I think they should be made to walk around the school wearing signs that say “I got voted ‘ASSHOLE OF THE YEAR!’ Kick me to say Congratulations!”
And these are probably the same whiners who, in the next breath, bitch cause no kids want to play sports anymore.
This is part of the reason I couldn’t have kids. If some asshat musclehead coach did this to MY kid, I don’t know if I could suppress my urge to beat the shit out of the son of a bitch.
Why are people even surprised by this? I never had a coach or P.E. teacher who wasn’t capable of something like that.
To top it off, it’s now national news as well. These coaches are going to have a hell of a time getting hired by any school district, anywhere. Good luck in your new jobs at Mickey D’s, boys.
And right there may be a real injustice. Though the entire staff of coaches was implicated here, they all may not have been in on the “joke.” Anyone ignorant is still getting swept up with the trash. There was an incident near here where a student was injured during a (truly stupid) coach-sanctioned activity, and though one of the younger coaches wasn’t even supposed to be working there that day and had no knowledge of the activity, he has been suspended, will likely be fired and is being sued by the parents right along with the “guilty” coaches.
And a warm howdy to you, Jarbaby,
What I was talking about, since it wasn’t clear, was your comment “And folks continue to wonder why Columbine happened.”
I’m not at all saying what those coaches did was right. I personally hope they lose their jobs. They should know better then to do what they did. Especially since what the kid was supposedly “whining” about was that he wanted to contribute to the team by being able to play. But to equate being humilated with murder is a bit absurd. Is there any among us that hasn’t at some point been humiliated unjustly?
Yes, Blowero, evil does exist. Or are you saying that perhaps these individuals were just poor, tortured, misguided souls that had to have their revenge? Evil? I don’t know. I do know evil exists in a lot of people and they could not care less about you or your family and would just as soon shot you in the face and take all your stuff as look at you. I might even go so far to say that at one time I was evil. I did time once, many years ago, for some things I did in my life. All I can say is thank god we have prisons. I have looked in the eyes of people that are evil and I have heard them talk about the havoc they would wreak when they were released. Not as payback, but just because that is what they want to do.
I didn’t just learn my lesson, so to speak, but more importantly I learned that the world doesn’t revolve around me and my feelings. We could all find plenty of people to assign blame to for things that have happened in our lives, but it still boils down to taking responsibility for your own life. In most cases. There are certainly people that have had it a lot rougher then I ever did and still didn’t commit criminal acts but if they did it would be hard to fault them after the way they were abused.
And the countdown to a lawsuit by the coaches begins…now.
The ones not directly involved will sue to cover their own asses.
I remember age 13 vividly and not at all fondly. I went into that year with all the natural curiosity and fearlessness of any kid that age, and came out with the biggest inferiority complex on the planet, bullied and embarrassed by kids and gym teachers into a reclusive 14-year old. Something like this would have devastated me or any other normal 13-year old. This guy is a sadistic prick (like most gym teachers), pure and simple, and ought to have his ass handed to him in a paper sack.
Wait a second, you mean playground bullies grow up to be coaches?!? Say it ain’t so! 
That stupid douche deserves all the shit coming his way, how could you actually go through with engraving a trophy like that? This dude should think twice about publicly presenting his engraved opinions in the future.
Wul, geez, Hugh, I guess it’s a good thing that you and all these other folks you’re talking about are so strong and well-adjusted and capable of coping with it when life served 'em up a heaping bowl of turd crunch.
I mean, it’s good to know that guys like you and your chums that you’re talking about were so easily able to shrug it off when some asshead coach made a special point of humiliating you in public, in front of your old man and your peers and their families and all, for no other reason (as far as I can tell) than for some cheap laughs.
No doubt these ugly incidents failed to scar you for life or dent your self-image in any way, and these days you never even think about the viciousness and brutality of these adults who were supposed to be teaching you something. I mean, what the hey, right? Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right?
Of course. No doubt about it. As previously stated, it never even occurred to you to lash out at anyone because of such incidents, much less take down any innocents in the crossfire.
I guess that at age thirteen, even in the face of public humiliation by someone who was supposed to be a responsible authority figure, you just had such an intense grip on personal responsibility for your own life, and your self-image and all that, that the incidents just rolled off you like water off a duck’s back, huh? What a man! Here’s to Hugh G. Rekshun, who knows not the meaning of the word “trauma!”
A shame that not everyone is as tough as you, bud. Perhaps we should encourage MORE bullying and asshead behavior by coaches, so as to encourage the next generation to follow your shining example. :rolleyes:
I am just as appalled as everyone else, but I do want to step in for just a minute and defend coaches a bit.
I am an English teacher, and in many ways the coach is my natural enemy. I’ve had coaches ask me to lie to change grades to keep kids eligible, I’ve had coaches physically intimidate me when I went to them with a problem student, I’ve had kids fail my class because their coach wouldn’t let them miss any practice to come make up a quiz or get tutoring.
