president, and I'm concerned when they play any sport. The second-highest incidents of concussions is actually girls soccer. So what you have to do is to make sure the game is as safe as possible. In the NFL, we're changing the rules, we're making sure the equipment is the best possible equipment, we're investing in research to make sure we can address concussions, not just to make football safer at the NFL level, but all levels in other sports."

"Do you now acknowledge that there is a link between the game and these concussions?" Schieffer pressed, noting that widows of NFL players had urged him to ask the question.

"That's why we're investing in the research," Goodell replied without fully answering the question. "So that we can answer the question, what is the link? What causes some of the injuries that our players are still dealing with? And we take those issues very seriously."

"For years the league would not acknowledge, really, that there was a connection," Schieffer pointed out. "You now acknowledge that there is a connection?"

"Well, Bob, again, we're going to let the medical individuals make those points," Goodell dodged. "We're going to give them the money, advance that science. In the meantime, we have to do everything we can to advance the game and make sure it's safe."

In fact, studies have shown that contact sports like football are linked to concussions, and NFL players are at a higher risk for Alzheimer's, ALS, abnormal brain proteins and depression.

Last year, more than 2,000 former professional football players filed a lawsuit accusing the NFL concealing information about the link between concussions and long-term brain injuries. And the family of former linebacker Junior Seau is also suing the league, alleging that his suicide was linked to concussions sustained while playing the game.

But for his part, Goodell insisted on Sunday that his organization had no role in concealing the risks of concussions.

"In fact, we're all learning more about brain injuries, and the NFL has led the way," he declared. "We started a concussion committee back in the mid-90s with the players' association to study these issues and advance science. We're obviously now learning more and more, and we're investing more and more. And I think that's going to lead to answers, even outside of brain injury, even to brain disease."

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Fox News host Dana Perino engaged in some victim blaming on Wednesday when she declared that women who had suffered from violence should "make better decisions."

The conservative hosts of Fox News' The Five on Wednesday continued their week-long effort to defend gun culture in the wake of a murder/suicide involving NFL football player Jovan Belcher and his girlfriend, Kasandra Perkins, by claiming that "bedding" and vehicles were more deadly than guns.

"This isn't an issue about gun control," co-host Kimberly Guilfoyle insisted. "This is an issue about domestic violence and a man who had a troubled past; had a history documented of being, unfortunately, sadly, abusive to women; an inability to be able to control his temper and his emotions; a lack of impulse control."

"I'm glad you brought that up," Perino remarked. "On the same day that Jovan Belcher committed this crime, there was a man who beat his wife with a baseball bat and killed her. Okay? He wasn't a pro football player, he doesn't drive a Bentley, didn't make millions of dollars. But on the same day -- that's why I think talking about the gun culture so-called issue is actually a copout and not dealing with the real issue about mental health, anger management and domestic violence."

"Can you name me one person you know that saved their lives by a handgun?" liberal co-host Bob Beckel asked.

"Bob, I think that skirts the issue that women are victims of violence all the time," Perino replied.

"Should have guns," co-host Greg Gutfeld interrupted.

"Or maybe make better decisions," Perino added.

"Why don't we just strap a gun on everybody and walk around the street?" Beckel quipped.

"It'd be safer," co-host Eric Bolling asserted.

"Beautiful!" Gutfeld exclaimed.

(h/t: Media Matters)

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Fox News co-host Greg Gutfeld on Tuesday seemed to find something amusing the deaths of children in cities like Chicago as he asserted that all 17 year olds killed by guns were in gangs.

Fox News' The Five devoted a segment of their Tuesday show to talking about what -- other than a gun -- contributed to the tragic murder/suicide involving NFL football player Jovan Belcher and his girlfriend, Kasandra Perkins.

Co-host Dana Perino noted that Rush Limbaugh, who has been divorced three times, suggested that there might have been a better outcome "if there had been a marriage."

"There are many babies born out of wedlock in -- all across America and all races, in particular in African-American families and growing in Hispanic and White families as well," Perino explained.

"In this case, there's no doubt in my mind that alcohol played a direct result in this guy shooting his girlfriend and shooting himself," co-host Bob Beckel remarked. "I don't think anybody -- myself included, who's a recovering alcoholic -- anybody who has a history of alcoholism should not -- underscore -- not be allowed to buy guns."

"Okay, but we already did the gun argument," Perino said, attempting to change the subject.

