I hate to agree with Doris Burke, but she's right. I don't see how the league can view this in isolation, then say if any participants are involved in a future incident, this fight will be a factor. Giving Parker a slap on the wrist doesn't help matters.

So will we now see a crackdown by the officials, calling every touch they see? Or maybe they'll (finally) start doing that with Detroit. If Detroit were called for half the fouls they commit, they'd have players fouling out in the first quarter. Without a doubt, they play as rough as the officials will allow, and then some. The result is a bit of a double standard. Teams that aren't known for playing defense by hacking arms will get called, while Detroit gets away with it.

Friday, July 25, noon, newsflash: The Mystics are playing in Atlanta tonight. Nothing on the "*MYSTICS* Insider" blog about it. No game report in the Post after the HOME game against NY on Wednesday.

Is the Post serious about this or not?

I think the writers (Katie & co.) are serious about it. Not sure about the Post, though. And, like it or not, the brawl is the big news in the WNBA right now, and as reporters, they have to cover it. Considering the number of comments on those entries, the fans are interested in that, too.

Sure, I'd love to see more about the Mystics, but my guess is resources are limited because the Post editors don't think there's interest or that the world will end if they don't report on every single second of Redskins training camp.

So, Katie, if you're willing to address this, what can we - the readers - do to get more coverage?

I think that the league's decision was right on. There is no possible way that someone who actually saw the game could legitimately say that Parker deserved the same level of punishment that Pierson deserved. Pierson -- who I actually like a great deal -- was the clear instigator. Furthermore, if Parker had not retaliated in some fashion, she would have had a target on her back forever.

It sounds to me like people are piling onto Parker because of the human tendency to tear down anyone who is riding too high, in their estimation. Most of the anti-Parker sentiment I've heard seems to come from women. And let's be honest about it -- women, in particular, seem to get great joy from tearing down other women who seem to be getting too much attention because they are better and prettier.

The league is finally growing up. It looked at what happened and rendered a decision based on the incident -- rather than on some "school marmish", "Doris Burke-on-steroids" attitude that everyone should be punished equally, regardless of the fault. These are grown women playing a sport where the stakes are high, with all of the pashions that come with that reality. This fight wasn't the first, and it won't be the last.

That's "passion", not "pashion" for all the editors out there. Sorry.

"And let's be honest about it -- women, in particular, seem to get great joy from tearing down other women who seem to be getting too much attention because they are better and prettier."

Devooshka, are you serious? I will be honest about it and disagree vehemently with your assertion.

I watched the game and have watched Parker play throughout her college career. There is no doubt that she is a phenomenal player who is one of the best in the world. But she is not a delicate flower - she is competitive and won't back down when challenged. That's good and bad, and on Tuesday night it fell into the bad category. Perhaps you didn't see when she had to be held back from going after Cheryl Ford?

Parker can be cocky and arrogant, and has the skills to back it up. She will do great things for the WNBA and raise the level of play to new heights. Even people who don't like Parker will grudgingly admit that.

There have been altercations between players before and there will be again, and no doubt Parker will be involved in one or two. The difference with this one was that the benches cleared and so many players were involved, plus Mahorn.

Kande --

You mean the same Cheryl Ford who ripped the ball out of Parker's hands TWICE after the play was called dead? That one?

Oh, and by the way, I never saw Parker hip-check someone to the ground and then press herself between their legs while they were trying to get up from the floor. (I have it on DVR and have watched it several times -- that's exactly what happened). I never called Parker a delicate flower. I never even implied such. Cocky is one thing. Borderline sexual assault is another, and as someone who has never been in a fight before in her life, I can say it -- I'd have reacted just like Parker.

P for perfect, P for Parker... Enough already. The Sparks already have one "perfect angel" (that's sarcasm) in Lisa Leslie. If you doubt me, just ask her. Fact is none of that matters. It's a very competitive sport and one that can become very physical at times. So what? These women play hard and the natural outcome of such competition is understandably frustration on occasion. Of course I do believe that, they, as professionals, should be expected to control themselves as much as possible. I think it's quite a tribute to the professionalism of WNBA players that we have seen so little of this kind of activity during the entire history of the WNBA (use the NBA for comparison...)

Has anyone else reviewed the tapes of the game with an eye toward the officiating and the role the officials might have played in setting the stage for Tuesday night's donnybrook? Let's isolate for a moment good 'ol #58, Josh Tiven. I have seen him muddle his way through several games this year. The first thing my wife and I do when the officials walk onto the floor at Verizon Center is to make sure he is not calling the game. He is almost always behind the play and often over zealous in making calls that have absolutely nothing to do with the flow of the game. On several occasions this season I have watched him hasten to make a call, only to huddle his fellow officials around to make sure of what he should actually call. He is frequently overruled by his fellow crew members and clearly stands out as one of the worst officials in the league (sorry, Josh, I know it must feel terrible to be the worst of a generally very poor groups officials, but I call 'em as I see 'em...) I especially liked his "clear path to the basket" call earlier in Tuesday night's game... Give me (and them) a break!

Don't misunderstand me, I do not excuse the behavior of anyone involved in Tuesday night's brawl, but I do believe that some of the frustration that led to the altercation was a product of justifiable frustration with the officials. How about a technical for Cheryl Ford or Lisa Leslie for any one of their earlier, more minor tantrums? Why not pull the captains aside and warn them and the coaches to control their players as tensions began to rise? Seems all part of good officiating to me. All part of controlling the game; all part of making sure in the end it's good basketball that determines the outcome of a the game and not whistles, knuckles, or fingernails...

cambud99, what in the world are you looking at? I've seen josh tiven referee a bunch of games as well, and i consider him to be one of the BEST in the league! especially for a young official! I go to all the Mystic games and look closely at the officials. I can honestly say i've never seen josh "behind" a play. He's in position 99% of the time. And i've never seen him "huddle his fellow officials together" to check on a call of his. You clearly know nothing about officiating. Funny how two people can look at the same thing and see the complete opposite from one another. And by the way, I don't think you have to apologize to josh for writing what you wrote. I don't think he cares and I highly doubt he'll ever read it. I was also watching the Detroit/L.A game and thought the officiating was very good. Plinette Pierson was about to lose and she couldn't take it. So why not give a shot to the best player on the other team before the game ends? That was her thinking. It had nothing to to do with the officials. I sincerely hope Josh gets assigned to a few more Mystic games before the year ends.