I’ve also had coaches walk all the way over to my side of the building to get my insight on a struggling kid and give me theirs–during the off season. I’ve had coaches threaten to kick good athletes off the team if they slacked in my class, even if they stayed technically eligible. I’ve had coaches take my worse behavoir problems out and make them run laps when I exhausted all my resources. I’ve seen coaches at the building at nine o’clock at night, packing their car full of kids to drive home. I’ve seen 6’4" mountains of angry, frustrated, belligerent testosterone start to get angry and loose control in the middle of a game, then glance over at their coach and pull themselves together.
The problem is that the nature of athletics is that coaches wield a ton of power. Good or bad, kids believe “The Coach”, and so coaches can save or destroy those kids. The bad ones–and there are way, way too many–are some of the most evil son-of-bitches on the face of the planet, because they are using all this power to get their sadistic jollies. But the good ones, man, the good ones–I’ve got good kids who are good people because some coach taught them how to be. They would never have listened to the same lesson from their bitchy old English teacher.
You know what? Fuck you Wang-Ka. I forged a fucking check and did some time for it. I didn’t murder anyone and those assholes in there were not my chums. So blow it out your fucking ass you punk. And no matter what happened in my life, it was no excuse to take something that wasn’t mine.
I can take a little humiliation, but jerks like you need a smack in the head. As I pointed out, asshole, many people had it a lot rougher then I ever did. I didn’t make any excuses for what I did. And I still don’t. I did the crime and I did the time and I saw lots of assholes like you hanging on the belt loop of people as their bitch.
Scarred for life? I’m not scarred. I may have been somewhat antisocial at one time and to be honest for what I did and the amount of time I did, I may well be justified in going on some sort of rampage. I assure you child molesters usually receive less time then I did. My exact charge? Attempted forgery. Why did I get so much time? Because at the time this happened in Colorado, I was on the run from a probation violation in Texas for attempt to sale a controlled substance. What was the controlled substance? Sugar! Which is why after they found out it wasn’t real they dropped the delivery of a controlled substance and changed it to offer to sale. I wasn’t even the one that sold it. A “friend” of mine did and I happened to be there. The money was passed to me and I just handed it to him. It was the cops way of involving me in the transaction. My biggest crime in texas was being ignorant and accepting their “deal”. I just wanted out of jail. Back in the 80’s, Texas was no place to do time.
Self image? Sure, I’ve had my moments. And that excuses my actions how?
Bitter? Hell no. They may very well have done me a favor. I graduated college in prison and have been doing very well since my release 15 years ago. Am I sorry for what I did? Yes. It was wrong. Anything that may have happened in my past is no excuse. I’m the one to blame. I was an adult when I did it.
So If you’re suggesting, as it seems, that this kid that had this happen to him is justified someday if he kills you, then even though it’s you, I would still disagree.
So look, Asshole, I never once stated this poor kid should let it roll off him. I hope those coaches are fired. My arguement, Asshole, was about the comment someone else made equating humiliating acts with murder.
You’re a fucking jerk.
Whew … for a second there, I thought you were going to try to defend THOSE coaches instead of bring up examples of OTHER coaches who are good eggs.
Big difference! 
When I opened the thread I half expected to defend it because I just assumed it was in the locker room after the game and the kids were in high school. To find out the kid was 13 and it was at a banquet? I would have been completely mortified. I feel really bad for the kid.
I have had tons of coaches who would do something like this though. I had one coach who practically begged me to be on the baseball team because I ran track and he figured I could steal bases (also happen to hit for average pretty well). As it turns out, I was a terrible fielder. I’ve been hit in the face with more than one baseball.
One time, we were doing fielding drills were the pitching machine throws one way up in the air, we practice running a ways back and catching them. I missed about six of them in a row, wasn’t getting anywhere close. When I ran back, turned around and stood back in line the coach picked up a baseball and hit me right in the back of the head. He wasn’t more than 30 feet away, I ended up with a concussion and was knocked out.
The point of all that is, I have known tons of asshole coaches and none of this surprises me a bit. In this case, the coach should be severely reprimanded as that was way more emotionally crippling than mine was, I just had a headache for a few days.
This is just kind of a small aside to the matter, but can you imagine the person in the trophy shop when the guy came in to order the engraving?
I’d like to think if it had been me, I would have looked the person in the eye and innocently asked “You sure you want to do this?”
I wonder if anyone DID suggest that it might not be the most appropriate thing to do.
:wally
I very well might have handed the trophy back to the coach, saying something like, “Here keep it, you didn’t want to give me a fair chance, I had to beg to get a chance, and now you mock me in front of everyone? That’s cruel, and uncalled for!” That might have taken the wind from their sails a bit.
Well, you wouldn’t be the first to say so.
Then again, I never made a point of deliberately humiliating any of my students for a few cheap laughs, either.