"Bob, it's not the gun," co-host Eric Bolling volunteered. "It's fast money, it's quick celebrity, it's alcohol, it could be brain injury, it's the decay of the America family, it's all of them. But you can't blame the gun. Just can't blame the microphone when [sports broadcaster Bob] Costas says something really ridiculous. It's not the gun."

"I'm glad Costas used the opportunity to get to it and I'm going to continue to use it right now," Beckel continued. "The fact is there are more kids killed in this country..."

"What do you mean by kids, by the way?" co-host Greg Gutfeld shouted. "Give me an age!"

"Children, five to 17," Beckel replied.

"What do you think that's from?" Gutfeld asked. "Why don't you just say what it is? What's a 17 year old who's killed by a gun? What do you call that, Bob? That's called gang violence. Where does that occur? Chicago. There you go. Welcome to Chicago."

"That's ridiculous," Beckel insisted as Gutfeld began to smile. "All industrial countries combined have less deaths of children than the United States."

"When you say kids, it's 17 year olds in gangs," said a grinning Gutfeld. "We're talking about gang violence. Where does most of the gang violence occur? In gangs."

"I didn't say gang violence," Beckel pointed out.

"Look, I'm right on this," Gutfeld quipped with a hearty laugh.

According to the Children's Defense Fund, two-thirds of the 5,740 children and teens killed by guns in 2008 and 2009 were victims of homicide. About one-quarter were victims of suicide. And another 5 percent died from gun accidents or other unknown causes. During that same period, 173 preschoolers were killed by guns, compared with 89 law enforcement officers who were killed in the line of duty.

(h/t: Media Matters)

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As The Daily Show's Jon Stewart noted in his show's opening this Wednesday evening, it wasn't the Chicago teachers' union strike, or workers rioting at the Foxconn factory in China that piqued the interest of Americans concerned about ongoing labor disputes. No, it was the NFL referees strike lockout and some really horrible calls by the replacement refs that got the nation's attention.

Stewart went on to mock Paul Ryan and his absolutely ridiculous analogy, where he tried to compare the Obama administration to the problems with the replacement referees. And they wrapped things up with Patrick Stewart showing up as a replacement worker for Daily Show regular John Oliver, who Stewart wanted to hire in his place and permanently replace him -- only to have his plans dashed when Oliver showed up to explain that the strike was a joke and with Patrick Stewart calling for a wildcat strike when he found out what Oliver was being paid.

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Baltimore Raven's linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo recently caught the ire of State Rep Emmett C. Burns, Jr for having the temerity to speak out in favor of Maryland's ballot initiative for marriage equality. Rep. Burns even wrote a letter to his boss, the team owner Steve Bisciotti requesting that, and I quote, "I am requesting that you take the necessary action ... to inhibit such expressions from your employee."

Minnesota punter Chris Kluwe heard about this and wrote his own hilarious, profanity-filled letter back to Mr Burns in response. The complete letter (via Deadspin) is below the fold, but here is a snippet:

I can assure you that gay people getting married will have zero effect on your life. They won't come into your house and steal your children. They won't magically turn you into a lustful cockmonster. They won't even overthrow the government in an orgy of hedonistic debauchery because all of a sudden they have the same legal rights as the other 90 percent of our population—rights like Social Security benefits, child care tax credits, Family and Medical Leave to take care of loved ones, and COBRA healthcare for spouses and children. You know what having these rights will make gays? Full-fledged American citizens just like everyone else, with the freedom to pursue happiness and all that entails. Do the civil-rights struggles of the past 200 years mean absolutely nothing to you?

Kluwe went on The Ed Show tonight to explain why he wrote the letter. Kluwe had also spoken out recently against a marriage amendment in Minnesota which will be on the ballot in November.

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Jon Stewart returned from vacation this Tuesday night and responded to the article he read at the Huffington Post where Fox News chief Roger Ailes went after Stewart for admitting he's a "Socialist" and wouldn't do well without Fox. What we got in response was Stewart doing a really good job of explaining why being called a Socialist should not be a pejorative.

As far as not having enough material for his show if Fox did not exist, I'm sure Fox existing makes his job as a comedian easier, but as long as we've got wingnut politicians who are on the air either at the other networks or on C-SPAN spouting nonsense from the House or Senate floor, I don't think Stewart is in danger of running out of new material that's ripe for mockery any time soon.

After having a bit of fun with his "scenario" about what actually happened during that meeting with Ailes, Stewart went on to explain just what he meant by his remarks and what he considers "Socialism" such as protecting things like Social Security and Medicare.

He also took some shots at Republicans for pretending the health care law, or "Obamacare" is that dreaded "s- word", Socialism:

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