I wish baseball would reinstate Pete Rose and make him eligible for the Hall of Fame. That way, at least we could finally stop arguing about this issue that never, ever goes away. No matter how much we all want it to disappear.

I know, I know. It's my column, I don't have to write about Pete if I don't want to. Which isn't really true. It's like telling off-duty cops that they should ignore an assault within their sight. Or telling off-duty paramedics that they should just walk away from a heart attack victim. Or telling Robin Williams to be serious for a minute. To paraphrase my colleague, Jayson Stark, if it weren't for Pete Rose, half the sports talk radio shows would go out of business for lack of controversy.

They're not alone, though. When it comes to Rose, no one can shut up, myself included. There's just something about the guy that pushes everyone's buttons. And so, here I go again.

If (Pete) Rose makes amends, let him make public appearances on behalf of baseball. Let him be a broadcast analyst. Heck, let him wear a chicken suit and run around the field. Let's just get this controversy over with.

First, I don't know why Rose remains so stubbornly popular. He broke baseball's cardinal rule. He bet on his own team. He did time for cheating on his income tax. He was a hot dog of the first order, charges outrageous sums for his autograph and is arrogantly unrepentant.

And people still love the guy.

I wonder if they still would love him so much if John Dowd's recent accusations are correct that Rose bet against the Reds. It probably wouldn't make any difference. Two things are clear on this issue. People love arguing about it and almost everyone made up their mind long ago. If you're anti-Rose, you not only never want him back in the game, you want all his baseball cards burned, too. And if you're pro-Rose, you not only want him in the Hall of Fame, you want him back in the dugout managing the Reds.

So what should Bud Selig do? Absolutely nothing. Not until Rose apologizes for the stain he left on the game and makes amends. If he does, Selig then should allow him to be placed on the ballot for the Hall of Fame. Under those circumstances, I would vote for the man with more hits than anyone else. I also would want Rose's plaque to state that he was banned from baseball for betting on his team.

(The same does not apply to Joe Jackson. The difference between betting on baseball and taking money to throw the World Series is wider than the difference between Jason and Jeremy Giambi.)

Should Rose be allowed back in baseball, though? Well, not to get all Clinton-like, but that depends on what you mean by "back in baseball.''

Rule 21 clearly states that a player, manager or club official who gambles on a game involving his team will face a lifetime ban from the game. But as far as I can tell, the rule does not specify the ban's furthest extension.

Does the ban limit Rose simply from playing baseball or from other roles as well? From managing or coaching baseball? From working as an advance scout? From being employed by a team? Probably all of those. But does it ban him from working as a broadcaster for an independent network? From representing a player as an agent? From working in baseball as an independent contractor? From sitting next to Peter Gammons on "Baseball Tonight''?

These are very important distinctions to consider. Even then-commissioner Bart Giamatti limited the ban somewhat when he announced it in 1989 by telling reporters that Rose would be eligible for the Hall of Fame, the same as everyone else (the league later ruled that he was not eligible). And the agreement Rose signed also says that he may apply for reinstatement from the ineligible list (which he has).

Obviously, whether the ban is lifted or not, Rose should never be allowed back as a manager or coach or anyone who could have a direct impact on any game. He is a compulsive gambler and someone with a gambling problem cannot be allowed to have anything to do with the outcome of any game.

But that doesn't mean he can't have any role at all.

The way the ban works now, Rose wasn't even allowed to appear on the field during a ceremony for the final game at old Riverfront Stadium. Such a policy is not only petty and mean-spirited, it deprives fans of what they want to see. It also helps turn Rose into a sympathetic figure, which he should not be. If baseball can somehow find a corporate loophole for allowing Rose to appear on the field as long as a credit card company is paying it to do so, it should allow him to appear regularly in other roles as well.

So, if Rose makes amends, let him make public appearances on behalf of baseball. Let him be a broadcast analyst. Heck, let him wear a chicken suit and run around the field.

Let's just get this controversy over with.