The Leftist Assault on American Football
By Douglas V. Gibbs
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I love football. I watched Peyton
Manning lead Denver over New England
(I was surprised Tom Brady didn't pull it off, to be honest), and
enjoyed the NFC Championship Game, where the Seattle Seahawks finished
off San Francisco. I had a few phone calls while watching those games,
too. Two of the callers asked me about television shows and movies, and
the political messages intertwined in them. I told them, "Of course.
The leftists never rest, and they use every tool available to them to
silence, and destroy, their opposition. Nothing is sacred. Everything
is political."
Everything is political.
The battle is the same, no matter the name.
Talking
heads battle over the virtue of one, or the other. Political parties
claim theirs is the ideology that will best serve the nation.
Motivational speakers ask individuals to look inward, psychiatrists ask
us to dig deep inward, and progressives tell us to abandon what is
inward. Voices that claim to be conventional wisdom preach that we must
do what is best for the common good, while other voices proclaim that
it is best to be self-sufficient, and to take care of one's own
interests. Either we must accomplish goals in our lives, or we must be
raised by a village. Either we must compete, or we must be dependents.
Swirling
opinions circle our heads to the point that we don't want to talk about
religion and politics. The discussions are too divisive, we utter.
Can't we just come together as a single race of beings? Then, we go to
the game, to compete, to cheer, and to talk smack against the other
side.
Which
is more important? Community? Or our individual selves? Should we be
a collective society? Or should we be a society of self-reliant
individuals?
Individualism
creates strong communities, but collectivism destroys individualism.
Individuals compete, and work hard to prosper. Collectivism downplays
competition, proclaiming equity, and allegiance to the ruling elite.
Individualism cries out for freedom, be it the freedom to succeed, or
the freedom to fail. Collectivism calls for peace and safety, which
begins with the ruling class attempting to protect you even from
yourself.
Competition,
therefore, stands in the way of a society seeking progressive paths to
utopia. Therefore, competition cannot be tolerated.
In
Ancient Greece, and Ancient Rome, sporting events were an important
part of the culture. Olympians and Gladiators performed for the masses,
distracting them from the truth, diverting their attention from the
crumbling pillars and domes of the once great societies. Or was it the
opposite? Were those sporting events actually examples of the
individuality that reigned in society? Were they not examples of the
competitive nature of the civilization the ordinary citizens battled in?
What happened to the nature of competition as the empires fell, and
the statists gained control of the governmental systems?
Sporting
events became training grounds. Children participated in sporting
events not only to compete, and be healthy, but because these events
served as military training. Ball games, and equestrian events, were
common. Many sporting events grew into major entertainments that
became both spectacular and bloody.
The
fall of the Roman Empire less than 500 years after the birth of Christ
led the western civilized world into a thousand year darkness of chaos
and barbarity, according to historians. The time period is called "The
Dark Ages," and during this era of disorganization, and lack of
prosperity, physical activity, sport, and fitness diminished.
Viewing
history, then, the presence of sporting events normally accompany the
prosperity of society. The more prosperous the civilization, the more
sporting it becomes.
Everything is political.
According
to some political thinkers, prosperity emerges when individuals have
the freedom to dream, innovate, and seek their own success. Less
government regulation, and the presence of a free
market, enables competition among the individuals seeking to better
themselves through a business enterprise. The success of these
endeavors, then, enables an increase of products and services in the
market for consumers, while creating employment as the operation grows.
The
political thinkers that oppose the free market, and the individualistic
point of view, contend that individualism hinders social solidarity and
community. The individual cannot become a full adult and a capable
person in any sense without becoming also by the same movement social
and solid with his fellows.
But
how can one become a beneficial part of the
community if he does not strive for personal rewards? How can an
individual learn how to exist in, and improve, his community if he
hasn't struggled and competed against rivals?
To serve oneself is to serve the community, but to serve the community one denies himself.
The
argument should not be an absolute, where you are either an individual,
or a collectivist. The argument should be, "which one best serves
both?"
To
put the community above the individual
is to deny individuality, but to put the individual above community is
to populate the community with successful individuals, which in the long
run, benefits the community.
The greater the challenge, the greater the effort, and the greater the accomplishments of the individual.
So why, in God's Name, would anybody wish to quell individual accomplishment, and competition?
Which brings us to American professional football.
Progressives
place the community, and government, above individuals, individual
accomplishment, and above individual competition. Theirs is a world of
social engineering, where only the political ruling elite understands
what is best for society. If their decisions, and their beliefs, are
above all else, then why would they tolerate anything that says
otherwise?
