Bring civility back to kids sports
As I was watching television the other night, I watched a news story on youth ball games and the out-of-control adults that take all the fun out of it for the kids.
After watching violent coaches, mouthy parents and other likewise belligerent adults do their thing; I cringed at how far we have taken the wrong road in our travels of civility. I really had trouble believing that this is who we have become.
They threw out an interesting stat to end the show, 35 percent of all kids wish that their parents would not go to the games with them. Are you kidding me, that is over one third of the children that wish mom and dad would stay home and do yard work or something, anything but go to the games with them.
Years ago, it was dad that embarrassed the family but according to the report it is just as likely to be mom as it is dad in today’s society. Is that really the equal rights that women have long fought for?
The good thing is that it does not happen right here in Emery County. We are sheltered from such obnoxious behavior. Everything and everybody is nice and polite all of the time. We are so good. We wish everybody were just like us.
Unfortunately that last paragraph is all wishful thinking. We have become as others are, we have drank the kool aid and have become rude and obnoxious just like those other people that live elsewhere.
If you don’t believe me, just find a game, any game, that involves children and just go, watch and listen and then you tell me.
The question is how do we fix it because I believe it is fixable, how do we make it fun andworthwhile for both the children and the adults.
I don’t have all the answers, as that is not my place. I am just the bearer of the bad news. I would just like us to step back and take a look for ourselves and then each us could decide how to correct the problem.
Most, if not all of us, love sports but there are no reasons for this behavior to continue. It is time to correct the issue with the only person we have control over and that is ourselves. I know that we all think that it is the other guy and usually it is but somebody is that other guy and so just do the right thing and that is make sure it is not you.