Is Football Immoral?
There has been a lot of press this year about the NFL and the dangers of concussions by football players. As the League talks about it, others want to hide it. Is it fair to the players? Is it something the fans should be concerned about? Are we all complicit in something that may be immoral?
That was the question raised by Hugo Lindgren a column in a recent edition of New York Magazine.
Unlike baseball or basketball, injuries aren’t incidental to football—they’re a natural outcome of a game in which giant men collide with all their might. But it also presents a paradox. The reason we love the sport, after all, is its speed and violence. Players destroy themselves to win, which makes it like nothing else in life, except perhaps actual combat, which is rarely well filmed.The point is that this is one of the reasons we watch in the first place. It is the supposed thrill of possible injury that makes it interesting. I disagree with that to a great extent. I think we watch in spite of our awareness that these guys may get hurt. We push it out of our minds. We ignore the very real danger because we are distanced. It's not us.
So how can we go on watching?
The greater immorality may be in that we expect people to put themselves into such danger for our pure entertainment. Yes, they get paid well. Very well. Although so do the baseball players. But is money a reason to put oneself in such an obviously personally precarious position? Is our entertainment desire so great that we are willing to let them continue to do so?
Obviously. Many are getting rich from it. Some are getting obscenely wealthy. It is business and as long as it is business, it will continue. The League continues to try to do something about it, though. But the injuries, visible and hidden, short-term and long-term, will continue. It is something to think about.
So, having said all that, if you will excuse me, I have a couple games to watch this afternoon.
No comments:
Post a Comment