Sports
is completely antithetical to what the leftists are trying to achieve.
Sports allows the individual to be the best he can be, while competing
against other individuals. However, as in the free market, when the
individual excels, it is good for the community, be it the team, or the
league. The team prospers by winning, bringing in more fans, and
selling more product. The league wins by cashing in on popular games,
and selling more product. All because of some talented individuals,
competing to be the best.
On
the surface, many progressives may even love sports, themselves. But
deep down, sports represents the opposite of what the leftists stand
for. It dares to scream in the face of their political ideology, and
reveal the truth about individualism. However, the Left cannot just
come out and ban sports. They cannot come out and say that you little
peasant folk aren't allowed to participate in competition, anymore.
That would reveal who they are, and what their true face is. As with
everything else they do, the
American liberal left must use the back door, and convince the people
to agree with them through a series of attacks against the item in
question.
Enter,
stage left, the sudden interest in concussions caused by playing
football. Writers, commentators and politicians have decided that the
risk is too much to take. Studies are being done about head injuries,
and the long-term health effects, caused by a lifetime of playing
football.
My first thought is, "Yeah, fine, but the players are fully aware of what they are getting themselves into."
The
concept of liberty includes the freedom to take risks, undertake
dangerous activities, and even do stupid things if you are dumb enough
to do them.
As
always, the Left's main tool in this attempt to punch football in the
eye is through the courts. Lawsuits are emerging. A current lawsuit
pits former National Football League players against the league for
health issues that are, they claim, a result of trauma received during
their careers. They assert that they were not aware of the risks
involved when they played.
The
assault is achieving the desired result. The NFL has put into place
new rules to make the sport safer. Tackling is virtually gone in
training camps. Players are afraid to hit above the mid-torso, because
if they get too close to the head, it's a huge penalty.
Progressives are jumping on board, working to pacify the game, and change football into a safe and humane sport.
President Barack Obama said, "I would not let my son play pro-football."
In
New York, Assemblyman Michael Benedetto said he will introduce
legislation to ban tackle football for children at under age 14, as well
as disallowing "heading" in soccer.
In
Illinois, the governor has signed into law a requirement for programs
to insure student-athletes. This will decimate smaller sports programs,
and will probably kill a number of the larger programs, as well.
We
must keep our children safe, we are being told. Don't let them be
individuals, and don't let them play, unless their play is a government
approved activity, of
course.
And we thought they spent a lot of time on their smart-phones, as it is.
"That's
okay," the leftists are probably figuring. "The kids won't be as fit,
they won't be as nimble, and they won't be as agile. Who are we? Rome?
Let's not let the children be trained to be good soldiers. . . or
individuals."
The
violence of sports, especially football, as far as the Left is
concerned, must be taken away. We must spare our children from
such barbarity . . . and teach them to serve the government through
liberal education, instead.
What's
next? If kids start playing football in the street will they be
candidates for the school psychologist? If the counseling doesn't work,
maybe the Ritalin will.
First
dodgeball (and God help us if they ever try to call it "Smear the
Queer," like we did when we were kids), and now football. Pretty soon,
if the liberal left has its way, the kids will be playing with sticks
and hoops without any competition whatsoever allowed, like the
Amish...but minus the religion part.
We don't want our kids being aggressive, you know. It might offend somebody.
Muslim suicide bombers will be exempt, I am sure.
Dumb
them down, pacify their activities, and teach them to obey the
government. Sports teaches individual accomplishment way too much for
the taste of the liberal left. The village says no more football, so
that is the next goal.
Except, freedom always finds a way. Individuality always finds a way to emerge, and spread its wings.
They may push us down for a season, but in the end, the human spirit of liberty always finds a way.
As
the NFL does more and more to appease the forces against the league,
passing new rules to keep the players safe, a new league will emerge.
Perhaps the Arena League, or maybe something like the XFL league that
Pro Wrestling Mogul Vince McMahon tried to start. Believe me, an
alternative to return the game to its true self, will emerge. The NFL
may eventually sell out, but that does
not mean the end of football, contact sports, or individuality.
"The
good sense of the people will always be found to be the best army.
They may be led astray for a moment, but will soon correct themselves."
-- Thomas Jefferson
-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
Limbaugh asks, Will Liberal Media Try to Ban Football? - NewsBusters
Destroying Football: The Left's Endgame - American Thinker
New Rule at NFL Camps: No Tackling. Just Practice - New York Times
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