The Sports Have It

In yet another blow to the fragile egos of high school nerds everywhere, the US Department of Education has recently specified new rules regarding the inclusion of disabled students in scholastic sports.  Arne Duncan, Obama's Secretary of Education,  has likened the new equal rights regulation to the ground breaking Title IX ruling which opened the door of extra and intramural sports to differently gendered persons of the female persuasion.  It occurred to the brain surgeons over at the Dept of Ed that disabled students have been denied equal participation in the character building, teamwork promoting, milieu of school based sports programs. 

I have news for Arne and Barack.  There are far more physically and mentally "normal" kids who have been denied access to the team and character building province of school sports teams simply because they suck at sports.  I know for a fact that there is no way in hell that a kid who can't do a mile in under 8 minutes is going to make the cross country team.  And if he or she is neither in a wheel chair nor a single limb amputee, they ain't making the "para" team either.  Some kids will always flinch when a line drive ball comes barreling toward them at second base.  Are they disabled?   Is a kid who will never be good at hitting a ball over a net with a racket disabled?  Is a kid who just can't seem to kick a ball around a swifter footed 15 year old disabled?  There are plenty of kids, I am certain, who would love the chance to be involved in high school sports, but for the simple fact that they just aren't coordinated enough, they will never get the chance to be a part of the team.  Sports don't discriminate against the overtly disabled.  Sports discriminate against the subtly spastic.

My god, There is an entire Olympics devoted to "special" athletes.  I bet every participant is actually a great athlete regardless of their IQ or extremities status.  So now what?  High schools and colleges will have to open up sports programs for overtly disabled kids?  Will they take money away from the drama and art clubs to pay for these special sports programs?   What about a child who just sucks at catching a ball?  Or sucks at running a mile?  How are they supposed to feel part of a school team?  There are no cheerleaders at a Science Fair or Mathletes meet.  I have never heard of a high school pep rally being held for an extramural debate team competition.  As a card carrying Democrat, I can't complain too much when the Feds engage in social engineering.  But I am afraid there are going to be way more kids who will still feel left out, maybe even more so, than who will benefit from this incompletely thought out regulation.

L'Affaire Lance

I remember standing near the finish line at the CoreStates Bicycle Race in Philadelphia in 1998 and saying to Tammy, "He's done.  That's a shame".  I was talking about Lance Armstrong's career.  He finished a disappointing 33rd after his 1996 fight with testicular cancer.  But at least George Hincapie, Lance's friend and USPS team mate, won the race.  Then several years later after reading Lance's autobiography I realized the error in my denouncement of his future career.  After battling advanced testicular cancer he viewed his 33rd place finish in this grueling one day bicycle race as an unbelievably positive accomplishment. And thus did Lance tip my always ambivalent feelings for him back into the positive column.  You see, I have been loosely following his career since he was a young, up and coming triathlete so the depth of his hubris and arrogance has never been a shock to me.  Disbelief and shock were not two of the emotions I felt watching him haltingly try to come clean about his behavior to Oprah.  Nor did I feel any sense of relief that finally he will reap what he has sown.  I only felt resignation and sadness at yet another example of the havoc and calamity that testosterone spews into our world.  Which in Lance's case, is truly ironic.

I am in no way justifying his behavior, I am only trying to shed light on why it should not be shocking.  If he is guilty of anything, it is taking alpha male ruthlessness to a new level of vindictiveness.  In my view, his behavior is only one extreme of that which has been exhibited by many alpha males before him.  The entire Penn State Football leadership team comes to mind.  As Lance stated in the confessional that is Oprah, protecting the kingdom rises above all other concerns.  Whether they be fellow athletes or ten year old boys their sacrifice is of no great concern if the empire is to be protected.  College football coaches, and petty despots alike have the ability to separate their actions from themselves.  There is a disconnect between the id and super ego in their minds (look it up).  While watching Lance try to answer Oprah's questions I was struck by his seeming inability to understand how his standing as team leader could cause the other cyclists to feel they had no choice but to dope if they wanted to remain on the team.  "I gave them no direct verbal order" he protested when pushed.

It would be nice to say it's only about a bunch of guys riding bicycles.  Or about a bunch of guys hitting a ball with a bat.  Who really cares if they cheat themselves and their fellow players?  That is indeed true, but especially in the case of Lance Armstrong, the repercussions of his behavior have reached far beyond his bicycle seat.  What he did was despicable yet he is the only athlete I ever truly admired and followed.  The reason for this is that I never deluded myself about him.  I always knew he at least used EPO.  I always knew he was an SOB to those who dare oppose him.  But there were other aspects to his story with which I identified.  He was a high school sports team outcast and he found solace on a bicycle.  His story is very complex and it goes beyond "can you believe this guy?"  I never give racketeers any slack for their crimes but in Lance's case I am more saddened than outraged.

We have Nothing to Fear But Fear Itself

Dear Wayne LaPierre and Fellow 2nd Amendment Fanatics,

I do not want to live in a country where there are armed guards in every school.  Period. 

I know how you feel though.  I, myself, am a 1st amendment fanatic.  But if everyone has a gun, my freedom of speech will surely be impeded. 

As Ben said: Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety.