"There is so much hate among people, so much contempt inside people who'd like you to think they're moral, that they have to hire prizefighters to do their hating for them. And we do. We get into a ring and act out other people's hates."
- Floyd Patterson, former world heavyweight boxing champion (1935-2006)
Such wisdom from someone whose job was to accept the beating of others while trying to beat them into unconsciousness.
I can only add that we are fortunate to have sports through which some of the hateful people of our countries can work off their malice. Floyd died last month.
If you look around the world at the number of sports and level of participation in sports in all countries, generally speaking those with the least participation in sports have the greatest problems with unchecked violence.
While it's true that the US has a high level of violence within the country, it is also true that the US has a greater percentage of its citizens in prison than any other country. There is violence, but it's not unchecked.
We could wish that much for the countries in which suicide bombing has become so popular.
Bill Allin
'Turning It Around: Causes and Cures for Today's Epidemic Social Problems,' striving to put a complex world in perspective.
Learn more at http://billallin.com
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
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