Six red cards were handed out in MLS this past weekend, and the resulting firestorm (relatively speaking; I don't think it was a topic on Around the Horn) has me thinking...

The general and overwhelming consensus is that MLS referees are extremely poor; Toronto and Columbus supporters don't agree on much, but my guess is they would agree that officiating in the league leaves much to be desired. The same goes for fans all around the league, not to mention most of the media.

Referees make easy targets for all segments of the soccer community, and so I'm often slightly slower to condemn them than others might be. Too often our allegiances color our perception, and we're not as even-handed with our assessments as we should be.

Not that I'm saying I think MLS refs are good; quite the contrary. I just don't want to jump to conclusions as so many seem to do. Every league on the planet has inconsitency issues with their officiating, and it's easy to yell and scream about fallible men who will never be perfect.

Case in point: MLS referees are being taken to task over a weekend of "poor" officiating by some, while other see the step up in discipline as a sign that the refs are finally taking steps to rid the league of overly rough play.

Sure, there's a lot more of the former out there than the latter, but it's still out there (may provide links later; can't take the time to hunt them down right now). The question is, which is the truth?

Without going into specific detail on each card (although we can throw out Keller's, which was clearly deserved and not related to a foul or violent challenge), it's difficult for me to form an opinion; I wasn't able to see every match in question anyway.

What are you thoughts? Do you see this as just another week of bad MLS officiating, or is there something to be said for "cracking down"?