Saturday, May 25, 2013

The Separation of Politics & Sports

What has happened to sports??? Sports used to be strictly games of competition between either individuals and or teams of individuals.  Over the years the sports has become less and less competitive as "political correctness" has seeped in. A prime example of just how sports have become more politically correct and less competitive is youth sports today. The incentive to win has been removed thus removing nearly all incentive for kids to better themselves. This incentive to win has since been replaced as kids are told to just go out and "have fun."

 I witnessed this first hand growing up playing little league baseball where we would constantly approach the coach and ask him, "What's the score???" His response, "Don't worry about it, just go have fun."  I feel promoting this type of thinking is doing our youth a great disservice.  If children cannot learn the exhilarating feeling of winning as well as the ability lose graciously, how will they cope with the harsh realities of the real world. This I feel directly relates to the state of affairs with so many of young adults today. If children are introduced to the realities of winning and losing at an early age they can then develop the drive and motivation to work for what they want rather then relying on the government for handouts.

This idea of political correctness doesn't just lie within youth sports, it has infiltrated sports at even the highest levels of professional sports from the NFL to the NBA.  We encounter almost on a monthly basis at least one sports story that lies completely outside the boundaries of what sports should be about.  Lets take into account the recent coming out of NBA basketball player Jason Collins.  Not only was this story featured in by nearly every news outlet, especially ESPN, the guy even received a call from the president.  If our president can make the effort to reach out to Jason Collins, why can't he make the same effort to honor each and every soldier serving this great country of ours? WHERE HAVE THE PRIORITIES OF THIS GOVERNMENT, AND OUR PRESIDENT IN PARTICULAR GONE?!?!?!?!?!

Another issue that has come about as a result of this gay basketball player, is the idea that other athletes must now make accommodation for this mans feelings.  Having played sports throughout my life I can attest to locker room talk and the joking around that goes on behind closed doors.  Now the point has been made that it is essential that everyone consider his feelings as a gay athlete as to not offend him.  If you ask me this is going too far, I'm by no means condoning bashing him but others shouldn't have to walk around on egg shells worrying they might offend a gay teammate and as a result possibly suffer lawsuits.

When this issue arose, ESPN analyst Chris Broussard decided to provide his take on the gay lifestyle after being prompted by a fellow co-host.  Chris Broussard,  being a man with Christian values, decided to explain his take on how the gay lifestyle doesn't align with those values.  This received incredible backlash leading to ESPN's eventual apology for his remarks.  This is precisely where the my issue lies regarding POLITICAL CORRECTNESS in sports... STOP APOLOGIZING FOR AN INDIVIDUAL EXPRESSING HIS OPINIONS AND VIEWS SIMPLY BECAUSE THEY DON'T FALL IN LINE WITH THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA'S TAKE ON THE ISSUE!!!!!

One more issue that had come up in recent months was ESPN analyst Rob Parker's remarks regarding Robert Griffin III (RG3), the quarterback for the Washington Redskins.  During a discussion regarding RG3 on ESPN's first take Parker proceeded to question Griffin's "blackness" simply stating that because Griffin has a white fiance and may be a republican he is not down with "the cause".  This crosses the line regarding the separation of political correctness and sports. This type of mentality is why the black community in this country has such a hard time getting ahead.  RG3 is an individual who should be praised for his values and his ability to act as a role model in the black community.   Instead he is demeaned by pathetic individuals like Rob Parker simply to remain "POLITICALLY CORRECT."

These various issues are precisely why sports just aren't what they used to be.  The sick, twisted, and even demented minds of many liberals have leaked into our once pure means of competition. We must understand that politics have no place in sports, as sport is merely a means to compete against one another in a variety of physical competitions.  Keep sports pure, let individuals compete in an arena free of political influence and we may once again have what we once had... PURE COMPETITION. In the words of one of the greatest coaches of all time... Winning isn't everything, IT'S THE ONLY THING!!! - Vince Lombardi

-YoungConservativeUSA
  @Steve0423