NFL Steelers star ‘Big Ben’ Roethlisberger scolded by governor for getting haircut in violation of lockdown

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Call it the haircut heard ’round the country, as NFL star player Ben Roethlisberger decided it was time for a trim.

In violation of “state rules,” the Pittsburgh Steelers star quarterback broke pandemic restrictions recently by paying a visit to an Allegheny County barbershop, according to Fox News.

A visit that drew a rebuke from Pennsylvania’s Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf.

The Steelers shared a video online Monday of Roethlisberger throwing passes to his teammates JuJu Smith-Schuster, Ryan Switzer, and James Conner.

The player, who had season-ending surgery on his elbow last year, had pledged not to cut his hair until he could throw a “legit NFL pass” to a teammate, as seen in the video.

Upon realizing that goal, “Big Ben,” as Roethlisberger is known, is captured sitting in a barbershop getting a hair cut and a trim of his beard.

This is were Gov. Wolf comes in, as the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette asked the governor at a briefing if the barber will “face disciplinary action [and] is the state investigating?”

Hey, this is what passes as “journalism” these days — as if Pennsylvania doesn’t have more pressing priorities amid a national crisis.

“My concern is just a general concern,” Wolf replied. “Anybody who puts himself or herself into harm’s way is something that I think we have to try to avoid. When you go to something like a barbershop and you’re not protected, I don’t care who you are, the chances of that virus actually wreaking havoc on your life increases.

“I don’t personally think any Pennsylvanian ought to take that chance,” he continued. “I certainly don’t want to take that chance myself.”

Of course, there was nothing to indicate that the barbershop was open to the public, and the owner’s attorney, Marc Kohnen, confirmed in a statement that it was not.

“Carlos Norman has been a community fixture and local business owner since 1993. Norman’s Cuttin’ Edge Barber Shop has been closed for business since the governor’s shut-down order, and presently remains closed, in full compliance with the law and state regulations,” the statement said.

“Mr. Norman and Mr. Roethlisberger are close personal friends,” the release added, “and Mr.Norman’s use of his free time during closure to provide haircut to his friend was a personal favor where no money was received or exchanged.”

“We should all look within ourselves to celebrate and be thankful for the existence of family, community and personal friends to lend a hand in each of our lives at this time rather than promote stories that divide us,” the statement concluded.

The response seen online suggested that there was far more outrage over the heavy-handed actions of government officials than a man giving a friend a haircut.

Here’s a sampling from Twitter:

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