WASHINGTON WATCH: NIKE POKES FINGER IN EYE OF CHRISTMAS CHEER

Before you buy that next pair of Nike shoes -- I wear Air Pegasus -- ask yourself if you really want to encourage the message this company is sending American children during what is supposed to be a season of peace, joy and brotherly love. I'm referring to Nike's TV commercials featuring Dennis Rodman, the shock jock of the NBA. Although the game's best rebounder the past three years, Rodman is most famous for his bad-boy reputation. He fouls hard and is ejected often. This week, he returned to the NBA after serving several games in suspension -- and blowing his teammates off for a dozen more.

Apparently, Nike thinks this kind of conduct should serve as role model for the kids.

If you haven't seen the commercial, here's the general replay:Rodman, with trademark hair dyed white, shows up in a department store wearing a nose ring. He pushes aside waiting children and tells the store's Santa that he wants new shoes.

Santa tells the menacing Rodman that he led the NBA in personal fouls, and there is a film clip of Rodman viciously hitting an opponent. Santa then tells Rodman he led the league in ejections, and there is a clip of Rodman being tossed from a game. Finally, Santa tells Rodman he didn't follow rules, he skipped practices and was suspended. Clips of other Rodman violence follows.

Rodman, smiling, replies, "But I led the league in rebounds." Santa turns to an elf and tells him, "Okay, give him the shoes."

It's a lousy and destructive commercial, and Nike deserves the increasing protests around the country because of it. One person who has come out loudly against the commercial is NBA general manager Wayne Embry of the Cleveland Cavaliers. In an interview with the Akron Beacon Journal, Embry lamented the commercial's portrayal of discipline and success.

"What kind of message is that?" he asked. "That it doesn't matter what you do? That the rules don't apply? That you don't need discipline? Everything is fine if you have enough rebounds? I was offended by this, both as a basketball man and as an African American."

I'm neither, but it disgusted me too. Is it any wonder that violence committed by boys and young men is exploding in America? Nike isn't the main cause, nor television itself. But they help set the stage. Dennis Rodman, of course, sees it differently. Asked about the commercial earlier this week, he said:"Kids love it. They love that kind of stuff. It's a twist, that's all. Everybody wants me to be real nice, mild-mannered, be the good guy. No, it's all about TV."

There are no guidelines for Dennis Rodman, period. I'm going to do what I'm going to do. I do it in a wild, crazy, flamboyant way -- a don't-give-a-damn-way. I just go out there and give it all I got. Don't care what happens, just do it. If you don't like it, tough.

"My teammates should love it. They should feed off it. Everybody loves it, the fans love it."

Not this one.

Next time I'm in the market for shoes, it won't be Nike. Our society is troubled with too much "just do it" nowadays. Too much "don't give a damn." If there is hope for a better future, it must begin with self-discipline and personal responsibility. Nike's commercials just don't get it.

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Since I'm talking basketball, I'd like to recommend a movie that probably won't make it to Cape Girardeau for very long, if it makes it at all. It's called "Hoop Dreams," and it is an absolutely gripping documentary about two kids who use basketball to try to escape dead-end lives in the inner city of Chicago. Even if you are not a basketball fan, it is a must see.

In a curious twist of fate, one of the young men in the film ends up playing ball and studying at a junior college not far from Cape Girardeau. I won't tell you which school so as not to spoil the surprise. The young man's name is Arthur Agee, however, and he is a senior now at Arkansas State.

Jon K. Rust is a Washington-based writer for the Southeast Missourian.