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Josh Hamilton Should Learn Lesson From Whitney Houston, Says Ignorant Forbes Writer

With many people across the world still reeling from the tragic death of Whitney Houston on Saturday, it was only a matter of time before opinions began to rattle off about what happened to Houston and her impact on an entire generation of music fans. Sure, we know she lived a precarious lifestyle but with the cause of death unknown it would seem to be foolish to draw any conclusions as to why she passed and what it means.

Of course, that didn't stop one writer from Forbes to try to force a parallel between Houston and Texas Rangers star outfielder Josh Hamilton.

Patrick Rishe of Forbes says that Hamilton could benefit from reading about the life of Whitney Houston, since she had her issues with substance abuse in the past and its something that Hamilton is currently dealing with. Here, Rishe points out to the new hire of Shayne Kelley and his role of "chaperone" for Hamilton and insists that Kelley point the Rangers' center fielder to do some research on Houston:

Perhaps, Mr. Kelley, you should have Mr. Hamilton sit down and read all about the rise and fall of Ms. Houston. Have him YouTube some of her best performances when she was at the height of her career, and then look-up photos and videos of her during her troubled times.

Because this will remind Mr. Hamilton that nothing is forever and that substance abuse destroys.

While Rishe's premise seems genuine, its tough to take the entire article seriously since the cause of Houston's death hasn't been released yet. Moreover, it doesn't seem like Hamilton needs a history lesson versus needing a support base. A quality mentor, good friends and a family that believes in him would be a good star versus hearing love ballads from the 80's that could possibly make even the most upbeat person a bit sad.

Of course, this Forbes writer coincidentally seems more worried about Hamilton squandering his money versus righting the ship in just a passing mention.

For more on Josh Hamilton and the Texas Rangers be sure to check out Lone Star Ball. For more MLB news and analysis head on over to SB Nation's Major League Baseball hub.

Photographs by jamesbrandon, jdtornow, phlezk, flygraphix, mcdlttx, tomasland, and literalbarrage used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.