I’ll start by saying, I watched the Vikings game last night and I was into it. I’ve watched a few games this season, urged on by the throngs of die-hard vikings fans around me, and some old nostalgia toward Favre. That being said, I haven’t been able to watch a sports event recently without this line from Noam Chomsky coming to mind regarding professional sports:
“It offers people something to pay attention to, that’s of no importance. That keeps them from worrying about things that matter to their lives that they might have some idea of doing something about.”
Now, I’ll be the first to say, I’m not immune to the draw, the entertainment and excitement involved in watching, or playing, a good game. I just finished reading a biography about Major Taylor, a black cyclist in 1900, and the most interesting thing about it was this competitive drive and spectacle of the race. I say all that to say, I don’t make this statement from the other side pointing my finger, rather I’m asking you to think through this with me.
Q: Does the media, professional sports and entertainment news, distract us from the important issues?
Confession: I watched the game too.
Short answer is yes. However, the longer answer (as usual) is more complex. I am really turned ff by how commercial pro sports are. I have been hearing a lot of press lately about the business of sports. For instance, there was the recent Supreme Court case about whether or not the NFL can hand out exclusive licenses to clothing manufacturers to manufacture and sell its licensed apparel. The fact that every year the league makes millions on clothing alone tells me that our national attention is unfortunately captivated .
We need to keep in mind, however, that this captivation with professional sports is not unique to the U.S. Fans of professional soccer teams worldwide can be more fanatical than fans of U.S. pro sports. If there is a distraction, it's global.
There's also the argument that sports fill a need for humanity to compete, tribe against tribe, and that organized sports give vent to a competitiveness that would otherwise be expressed in armed combat. Of course, high U.S. military spending and ongoing global conflict deflate this line of thinking as well.
There are more pressing issues that we face, but my personal response will be to severely curtail the resources that I spend to prop up professional sports. This commitment may come close to home very soon as our city and state debate whether or not we should spend more taxx money to subsidize another professional sports stadium to keep the Vikings here.
In interest of full disclosure, I have to admit that I can become fanatical when Le Tour rolls around every summer. Although professional cycling is a big money-make and plagued by doping alongside every other professional sport, I will defend it on the grounds that it requires far less dedicated infrastructure than most othe rsports (e.g., football, basketball, hockey, tennis, golf, etc.)
Great answer, I think you've given this more attention and thought then I have. I definitely don't think it's an exclusive to the USA issue.
I like where you were going with the "sports fill a need for humanity to compete" thought. Do you think we as human's have a competitive nature, or is it nurture?
It distracts you if you let it. But so does anything. TV, blogging, work, even our own families. I think it is too simplistic of a question.
That's fair. I definitely agree it's a rather simplistic question. I guess my bigger question is whether the good outweighs the bad. Our professional sports something worth intentionally avoiding because of the distraction they cause us, as individuals but also as a society?
Ariah,
Well put about football being an opiate. I know that it is a drug that I have often used to escape the real stuff of life.
Last night I watched the game, and I am glad the Viking loss. I don't want to hear anything about the Vikings needing a new stadium, and I hope that loss last night will deflate those attempts to get a subsidized stadium for the rich.
If you look at the cover page of the Nov 19 2009 startribune you will see two articles "HCMC to reduce charity care, cuts jobs" and "Vikings turn up heat over stadium". We live in a crazy world.
Did you see the headlines today? Same thing, a big front pager about the Vikings losing and a side bar about HCMC "passing the hat, no takers" and their inability to raise money for their services from other counties.
sure, i'd say it does. i'd also say a balanced amount of it can be very healthy. you can't spend every waking hour trying to solve the world's (or your neighbors) problems. you need a mental break occasionally. otherwise, you burn out and you end up being no good to anyone. balance is the key. its probably not the best thing to use sport or anything else to numb yourself to the world around you. however, an occasional game, movie, etc. is the perfect escape to give your mind and heart a hour or two of rest before you go back to saving the world by living out the Gospel. (that last line was not meant to be sarcastic.)
@Jody, good point, I agree balance is key. And I think you probably find much of your balance in activities like hiking and camping, I think those are wise choices. And I can agree that those isolated moments of respite watching a movie or a game can be just what we need as individuals to find balance at times too.
I guess I'm wondering about the bigger picture, is the whole thing (say, professional sports) such a distraction to our society as a whole that it's impact and danger is to make us apathetic and inactive to issues we should really be concerned about.
Maybe like buying a product from Walmart that might be just what you need, but your purchase is supporting a system that consistently abuses worker rights, and thus you don't make the purchase there. Is the whole system so distracting to our society that it's better to avoid?
