Saturday, September 2, 2006

Profanity creates insanity

Commentary by Jason W. Brooks

In certain situations, a lot is expected of athletes. They are expected to perform well, be well prepared and in good condition, and mentally focused. But one thing many coaches don't address with athletes is the ability for each player to clean up his or her mouth.

In a locker room or at a practice, where the general public is not usually present, nobody usually minds if young athletes break out some of their foulest and most disrespectful language.

It's when the team is on display, showing the world what it has learned from training, that a better vocabulary might be used.

Some might argue that teenagers and young adults shouldn't have to change how they talk; high school athletes who have behaved well enough to earn extra-curricular activity privileges are probably grown up enough to talk however they like. Besides, fans and media have never been asked to do any parenting at ball games; that's not their roles.

But does having the freedom to curse at will make it a good idea?

Athletes and coaches tell me, "How you practice is how you will play." Youth sports is supposed to be a training ground for adult life, so why not teach young people that there are certain places where profanity isn't acceptable?

Coaches and parents will be the first to admit while they don't condone public cursing, they can't possibly be expected to keep track of all verbiage spoken by athletes they are responsible for. While coaches trust older athletes to be adults and act responsibly, they also realize humans slip up and use coarse language all the time. Just ask some of my co-workers at the Chieftain about what is said when my computer locks up on me.

So I'm calling out athletes from all Socorro-area teams to rise to the occasion, to hold themselves accountable for what they say, rather than waiting for older authority figures to police them. It's not about offending me or upholding an arbitrary rule; it's about learning new ways to express yourselves.

I'm not talking about twisting your ankle or missing a big play; cursing slips out from time to time. I'm talking about interviews, talking on the sidelines near fan areas, going anywhere while wearing team colors.

You never know when being able to get your point across or your feelings heard without profanity might come in handy. Even if no one was offended by what Americans largely consider "bad words," there will always be situations where strong language is needed and times when it really seems out of place.

There's a "cry wolf" element to swearing. If you swear all the time, no one knows when to take you seriously. Take Tommy Lasorda's outburst more than 25 years ago, for example. His profanity-laced tirade after his Los Angeles Dodgers lost a game to Pittsburgh wasn't something that happened every week. That's what made it news: the fact that he didn't talk like that regularly. Lasorda knew other ways of expressing himself.

Shaquille O'Neal, on the other hand, has cursed often enough in public that no one really pays attention any more, except TV network executives who cringe whenever O'Neal is interviewed on live television. Such a poor role model as O'Neal isn't teaching young athletes any four-letter words they don't already know. But he is showing how to disrespect a forum that belongs to more than just himself, how to use strong language when discussing something as specific as a referee's call, and is showing children that he doesn't really care if ticket buyers and TV viewers don't want their children to hear profanity. It's all about him.

Likewise, there is little consideration by the band Buckcherry for its fans, who can't even mention the title of its latest hit song out lud, much less sing the lyrics in public.

Some think people should lighten up and let everyone say what they want under the guise of free speech.

But why should parents have to explain to small children the reasons why some individuals use such strong language so much of the time?

Why can't athletes hone their ability to use more polite, all-purpose words?

Even Motley Crue frontman Vince Neil has managed to avoid dropping "f-bombs" in some interviews.

Fortunately for New Mexico high school and college athletes, there's still plenty of time to start showing, by example, that there's nothing wrong with respecting your surroundings when choosing words carefully.

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