My reasoning

[KD52171]

When I was growing up in small town America we had one sport to play, baseball,until athletics started in school.


As I remember it, the blacks that were in our town played baseball with us and things were pretty equal among blacks and whites as far as athletic ability was concerned.


I think the changes in ability started when home video games became a staple in homes.


Seems to me that every white kid had an Atari and stayed inside in the AC while the black kids were out on the playgrounds playing ball. Not to say that this is true everywhere. But many places it is.


Parents encourage kids less to get out and play until dark as I did. I stayed out from daylight until dark and didnt want to come inside for anything.


Its my belief that parents are to blame for this problem. Encourage your children to play outside. Put them in a b ball goal. Trampolines are good also.


I think our white children are in general a bunch of pussies.


My thoughts anyway.


Thanks for reading.

 

[Colonel_Reb]

KD, for the most part, I agree with you. Except that it's society as a whole that has encouraged these changes. I think a lot of parents are to blame, as most don't believe in teaching their kids hard work or discipline, but that change in attitude crept in slowly, over many years, and didn't have a lot to do with video games. I do agree that since video games appeared, you have pretty much seen white kids disappear from playgrounds, sandlots, and backyards.
My 11 year old cousin is that way. He has 4 or 5 video game systems hooked into one. It's both unreal and sad. Anyway, I will not let my kids have them when I have kids, and I will encourage them in any athletic endeavour they pursue. I hope to watch my son(s) play high school football one day, and I mean start. If they have a little more size and speed than me, and will learn to work hard, they should have no problem doing so.
I am 5-6, and was 145-150 when I played high school football, and I was the first guy they put in on defense when our 5-10, 300 pound and 6-1, 240 pound defensive tackles needed a break. This was Louisiana Public School 1A football in the early to mid 90's. The reason they put me in ahead of several other much bigger guys was because of my aggressiveness and speed. I would really hit guys in practice and that got the coaches attention. They knew I wanted to be out there, and they knew they could count on me to give it all I had.
This is where the work ethic comes in from the parents. If it isn't tought, the likelihood of someone who is at a size disadvantage like myself getting to play will be small because they won't have the desire to do the work it takes to see it through. Those are my thoughts.

 

[white lightning]

Good points by the two of you.I do agree that kids play
way too many video games.Parents should control both
the games and the amount of tv that kids watch.I would
love to see more white kids get involved in track an
a early age.If more of these kids learn to sprint and
run properly,using good form,it will help them in any
sport they choose.Whether or not they stay involved in
track,they will have a athletic advantage when they go]
into other sports.If nothing else,parents just need to
get their kids playing some sports and sticking with
it.When they find out what sport that their kid excels
at,then have their kid focus primarily on that sport.

 

[Colonel_Reb]

I agree whitelightning.

 

[okra63]

When video games came along you did see a lot of kids disappear from the sandlots and from outside. This is the parents fault, but crime rates have gone up as well. I can kinda see why parents would want their kids to have a video game system and not play outside unless they are around. Now-a-days it could very well be a safety issue. Parents need to learn how to grow all around, balanced kids.