I'll bet more people in Minnesota are aware of the Vikings Loss than, the results of the recent Senate Election in Mass. or the recent landmark supreme court case. The weird thing is that collectively we have more at stake in our government than our sports teams. And technically speaking I think we have more influence over our governments decisions than our sports teams decisions. That being said I forgot to wear my lucky socks and that's why the Vikings lost. Sorry.
I think playing sports is a healthy thing. It helps keep people in shape and teaches team work. It also teaches the fundamentals such as not always being able to win, etc. I keep up with sports through espn but rarely watch it anymore, as it has become too much about the money and less about the game.
Jesus took days off from ministry so why can't his followers take a few hours off from being the Body?
You’re right! Sports is the ever so money making machine it is today! People buying jerseys, paraphernalia, etc! Did you ever buy any of that sports stuff? Oh, and don’t forget! Ticket prices have gone way up! Costs so much to see a game nowadays! We need to focus on Jesus and other important stuff! You can enjoy sports once in a while!
its a good question. one worth spending some time thinking about.
i made a personal decision a number of years back to stop watching/supporting professional sports of any kind – due not to an element of distraction, but to the outrageous salaries the players make. it is only by fan support that owners can afford to pay their players such salaries, and i chose to remove myself from that whole system.
i do however, still see movies frequently, which operates on a similar system. Actors can command millions to make a film, because people will watch. so I am not consistent.
I still enjoy watching football and some baseball somewhat regularly. As I have watched this year, it seems like the game of football has become more violent. Players hitting harder and throwing their bodies around more than ever. I have no stats to say that it is getting more violent, just my perception. But here is my point, as more people seem to be drawn to pro sports and the "gladiators in the coliseum" I find myself being drawn to comparisons of our current empire and the empires of the past and the role these games play in society and what they communicate about the society and it's future.
An empire coming to an end perhaps?
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That is interesting about the violence. Watching the Vikings game I found myself bothered by the late hits Favre was getting, but wonder if Saints fans were cheering. The fights in hockey have always disturbed me.
The parallels of empires, interesting, maybe a good blog post for you soon?
Thanks Eli and David for the comments. I think your hitting on some interesting topics (money, influence, time lost).
A friend sent me a link to a blog that might challenge some of my original thoughts. Haven't had time to dig into it but I thought I'd pass it along to further the conversation:
http://www.edgeofsports.com
Did you say you were a Minnesota Vikings Fan? Remember the Hail Mary Pass Roger Staubach threw against the Vikings in 1975?(Dallas Cowboys vs. Minnesota Vikings)You also like the Twins and other Minnesota teams, too?
This is an very curious topic for me as well. My experience has been marvel, and sadness while observing humanity in general, let alone a sporting event. It seems awefully grey to me.
There is an undeniable greatness in it all, but its like a mosaic of relevance and irrelevance. It all seems to depend on the lense. With a lense made in heaven, one can see God in everything. But imagine a lense where the football game and athletically gifted individuals, is all that is seen.
When I saw that stadium cheering, I personally saw a multitude praising God for all that he has done for that city since the horrors of that hurricane. I can't speak for everyone, obviously.But I believe a great many saw the hand of God in the NFC championship, like a beacon of hope for the renewal of a city that greatly needs it.
To me it is like that cycler you mentioned above. The inspiration and encouragement that has come out of sports and other incredible accomplishments has been sometimes so great that it could not have been conjured soley by man's deeds nor for his purposes alone.
I guess my view point is, after many words, that God's hand is probably in alot more than we give him credit for. And perhaps that is where the freedom that the gospel is talking about comes from.
here is why following pro sports makes no sense to me…
1. pro sports teams are multi-million dollar corporations that only want and care about your money. really i promise, thats all they care about. all else is an illusion.
2. sitting on your ass watching a glowing box does not effect the outcome of anything flashing across the boxes screen. even being in stadium and screaming at the top of your lungs has over all very little to do with the games outcome. people are so passionate about this stuff when in reality they are capable of contributing absolutely nothing to "their" teams loss or victory.
3. prosports teams do not actually represent the state whose name they bare. the minnesota viking/twins/wild/whoever probably have a collective 4 members who are actually from mn. so how in that name of hannah montana do they represent my state? pro teams should be made up of people that are actually from the state they play for. if the minnesota wins the superbowl it is only because a bunch of hulking behemoths from half a dozen other states won it for us.
4. "your" team winning or loosing does not actually effect your life. when a team from minnesota wins i don't get any check in the mail. my lawn does not become greener. i don't loose weight. my bills don't magically pay them selves. my dog does not start pooping out gold bullion. yet when the vikings lost last sunday people were actually saddened like somehow that loss had blown up their new puppy or drowned their grandma or had some other objective, tangible effect on their lives.
anyway as you can tell i think prosports are a load of (and i choose my words carefully here) bull shit. i am all for people enjoying themselves with trivial things but why anyone would want to do so with something they have no control over or have no way to actually contribute to is completely beyond me.
