Posted on 02/02/2013 9:41:19 PM PST by Olog-hai
On Sunday perhaps the biggest audience ever to see a Super Bowl will gather in front of televisions for parties of their own. The game has become America’s unofficial national holiday, its tradition of chip eating, beer drinking and commercial watching as deeply ingrained in the country’s fabric as turkey and stuffing.
We celebrate the game even as it takes a brutal toll on those who play it. Football is a hurt business, and the biggest cheers on Sunday will be for those who deliver the biggest hits. …
It’s hard to comprehend, and it may be the ultimate paradox. But football itself could be the one thing that kills the NFL.
Baltimore safety Bernard Pollard suggested the other day that it just might, calling the on-field violence “a car accident every play” and expressing fear that one day a player might die on the field. This, from a player who was fined for a helmet-to-helmet hit on Patriots receiver Wes Welker in the AFC championship game and is considered one of the hardest hitters out there.
President Barack Obama, meanwhile, says if he had a son he would “have to think long and hard” about letting him play football. …
(Excerpt) Read more at hosted.ap.org ...
It was inevitable that the American Communist Progressive Democratic Socialist Party would begin to attack the American institution of football.
Perhaps we could use this against them and ask each and every candidate for public office their opinion of this great American institution. Perhaps the sheeple would pay more attention to such as issue than they do to “unimportant” ones such as the national debt, entitlement spending, income redistribution, open borders, destruction of the U.S. military and all the rest of the actions the American Communist Progressive Democratic Socialist Party is taking to deliberately destroy the U.S.
Good thing these guys weren’t around when they developed coal mining.
We’d still be burning wood.
The liberals are killing everything. They don’t call them the Culture of Death for nothing.
It already happened.
IIRC it was in a collage game between Harvard and some other school back in the early 1900's. It horrified people to the point that they began changing the rules to prevent it from happening again.
Back then the problem was a lack of protective equipment. Today it is a over abundance of it.
Take a look a Rugby a game that is very rough and tumble yet has less major injuries. The difference is that in Rugby you don't wear protective gear. So if you bang your head against another players head it is going to hurt. So you don't do it.
Something to think about.
No. it isn't the biggest hits or worst crashes, it's the biggest run backs, the miraculous runs for a first down, the last lap passes and the turn four slides.
It is avoiding the crash, avoiding the "big hits", and it's for the Hail Marys. It's for the adrenalin rush and the vicarious thrill of both victory and loss.
I enjoy Little League and Women's Softball, but I have to remind the author that it is still possible to take a head shot at bat or a spike running to home.
Not that I know of, although I only have a passing acquintance with the game, largely based on a brief visit to Exeter. Batters can and do stay "up" for hours at a time. If they hit the ball, they don't even have to run if they don't think they can make it. They have to "protect the wicket", as the nominal goal of the "bowler" or pitcher, is to hit the wicket, which will be indicated by knocking off the little stick on top. I believe the principal foul of the batter is LBW, or "Leg Before Wicket", i.e. protecting the wicket with his heavily padded leg. Of course, he is "out" in this case. Kind of like capital punishment.
Rush called it. Again.
Yep-—killing anything masculine. Grinding America Down.
The feminization of everything-—cuz without manly, men—the responsible, strong, aggressive Risk-Takers (not the ones lusting after other men like Hitler’s Henchmen)-—there would never have been an America-—or even a Revolution.
They hate the 2nd Amendment type men and those gun-toting women who love their men.
Iowa State University’s Stadium is named after Jack Trice; he died from injuries suffered during a game:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Trice
“Guess that’s why the libs are trying to push soccer. Weakest of all the games called “football”.”
Heck, in soccer the players are always butting the ball with their heads. They do it every game. How many concussion possibilities per each player per game? A whole bunch? Think also of the neck compression from butting said ball.
I might add, that the author of this article seems to think the entire purpose of the game of football is to try to bash the other player in order to maim him. No mention of the skill of the game, the thinking man’s part of the sport, the physical skill, the cunning, the development of plays, the theory of the game. No, football exists just to try to physically destroy the opponent. Not.
Yeah the vets suffering from TBI as a consequence of IED’s going off in war zones are real wusses. - sarcasm off - I’d like to see you visit a VA hospital and spout that nonsense in front of one of them and their families.
Typical Lib wet dream - they always start off with “Could this happen....”. “Could Obama become a permanent leader of Amerika....” “Could another killing lead to 100% gun confiscation...”
"Allow me to begin my article with two false premises."
I read in the great book “Seabiscuit” that the most dangerous occupation in sports is that of jockey. Will the libs start picketing the Kentucky Derby this year?
“... most dangerous occupation in sports is that of jockey”
Our oral surgeon is now in his “busy” season. Why? Basketball is in season... lots and lots of teeth are knocked out with basketball (plus, broken jaws). Jack Lambert lost his two front teeth in a basketball game. My neurologist told me that he sees way more soccer players for concussion related injuries than football players. The attack is on football. IMHO, it is a truly AMERICAN sport so it has to be eliminated. We have to embrace soccer or some other bunk because it is what the other parts of the world enjoy. I’m not saying that there aren’t hard hits and possible injuries playing football. What I am saying is that sports in general increase the risk of injury. All sports.. soccer, baseball, basketball, gymnastics etc... With that, GO RAVENS!
More people are killed skiing and snowmobiling in ONE winter then in YEARS of football. let’s not even mention swimming.
Brain injuries are more prevalent from soccer then from boxing or football
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