2008 Woodie Awards
The Way It Is
Looking for National pride
Issue date: 3/1/06 Section: Sports
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Casey Hord
Guest Columnist
Something has been bothering me as an American and as a sports fan over these last couple weeks. This something being the lack of pride for one's own country. Not only with the Olympics which I wrote about in my last column, but also with the first inaugural World Baseball Classic. Not only the lack of pride for this great country, something I thought was a given since this is the greatest country in the world, but the lack of pride for all countries. I am not speaking about the citizens of these countries; I am speaking of the athletes who have been blessed with amazing talent and athletic ability by God. Not all of these athletes are lacking in the pride department, but there are a select few who ruin it for the rest of them.
With the world the way it is today, with the ongoing war in the Middle East and tension between most of the people not involved, one would think people would look for a distraction. They would look for ways to get people's minds off of negative things. One would think they would give the citizens of their home countries something to cheer about during a dark time in the world we live in. One would think so.
But instead they gripe and complain about how they may get injured or they won't be able to play the position they want to. These are just a couple of excuses these world-renowned athletes use to get out of representing the countries they are native to. Now I understand that an injury could end someone's playing career that they worked so hard to get in the first place. But have they ever stopped to think that they have enough money in one paycheck to live off of the rest of their life, not to mention the college education that some if not most of them have?
The people in these countries will probably never see as much money in their entire lifetime. Have they ever stopped to think what if they didn't have this God-given talent? Where would they be? It's not like we're asking them to go fight and die in a war for their countries. We're just asking them to go and play a game that they are supposed to love to play in the first place. Before they give these lame excuses of why they can't play, they need to put themselves in the shoes of the citizens in these poor (in some cases very poor) countries. This being the first inaugural World Baseball Classic, it has no reputation. This is a way to bring baseball back. Some say this is the true "World Series." If this is true, then why aren't some of the best players playing? If Major League Baseball made their World Series an option, then they would have their hands full with players wanting to play. Why is it different when we have countries around the world competing? Just like with the Olympics there seems to be a lack of interest. With the Olympics there's a lack of interest with the fans for the most part. But with the World Baseball Classic there seems to be more of a lack of interest with the players. These will be some of the same people who wonder why the fans don't care. It's their responsibility to give the fans a reason to care. I just think that we as the human race should have more pride for where we come from. One would think it would be second nature.
Guest Columnist
Something has been bothering me as an American and as a sports fan over these last couple weeks. This something being the lack of pride for one's own country. Not only with the Olympics which I wrote about in my last column, but also with the first inaugural World Baseball Classic. Not only the lack of pride for this great country, something I thought was a given since this is the greatest country in the world, but the lack of pride for all countries. I am not speaking about the citizens of these countries; I am speaking of the athletes who have been blessed with amazing talent and athletic ability by God. Not all of these athletes are lacking in the pride department, but there are a select few who ruin it for the rest of them.
With the world the way it is today, with the ongoing war in the Middle East and tension between most of the people not involved, one would think people would look for a distraction. They would look for ways to get people's minds off of negative things. One would think they would give the citizens of their home countries something to cheer about during a dark time in the world we live in. One would think so.
But instead they gripe and complain about how they may get injured or they won't be able to play the position they want to. These are just a couple of excuses these world-renowned athletes use to get out of representing the countries they are native to. Now I understand that an injury could end someone's playing career that they worked so hard to get in the first place. But have they ever stopped to think that they have enough money in one paycheck to live off of the rest of their life, not to mention the college education that some if not most of them have?
The people in these countries will probably never see as much money in their entire lifetime. Have they ever stopped to think what if they didn't have this God-given talent? Where would they be? It's not like we're asking them to go fight and die in a war for their countries. We're just asking them to go and play a game that they are supposed to love to play in the first place. Before they give these lame excuses of why they can't play, they need to put themselves in the shoes of the citizens in these poor (in some cases very poor) countries. This being the first inaugural World Baseball Classic, it has no reputation. This is a way to bring baseball back. Some say this is the true "World Series." If this is true, then why aren't some of the best players playing? If Major League Baseball made their World Series an option, then they would have their hands full with players wanting to play. Why is it different when we have countries around the world competing? Just like with the Olympics there seems to be a lack of interest. With the Olympics there's a lack of interest with the fans for the most part. But with the World Baseball Classic there seems to be more of a lack of interest with the players. These will be some of the same people who wonder why the fans don't care. It's their responsibility to give the fans a reason to care. I just think that we as the human race should have more pride for where we come from. One would think it would be second nature.