This week, Muhammad Ali passed away at 74.  Ali was a transformative figure well beyond the world of athletics, and became perhaps the most recognized person on the face of the Earth. Muhammad Ali began training as a boxer at age 12. He was a Golden Gloves champion in Kentucky; an Olympic champion in 1960; and heavyweight champion at 22.  In time, he became the unofficial Champion of the World.  In short, Muhammad Ali was a world champion human being.  This is not to say that Ali was perfect. Far from it.  Remember, I said, human being.  I was about 6 years old when Ali won his Olympic gold medal in 1960, so in my life, I have never known a time without Ali.  He was always there, he was always relevant, and he was always controversial.  Now that he’s gone, it’s hard to imagine the world without him.  But the truth is, for a long time, I didn’t like him very much.  Put it down to the prejudice of the times.  In the 1960’s, the country was on fire from coast to coast. Cassius Clay became Muhammad Ali and joined the Black Muslims. At that time, Black Muslims were frightening to many people.  Then there was Ali’s refusal to enter the draft, which turned many people against him. I was one of them.  It took me a long time to fully appreciate what Ali did.  We live in a world where hypocrisy is commonplace and most public figures, or dare I say “celebrities,” are phonies, devoid of any principles.  Some have called Ali a coward for refusing the draft.  That’s simply wrong.  Had he been just another celebrity phony, Ali could have gone into the Army, where he would have been assigned to Special Services to do boxing exhibitions, and in all likelihood, appearances with Bob Hope and Joey Heatherton (remember her? Whew! She’s 71 years old now. Am I an old fart, or what?).  Instead, Ali zealously stood on his religious principles.  He could have left the country.  He didn’t.  He stayed and he faced the music.  He was tried and sentenced to 5 years in prison.  He didn’t skip.  Ali declared, “America is my country, if I have to go to prison, I’ll go, but I won’t leave my country.” He appealed his case all the way to the United States Supreme Court.  By the time that Court finally issued a unanimous decision in his favor, Ali had lost over 4 years of the prime of his career.  Ali didn’t whine and complain.  He went back to work.  He fought.  Perhaps to make up for lost time, he fought much too long, which had a devastating effect on his health. But through it all, he engaged anyone who would listen.  In public, he was known as the Mouth that Roared, and always appeared to be a shameless self-promoter.  His private life was different.  He never forgot the little guy.  And although a Muslim, he didn’t discriminate. He once heard that the residents of a Jewish Old Age Home in the Bronx were about to be evicted. Unsolicited, he paid $450,000 to keep the residents in their homes. He never told anybody about this, or any of his charitable works. Whenever somebody needed help, he helped.  He also knew what he lacked.  Although Muhammad Ali had very little formal education, he knew the value of learning.  Ali told a grade school class in 1971 – “Just get your education, and automation’s taking over today, so get your brains ready.  Choose your profession when you’re young and get working toward it.” That’s good advice in 2016 for all those 5th year college students who have yet to declare a Major. Muhammad Ali always seemed to be a figure who was either worshiped or demonized.  His passing has not changed that fact.  In our obsessively politically correct society, I even have heard critics trying to diminish Ali’s accomplishments by noting that he verbally belittled his opponents before fights.  How unkind.  He did that even before he won he became a champion.  Apparently, these sensitive souls have overlooked the fact that Ali was engaged in a sport whose very object is to physically dominate and intimidate your opponent.  As George Carlin once noted, Ali’s job was beating people up.  The truth is that Ali was neither an angel nor a devil. He was a true champion the likes of whom will never be seen again. When I was a kid, everybody knew about the heavyweight champions; Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis, Rocky Marciano.  Ali fought all comers and his fights even had names, The Thrilla in Manila; the Rumble in the Jungle.  Now, we don’t even know who the champ is.  I had to look it up. Turns out there’s no consensus, it’s either Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua or Deontay Wilder.  Who, who and who? What would we call one of their fights?  The Battle of the Faces on the Milk Carton?  The Fight of the Unknown Boxers?  It really doesn’t matter, because they don’t matter.  Love him or hate him, Muhammad Ali always mattered.  He will be missed.