I would also like to point out an inconsistency with you. You say on one hand that you don't even need to have played a sport or be good at it to be a good official yet you go to great lengths to talk about what you accomplished on the athletic field, and how you were undoubtedly a much better athlete than I. Could it be that your "attack" on me came in part because you read my post and saw I was a woman, therefore, what could this broad know about sports? I was not the first person to post a belief on the refs in question. I mean you are an evil republican, most likely male which can then be deduced to mean you are a chauvinist pig by default. ;) (joke, obviously) Or did you just want to try to embarrass me? Just wanted to point that inconsistency out since you are into them.
I do not think it would have been a misinterpretation of the rules (even in a liability issue) to negate the need for pads and shoes if there are not corresponding body parts for them. I would think that they are for that players safety, not the other guys.
>>You say on one hand that you don't even need to have played a sport or be good at it to be a good official yet you go to great lengths to talk about what you accomplished on the athletic field,<<
I was RESPONDING to the implied assertion (or evidence for the point) you made. I was not trying to make a point myself. My best sport was probably baseball, and I didn't like umpiring it the very few times I did it, and probably wasn't very good at it.
>> your "attack" on me<<
Oh, please. Don't pretend to be John Kerry.
??I do not think it would have been a misinterpretation of the rules (even in a liability issue) to negate the need for pads and shoes if there are not corresponding body parts for them. I would think that they are for that players safety, not the other guys.<<
As an attorney and an official, I can assure you that failure to follow MANDETORY rules can get officials in very hot water, especially as safety is concerned.
I also asked you to specify what rules can be ignored and the ones that must be followed. Obviously, the rules did not anticipate this situation, but that is what state associations are for. I don't understand why the officials are the ones given grief here (well, scratch that, I do understand) when all the coach or AD had to do was to call the state association and inform them about the situation. The ED would then have made a determination, notified the state officiating organization, who would have notified the local chapter.
To the extent you don't like what happened, you need to blame the school folks. They KNEW what the kid's situation was and should have known the rules. The fact that they didn't reinforces my point about way too many coaches.