The conclusion to the documentary, League of Denial was simply that Football causes CTE, and CTE
causes severe cognitive impairment, including dementia and depression and for
those who are affected, their lives are miserable. So if this is the conclusion that we are left
with concerning football players then why do we condone the game so much and
cheer for every tackle and wipeout that occurs?
Also is it not already completely obvious that anyone who sustains
multiple successive concussions and head injuries will have residual effects
from the trauma they have sustained? Honestly,
this has always been an underlying issue related to playing football but now
since we have given a name to the issue it seems so much greater of an issue. Head injuries are a very serious thing, for
example, whenever a child falls down you pick them back up to their feet and
tell them that they are fine just shake it off; but if the child had hit their
head when they fell you instantly pick them up and exam them, asking questions
to make sure they have not seriously impaired their cognitive abilities or
sustained some other impairment.
Although children’s brains are still developing and are at a greater
cause for concern if injured, yet this same idea still holds true for anyone at
any age. Since the brain is such a
highly complex and not very well understood part of the body, what could anyone
possibly think is so much worth the risk of ruining something that is
practically impossible to “fix” when it already works practically perfect, (as
far as we know anyway). If we so highly
admire these men performances as football players, then why do we find so much
entertainment from the pain and injury they all sustain?
Football is part of our culture and it has a major impact, for example the Super Bowl crazy that happens every year. We have a feast and enjoy the game. Throughout human history we have always found a affection toward a violent game The gladiator games or a boxing match. As human we love competition and violence and football presents these things.
ReplyDeleteExactly. This is America, land of capitalism and fighting for glory, which includes the NFL. The field is just a war zone without guns, and the fans are paying spectators. Americans will always use football as an aggressive catharsis for their own lives. And yes, we are more concerned with the health and well being of children, but these are grown men who are perfectly capable of making decisions about their own health. They now have the facts about C. T. E., and if they choose to continue playing the sport they love knowing that this is one of the injuries that they can sustain then they have every right to. We can't all walk around being afraid of doing things because we're afraid of being injured, but we can try to be more careful when we do things. The same applies to sports.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it seems ridiculous that we are suddenly surprised by the impact multiple concussions and head injuries can cause--just because we now have a name for it. But now that we have a definite name for a definite disease that is more than likely caused by football, we have adequate reason to be alarmed. Of course, football is simply embedded into American culture. Even the teen movies we watch regard the varsity football player as a type of high school god. Football exudes masculinity and rewards competitiveness along with individual and team successes. It wouldn't shock me if most current NFL players would still be playing even if they were adequately warned about the harmful effects of C.T.E. Does one truly think Wes Welker would rather have an office job than playing professional football?
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