Huck Finn must be spinning in his literary grave. Just recently a Colorado Springs, Co., elementary school banned tag during recess, joining other schools that have prohibited this childhood pastime. Upon hearing this, I thought about the movement to ban cops and robbers, musical chairs, steal the bacon, and the kill-joys’ most frequent target and this writer’s favorite childhood school game, dodge ball. Then there’s the more inane still, such as the decision by the Massachusetts Youth Soccer Association to prohibit keeping score in kids’ tournament play.
There are many ways to describe this trend. One might say it’s a result of the left’s antipathy toward competition, the increasing litigiousness of the day, or the inordinate concern with self-esteem and hurt feelings. Then, if I am to speak only of my feelings, the word stupid comes to mind. Really, though, regardless of whether the motivations are good or ill or the reasoning sound or not, at the end of the day I find a conclusion inescapable. Slowly, incrementally, perversely, boyhood is being banned.
(snip)
Getting back to the People’s Republic of Massachusetts’ soccer league, it was so concerned about the poor little eggs’ feelings that it also decided no one should get trophies. This isn’t unusual, as the practice of awarding trophies to all or none is now often adopted, lest a tear run down a cherubic face. Moreover, frowning upon competition – which boys thrive on –isn’t limited to frivolous pursuits, as schools increasingly dispense with merit-based academic models in favor of schemes such as “Outcome Based Education” (it’s nothing like what it sounds).
The rest of this article is lenghty, but worth the time.
What’s good for the goose is good for the gander, and if boyish competition is so wrong for 8-year olds that the Massachusetts Youth Soccer Ass’n is going to eliminate game scoring, why isn’t it wrong anymore when that 8-year old boy becomes a 14-year old teenager and dons the uniforms and jerseys of his secondary school, or becomes an 18-year old man and does the same for, e.g. the Boston College Eagles, or becomes a 21-year old man and does the same for, e.g. the New England Patriots or the Boston Red Sox, this time with the added benefit of a paycheck? Last I looked, they still keep score in high school, college, and the pros.
Come to think of it, speaking as a St. Louisan, I only wish the state of Massachusetts would have banned all scoring in every organized team athletic event about six years ago.
