Friday night hero's

[Billybob]

I agree with Billybob. My high school (Davis) isn't big by any means but everyone got so worked up over football games it was rediculous. The coaches had to teach so they usually had the history classes and although they knew what they were teaching there was a general pass given to the players. Not that players being favored wasn't any different in college.

And what does it teach our kids when they see some given a pass or special privileges for playing a game? How about when they get a pass in the courts?

Shakil Fields Released From Jail

http://www.koco.com/Shakil-Fields-Released-From-Jail/-/9844716/10732740/-/ab9sybz/-/index.html

An adult,(18) stomps a kid,(15) and fractures his skull and gets out in 2 months, I guess it's a life lesson in justice huh?

 

[ByrdC130]

Military has nothing to do with being a hero. Hate to tell y'all this but there are as many f*&ktards in the military today as decent people, maybe a bit more. Being a hero is not something an individual does, it's something bestowed upon someone by others in recognition of their acts. Usually if someone tries to attain hero status, they are pretty much egotistical creeps.

So in small town America, where once there was a lot of pride in where one was from, the local football team was a symbol of that local pride. When the team did well, the town was proud and rejoiced in the teams accomplishments. Thus, they tended to bestow the hero status for uplifting the spirits of the local community.

 

[ranchking]

Hey guys easy on Dennis, He was just a small boy in school that played the clarinet and had a horrific "incident" in the football locker room.

sorry Dennis just kidding.

 

[cinco]

I agree with Dennis to a point. Just because in high school I shot the winning basket to win the conference tournament does NOT make me a hero - even to some younger kid watching. Even though I'd shoot hoops 3 hours a day after homework and carrying near 4.0 GPA - blah, blah, blah - the whole work ethic, sacifice, etc. Sorry, that's not my definition of "hero". That would be a definition of a positive role model.

Sad - but true - an aweful lot of the high school Friday Night Hero people are the same one's who's greatest moment in life occured during some sporting event in high school. That was their high point in life and thus like to consider it an act of "heroism". So much of their self-worth/esteem is tied to those events. When a typical school board is comprised of folks with this mentality, a culture of local sports "worship" is permeated.

It's called the "Uncle Rico" syndrome... "I can throw a football over them mountains. If only coach would have put me in, we'd be State Champs".



This is also a reason for the disproportionate amount of money and importance given to athletics. Through all the hub-bub about huge cuts to educational funding, teacher lay-offs and program cut backs you don't see any mention about cutting athletic funding. The huge salaries and expenses associated with athletics will not be touched. For example, a high school with 450 kids spends close to $250k on just 3 coaches and almost triple-to-four times that on improvements to fields/courts over the past 5 years. Yep and with averaging sub-.500 winning records. The vast majority of school districts are losing money on sports due to salaries, equipment, fuel & food costs during travel, operating costs, etc - so the argument that they are money makers is the likely exception.

Just my opinion, the point of sports is another method to instill positive social values - a strong work ethic, perserverance, attention to detail, sportsmanship, etc (all of which I learned through a life of sports and am grateful for). However, none of this takes new "high gloss"/big name equipment or practice/playing facilities. Nor does it take high dollar coaches who's main purpose is to coach and who are often the weakest academic educators on site. However, I was blessed with great teachers who also happened to be great coaches - a very rare situation. A friend suggested if the schools would post notices on thier electronic signs for volunteer coaches, the schools would be overrun with good folks willing to step up and instill those social values for free. Move the sports to after-school and run them like for-profit "club" teams. Then you could fill the schools with teachers and get back to the main reason for schools... academics. As for the vast majority of people, that winning shot/goal/tackle/hit we made back in high school was not the primary thing that allowed us to make a living, support our families and give back to society. Sports has a definite positive place in young people's lives but it is overemphasized to thier detriment in many cases.

Rant off. Flame away.

 

[Dave70968]

As long as we're quibbling about how other people use language, I get disgusted by people who think that apostrophes are used to make plurals.

I now return you to your regularly-scheduled grousing, already in progress.

 

[beast1989]

Sports keep a lot of kids off the streets and from doing bad things, many of my friends kept their noses clean just to be on the field come Friday nights. Back in high school we use to practice so hard and so long that many nights we were to tired to go to the usual parties. After graduation many kids dipped off into hardcore partying and one of my buds died bc of too much ecstasy while others got to know what jail cells looked like.

Sports may have not saved you but it has saved many others.

 

[elwoodtrix]

Does anybody besides me get disgusted every time of of the people on KFOR puke a story about the Friday night hero's?

no.. I think it's pretty cool.

I like sports.

ranchking, it's bass clarinet

 

[dieseltech09]

As long as we're quibbling about how other people use language, I get disgusted by people who think that apostrophes are used to make plurals.

 

[kd5rjz]

Then why not call them the "Friday night pride and joy"? Moving a ball up and down a pretty lawn doesn't a hero make. But hey, if people want to diminish the word "hero" by applying to people who don't deserve it, that's their right. It's Dennis' right to gripe about that too.

I got your back Dennis!

Wow, the three of us completely agree on something!

 

[kennedy]

These are the types of discussions that go nowhere on OSA. Some people believe that unless you risk your life or give your life to save others is the only way to be a hero while others understand the smaller things in life that make others heroes as well. Neither will ever change their minds or alter their perceptions. Blah, blah, blah until everyone gets bored with the thread and stops posting.