LOL They are funny looking too. I saw them and wondered why the deliberately cut their hair that way. I see one has turned your profile bowl cut into a mullet.
If you believe them or not is another story, but if it IS true, then as I said, I don't necessarily blame these kids.
Yes, they SHOULD know better, but when an authority figure tells you to do something and you're that young, often times reason doesn't win out. If your coach/parent told you during a game to do something you know you shouldn't, you probably would trust that the adult has a reason and they are right. Kids (and yes, these are KIDS) implicitly trust these authority figures and are VERY easily influenced at this age.
If this ends up being true, then the coach needs to be banned from football.
Wang I can understand where you are coming from, but this isn't Jack Nicholson ordering a code red in the armed forces where you listen to your superior or else... these "kids" are old enough to disregard an order that would intentionally injure someone else. I think you might be taking it a little to easy on them, but I def agree the coach who told them to do it is even more in the wrong.
If you believe them or not is another story, but if it IS true, then as I said, I don't necessarily blame these kids.
Yes, they SHOULD know better, but when an authority figure tells you to do something and you're that young, often times reason doesn't win out. If your coach/parent told you during a game to do something you know you shouldn't, you probably would trust that the adult has a reason and they are right. Kids (and yes, these are KIDS) implicitly trust these authority figures and are VERY easily influenced at this age.
If this ends up being true, then the coach needs to be banned from football.
Wang I can understand where you are coming from, but this isn't Jack Nicholson ordering a code red in the armed forces where you listen to your superior or else... these "kids" are old enough to disregard an order that would intentionally injure someone else. Â I think you might be taking it a little to easy on them, but I def agree the coach who told them to do it is even more in the wrong.
Spot on Teddy. If a coach told these kid to do it then they should be fired/banned/suspended but it doesn't excuse the kids. They most certainly know what they did was wrong no matter the reason or excuse.
Wang I can understand where you are coming from, but this isn't Jack Nicholson ordering a code red in the armed forces where you listen to your superior or else... these "kids" are old enough to disregard an order that would intentionally injure someone else. I think you might be taking it a little to easy on them, but I def agree the coach who told them to do it is even more in the wrong.
I am not saying the kids are without blame.
But when you are 16-17 years old, and an authority figure tells you to do something (especially a football coach), a lot of kids that age would do so without a lot of thought. Try to think back to when you were a teen, and the bad decisions you made (general you, not calling you out specifically), even without an authority figure telling you to do it. Now imagine how many MORE bad decisions you would have made if a parent or coach was not only telling you that the decision is okay, but that you HAVE to do it.
Wang I can understand where you are coming from, but this isn't Jack Nicholson ordering a code red in the armed forces where you listen to your superior or else... these "kids" are old enough to disregard an order that would intentionally injure someone else. I think you might be taking it a little to easy on them, but I def agree the coach who told them to do it is even more in the wrong.
I am not saying the kids are without blame.
But when you are 16-17 years old, and an authority figure tells you to do something (especially a football coach), a lot of kids that age would do so without a lot of thought. Try to think back to when you were a teen, and the bad decisions you made (general you, not calling you out specifically), even without an authority figure telling you to do it. Now imagine how many MORE bad decisions you would have made if a parent or coach was not only telling you that the decision is okay, but that you HAVE to do it.
All I can do is relate it to my High School soccer days and if my coach told me to go jump kick the referee I would tell him he was bat sh!t crazy and that I wouldn't do it. THey could have broke that guys back... or worse. Again I can see where you are coming from but just disagree in this instance.
But when you are 16-17 years old, and an authority figure tells you to do something (especially a football coach), a lot of kids that age would do so without a lot of thought. Try to think back to when you were a teen, and the bad decisions you made (general you, not calling you out specifically), even without an authority figure telling you to do it. Now imagine how many MORE bad decisions you would have made if a parent or coach was not only telling you that the decision is okay, but that you HAVE to do it.
All I can do is relate it to my High School soccer days and if my coach told me to go jump kick the referee I would tell him he was bat sh!t crazy and that I wouldn't do it. THey could have broke that guys back... or worse. Again I can see where you are coming from but just disagree in this instance.
Agreed - regardless of a coach telling me to take someone out, it wouldn't have happened. I understand kids being conflicted, but my 7 year old knows you don't take someone out unless you are in harms way yourself. Surely those teens knew right from wrong.
All I can do is relate it to my High School soccer days and if my coach told me to go jump kick the referee I would tell him he was bat sh!t crazy and that I wouldn't do it. THey could have broke that guys back... or worse. Again I can see where you are coming from but just disagree in this instance.
Soccer is different than football, and so is the mindset you have to get yourself in to go on the field and play.
I guess my point is that these kids made a mistake, a BIG one, and deserve some sort of punishment for it. But people that are making them out to be out of control thugs...there are other factors that come into play here, and a big one is an authority figure not only telling them their actions are okay, but telling them they NEED to do it.
All I can do is relate it to my High School soccer days and if my coach told me to go jump kick the referee I would tell him he was bat sh!t crazy and that I wouldn't do it. THey could have broke that guys back... or worse. Again I can see where you are coming from but just disagree in this instance.