And yes, I understood your argument completely. You stated it very clearly: namely, that people often have horrendous things happen to them – either through their own fault, or completely out of the blue, through no fault of their own – and they don’t necessarily become crazed killers.
MY point was this: some people don’t cope that well. Other people don’t accept responsibility very well. Not everyone can suck it up and deal with it, simply because you did, or because by all rights they SHOULD. In a perfect world, people WOULD learn to cope, and/or take responsibility for their own lives.
As I think you would agree, the world is far from perfect. If you’re gonna kick a dog, don’t be surprised if he suddenly tries to bite your nuts off.
So, would it be justified if this kid nuts out, buys a shotgun, and slaughters half the coaching staff? No, I don’t think so.
But I, “fucking jerk” that I am, would certainly be thinking, “Gee, them asshat coaches sure screwed around with the wrong kid.” Or, as you yourself put it,
I would also go so far as to say that when a kid has been violently screwed over by persons into whose care he was entrusted by the state and his parents, remarking that he should simply suck it up and take responsibility for himself is not the most constructive thing one could say… at least, not at first. Y’see, it’s been my experience that responsibility for oneself – maturity – does not come naturally to human beings.
It must be taught.
By responsible adults. Parents. Teachers. Coaches.
Often by example.
You can only teach so much with lectures. You crap all over some kid at an awards banquet. I’d say the lesson there is “it’s okay to crap on people for the sheer fun of it.” Can’t say I agree with that lesson.
Never said that going bugshit with a gun was justified, Hugh. Only that one should not be surprised when one’s chickens come home to roost, if one is going to crap on people for the sheer joy of it all.
Can’t all be as tough as you are.
I wonder if the kid whined at every game or just one and just how much whining did he do at the game or games?
Bob, I’m sorry you had that type of experience. Personally, I enjoyed the experiences and fellowship I had on school and recreational league teams.
Later, I coached Babe Ruth Baseball for 14 years, youth league basketball for several years, and even girl’s high school basketball for two years.
I never intentionally embarassed a player. Now, years later, when I run into ex-players they always greet me with a smile. Some call or come see me for tips about coaching their own teams: “Coach, you made everybody on our team feel good, even the ones that didn’t get to play much. How did you do that?”
The answer is you care about the kids, whether they are great athletets or not.
I don’t feel I’m that much of an exception. There are many good-hearted people in the coaching ranks whose main goal is that the players have a positive experience and become better people because of their participation on athletic teams.
I’ve seen a few jerks too, some who would be capable of pulling a disgusting stunt like that mentioned on the OP.
In my experience the jerk types are a small minority, but unfortunately they are the ones who get all the media attention.
It seems like every time there’s a (however tangentially) sports-related thread on here, I end up composing a post and then abandoning it. It’s always the same post, too. Maybe I’ll abandon this one, too, but that’s not the plan.
Anyway, I have to take exception to statements like those above. Unqualified statements that assign specific characteristics to an entire group, generally speaking, don’t fly around here. That’s because, for the most part, the posters on this board understand that generalization usually ends up cheating somebody. Dopers are a pretty smart bunch on the whole- most of us, I think, know that not all Arabs are murderers and not all priests molest children. More importantly, I think most of us understand why stereotyping is dangerous.
So what is it that makes quotes like those at the top of my post any different? Are there scientific studies showing that all coaches and all gym teachers abuse children? Is it possible that, while some may have had gym teachers who were pricks, that’s just a reflection of the fact that gym teachers are, after all, human? Maybe more gym teachers than science teachers are pricks, I really don’t know. Not all, though, I can personally attest to that. Not most coaches, either, in my experience. Far from it.
It might not seem like this stuff is really offensive. I mean, you’re not being racist or anything, right? It’s still offensive, though. It’s offensive because when you make statements like these about coaches/ PE teachers in general, you’re talking about my father, a good man, a high school teacher and a coach. You’re talking about some of the people who have had as great an influence on my life as anyone else- wholly positive influence. Hell, you’re even talking about me personally, if summer leagues count.
Did I just equate the statement “Gym teachers are sadistic” with stuff like “blacks are dumb,” which I think we can all agree would be roundly roasted around here? In principle, yes, though certainly not in magnitude. When a coach, or anybody else for that matter, does something shameful like this particular coach did, by all means he should be called to the carpet. Most of the posts in this thread have done exactly that. Please, though, don’t overgeneralize. Not all coaches do this stuff. I’ve played for at least thirty coaches in my life, probably more, and had ten or so gym teachers. They weren’t some alien breed. They were just like everyone else. Read Manda JO’s post again. They’re people. Some good, some bad. The fact that the group you’re stereotyping isn’t oppressed by society doesn’t make the stereotyping any more valid, or any less silly.
-Preview-
I, uh, agree with John Carter of Mars.
Why would you ask this? Because you believe at some point that the mass humiliation was called for?
Give me a break.