Tag: football

On arguing with fools, and Prof. Ann Althouse in particular

There’s an old Yiddish expression that translates roughly:

“Never argue with a fool. People might not be able to tell the difference.”

That’s good advice, and the fact that I ignore it too often is, I confess, an error and a fault.

But there’s also an old English expression of equal authority:

“In for a penny, in for a pound.”

So having foolishly engaged via Twitter with Prof. Ann Althouse of the University of Wisconsin Law School, and having attracted counter-fire not only from the good Professor herself but from her even less adept colleague Prof. Glenn Reynolds of the University of Tennessee Law School, it seems wise, just this once, to respond at some length. Don’t read on unless you have a prurient interest in folly, or in trolling, the bastard child of folly born of its occasional dalliance with intellectual dishonesty.

Continue reading “On arguing with fools, and Prof. Ann Althouse in particular”

Gander, meet goose: cannabis and football

Cannabis isn’t nearly as bad for your brain as football. Should we criminalize football?

Question for David Brooks, Ruth Marcus, Joe Scarborough, and other opponents of cannabis legalization:

It seems likely that very heavy cannabis use starting in adolescence and continuing for many years can lead to measurable decreases in some cognitive abilities. It is possible that occasional use might also cause damage, but right now there’s no strong evidence to back that claim.

On the other hand, it is certain that participation in high school and college football leads predictably to brain damage.

So: If cognitive harm from cannabis is a good reason to support continued criminalization, would you support a ban on high school and college football? And if not, why not?

A word about Alex Karras

Most reports of Alex Karras’s death noted that he had dementia, but not that he attributed his dementia to his years playing in the NFL. Nor did they mention that he was one of the players suing the League for concealing what it knew about the long-term effects of concussion. These omissions do a disservice to Karras, to his family, and to all of us who love football.

I grew up watching the Colts, by which I mean the BALTIMORE Colts of the 1960s, of Johnny Unitas-Ray Berry-Lenny Moore fame. (If you don’t recognize the names, just trust me: we shall not see their like again.) That team included the tight end John Mackey. So when I saw a bit of news tape showing Mackey sitting in a nursing home while his wife tried to help him recognize himself-himself!-in his football jersey, I was sickened by the damaging effects of the sport I love to watch. Later that year Mackey died of fronto-temporal dementia; but still I kept watching.

Six months before, a member of my beloved 1985 championship Chicago Bears had killed himself, leaving behind a plea that his brain be autopsied. Dave Duerson too proved to have had extensive brain injury, in the form of chronic traumatic encephelopathy; but still I’d kept watching.

I thought of both men when I heard of Karras’s death, and it finally took. No matter how exciting and graceful the game-and, having been taught to watch it by my father, I’ve relished both the excitement and the grace for nearly 50 years-their lives are too high a price to pay. It’s time to stop watching.

The Battle of Manchester

This isn’t a sports blog, but I must briefly note what a thrilling thing the English Premier League has been in recent weeks, especially for the people of Manchester.

Man City used to be so bad and so unpopular that an old joke ran as follows:

City Fan calling the stadium ticket office: What time is the match today?

Office manager: We are flexible — what time can you get here?

Now of course they are a worthy rival to the fellows at Old Trafford.

Reckless prediction: At the end of the season, I think United will be on top, even though I could easily see them losing to City on Monday. I figure that if that happens, City will let down emotionally and fall to one of their remaining two opponents (most likely Newcastle United).