XLV - 2011 An American (And the Rest of Us) Football Classic

I will say at the outset that I am not a football fan. But I was invited to a Super Bowl Party with some friends and we had a great time. We put up a poster and were able to bet as much as a Toonie on the half-time and final score. One winner walked away with over $40 dollars! However, there was more camaraderie than game watching I must confess. Indeed, I completely missed the Black Eyed Peas at half time, and Christina Aquilera's forgetful moment passed me by.

The new Cowboys Stadium, at a cost of $2.2 billion and its attendance of 103,219 fans, at least those who got seats, was a sight to see. By most reports XLV was a success, although I wondered where the citizens of a country so far in debt could afford their luxuries! What bothers me however, is the violent nature of the game. Football, like hockey and boxing and many other sports, are labeled 'contact sports'.

Having played most of these games as a young man, I don't have a problem with that. In high-school for example, I played English Rugby where there is tackling below the hips only, lots of shoving and pushing in the scrum, not to mention the odd fist. To make matters worse, all of this without any protection equipment. Hockey was my favourite sport and I played in many different leagues up until I was in my late 50's. I loved every minute of it. I don't have a problem with the combative nature of a sport since it is a  personal choice to participate. The problem is those players who intentionally attempt to injure another player. I have even seen where some forms of violence are not only encouraged but taught by the coach. Playing junior hockey, I was instructed on how to check an opposing player in the zone between the two blue lines, once forbidden by the rules, in such a way that it would appear accidental. Or how about sniffing oxygen from under the bench! Playing "outside the rules" can be encouraged by those who market the sport as well. I believe much of the violence in hockey today (Why knock Sid the Kid out of the game? He is the chicken who lays the Golden Egg!) exists because many Americans believe that is the way to boost fan attendance. As a result so much of the beauty of the game, the skating, the team work, the stick handling, and even the choreography has disappeared. Each male game looks like a rough version of shinny played to excite the testosterone of the male spectators.

There is so much violence around today. The on-going wars, so many video games, movies, terrorism, to name a few, somehow make us immune. They say, whoever 'they' are, that TV does not promote violence or make people callous. The same 'they' say violence is a reflection of our society values. And there lies the rub! I am a member of that society and find it difficult to understand that down deep inside, I too enjoy a violent movie or sport spectacular, just like everyone else.

I was intrigued watching XLV on Sunday with the ability of the human body to absorb such punishment. Huge men flying through the air, crashing onto the ground and bouncing back up as if nothing happened. My body would not last a minute in such an environment. Is violence inherent in our genes then? Was Stanly Milgram, a Yale psychologist in 1961, correct in stating that the average person can show a willingness to obey orders, even when those orders are at odds with their morals and conscience? Do we all sit at the edge of engaging in violence hoping that our culture, our beliefs, and our mutual respect, no matter how fragile, will keep us safe?

At least that Dick's View of the World for now.