Soccer is different than football, and so is the mindset you have to get yourself in to go on the field and play.
I guess my point is that these kids made a mistake, a BIG one, and deserve some sort of punishment for it. But people that are making them out to be out of control thugs...there are other factors that come into play here, and a big one is an authority figure not only telling them their actions are okay, but telling them they NEED to do it.
YOu didn't distinguish soccer vs football, you just said authority figure, coach, parent... etc. BTW I played football as well... mindset isn't all that different. I played every sport growing up.
Soccer is different than football, and so is the mindset you have to get yourself in to go on the field and play.
I guess my point is that these kids made a mistake, a BIG one, and deserve some sort of punishment for it. But people that are making them out to be out of control thugs...there are other factors that come into play here, and a big one is an authority figure not only telling them their actions are okay, but telling them they NEED to do it.
YOu didn't distinguish soccer vs football, you just said authority figure, coach, parent... etc. BTW I played football as well... mindset isn't all that different. I played every sport growing up.
You're right, I didn't.
Don't know what to say Teddy, I don't agree with you here. It's easy to look back and say that you (again, general you) would not have done that, but I don't think that we are remembering what it was like to be a teen, and how stupid we really were.
And maybe you (specific you, this time) wouldn't have, maybe you were more grown up/mature and were able to think for yourself. Most teens aren't that way.
Wang I can understand where you are coming from, but this isn't Jack Nicholson ordering a code red in the armed forces where you listen to your superior or else... these "kids" are old enough to disregard an order that would intentionally injure someone else. I think you might be taking it a little to easy on them, but I def agree the coach who told them to do it is even more in the wrong.
I am not saying the kids are without blame.
But when you are 16-17 years old, and an authority figure tells you to do something (especially a football coach), a lot of kids that age would do so without a lot of thought. Try to think back to when you were a teen, and the bad decisions you made (general you, not calling you out specifically), even without an authority figure telling you to do it. Now imagine how many MORE bad decisions you would have made if a parent or coach was not only telling you that the decision is okay, but that you HAVE to do it.
Sorry Wang, but I just can't give this much credence. Yes, coaches have a great deal of influence over players, but if a coach tells you to go commit an assault that doesn't make it okay. It doesn't make it acceptable. If the coaches did try and tell the players then they should be toast. No way in this world that I would have done that if I was a player. Nor do I think that many kids would do it. I think it would be rare. Yes, we were stupid at that age, but stupid enough to do what those two kids did? I highly doubt it.
Last Edit: Sept 21, 2015 9:52:55 GMT -5 by Deleted
Sorry Wang, but I just can't give this much credence. Yes, coaches have a great deal of influence over players, but if a coach tells you to go commit an assault that doesn't make it okay. It doesn't make it acceptable. If the coaches did try and tell the players then they should be toast. No way in this world that I would have done that if I was a player. Nor do I think that many kids would do it. I think it would be rare. Yes, we were stupid at that age, but stupid enough to do what those two kids did? I highly doubt it.
I didn't say that it is acceptable, simply that placing the blame squarely on the kids, and saying that "I wouldn't have done that" is a bit harsh.
It's easy to say two decades (or more for some) that "I wouldn't have acted that way", but I am not so sure. You're playing football, you're fired up, you feel like the ref is screwing you, and your COACH tells you "Hey, go teach that guy a lesson", in the heat of the moment you aren't going to hit the ref? Maybe, maybe not, but let's not pretend that these kids are unique in the fact that they did. A LOT of teens in their position probably would have.
Again, that doesn't make the actions okay or excuse them, just shines a light on it a bit and explains WHY they did it.
If I'm not mistaken, 3 kids were told to do this, one didn't go through with it...? I can tell you without a doubt I would not have done something like this even had any of my coaches told me to. The kids knew better and took a cheap excuse to take a shot at the ref. This society of blaming others and other things for their f ups instead of being accountable is sickening. The coach needs arrested and banned from having any kind of influence on kids again. And, the kids need arrested for assault.
YOu didn't distinguish soccer vs football, you just said authority figure, coach, parent... etc. BTW I played football as well... mindset isn't all that different. I played every sport growing up.
You're right, I didn't.
Don't know what to say Teddy, I don't agree with you here. It's easy to look back and say that you (again, general you) would not have done that, but I don't think that we are remembering what it was like to be a teen, and how stupid we really were.
And maybe you (specific you, this time) wouldn't have, maybe you were more grown up/mature and were able to think for yourself. Most teens aren't that way.
No I was fairly immature.. I might have pulled someone's pants down or do one of the other million things that I did stupidly if a coach told me to, but I woulnd't have hurt someone intentionally. You are a very reasonable person so again I can see where you are coming from.
Sorry. From the earliest age of playing sports you are taught to respect the refs. You don't touch them. I don't care what a coach told them and in what scenario. The kids were old enough to know it was wrong. Period. The should never play the sport again. If the coaches told them to do it then they should never coach anything again ever.
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