I think a point could be made too about how sports really bring people together in a lot of ways. So many bridges can be crossed through a common bond of sports fandom, that it really can be a tool to develop and deepen relationships. Aside from the weather, it's probably one of the most utilized ice breakers.
The biggest sporting event in the world is coming up this year in South Africa. I think the power of sports will be on full display at the World Cup. Perhaps there is a difference between professional and international sports, but in soccer, the pros do the playing for their countries. If you have ever been in a stadium with 60,000 jumping soccer fans cheering the country's team on, you will have witnessed the power of sports to unite people together. Perhaps it's a distraction from people's problems, but don't you think that people playing sports together is not only an answer to some of our problems, but even the way to solve them. Maybe that last sentence is not clear, but I think to live in a world where people can play sports is a good thing and a sign that not all is wrong with the world. I also think that people joining together to play sports is part of the solution to a great many of our problems as a society.
I think the other team that played that game you watched, New Orleans, is a great example of what even pro sports can do. Every other word out of the the athletes from the Saints had to do with playing for their city. Sure, they make tons of money, but did you see footage of Bourbon Street teaming with regular people celebrating their team's victory. Only a few short years ago, that city was in chaos and the Superdome, where the game was played, was pretty much a refugee camp. Many of the people who experienced Katrina were apparently there rooting for the Saints. I do not know how to quantify it, but it looked like a good thing to me.
Good points Goose.
You know, not paying much attention to sports, and then being in Viking land, I missed all the coverage of the Saints, and hadn't really thought about it's rise from the impact of Katrina. Reminds me of all those feel good sports movies (cheesy but I always enjoy them).
And I totally agree, globally, soccer and particularly the World Cup (similar to the Olympics in playing by country).
At the same time, with many of these things, I still wonder if the good outweighs the bad. If the unifying under a sports team is the best way to unify. Whether the nationalism that comes with the Olympics or World Cup is healthy. The money we spend, etc. I don't know, I just still wonder.
Some of this is beginning to sound like the kind of nitpicking Jesus rebuked the Pharisee for. Seriously does everything need to be a giant issue, is this not majoring in minors? The entertainment industry is for entertaining people, their is not some conspiracy at all behind it. Books, movies, sports, etc are not bad in themselves. Like everything else in this fallen world there are some bad aspects and bad people involved, so are we going to throw the baby out with the bath water?
Silent,
Thanks for being a frequent recent commenter on the blog. I appreciate your thoughts. I'm not sure where the "does everything need to be a giant issue" comment comes out of, if your referring to previous things I've written, it would help if you were more specific.
You'll find I do raise questions about things you might consider "minor" on this blog. It's my place and space to think critically about every aspect of my life and lifestyle and raise questions, dialog with others and challenge my assumptions. If my original post or the comments I've posted come across as "Pharisaical" or if you think I'm some how implying we are discussing what is "sinful" or not, then I apologize. That is not my intent. I'm the last person that is going to point out what is and is not "sin".
You are right, many things are not necessarily good or bad in themselves, that in this "fallen world" you'll have negatives, but none of that will stop me from raising questions and pondering how I live.
Ariah,
Been reading you for a few years man, not really new, just using a different online name. My last comment was not really directed to you, but at some of the other comment's here. My point was a simple one that you did recognize. Let us remember though that with topics like this and the way more important ones, that some a free in the Lord to eat meat, while others are not. We are all on different stages of the journey with Christ. Not all hold the same convictions when dealing with non-essential doctrinal type issues. So we need to be careful in our tone/words to not come across as judgmental. Again I was not offended nor did I mean to offend.
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True true. I'd be careful to assume all the other commenter's here come from a similar worldview, particularly as it relates to faith. I agree with your desire not to offend, and I can see how some comes across as judgmental. I'd also say that much of Christianity, as polite and kindly as it is sometimes conveyed, is hugely judgmental and offensive to those looking in from the outside.
Interesting dialogue. I've had similar conversations about American Idol with my wife for many years now — is Idol a distraction from reality, does it exploit, and (my perspective) is it all fake anyway?
My wife spends many long hours every week working at her job and as a volunteer assisting women re-enter our communities after serving felony prison terms. She also works with children of these Sisters. It's grueling, Godly work that, unfortunately, ends up feeling like failure more often than success. But for every Sister who my wife can witness actually making consistent strides forward in her life, it's more than worth it. My point here is that I'm always gonna lose this argument over American Idol with her. She is definitely well aware of how painful, cruel and degrading reality can be to so many of our Sisters and Brothers. She feels she's earned the right to veg out to American Idol every year…and she's right.
I think sports are like anything else, especially for Believers and Followers of Christ. Are we slipping into idolatry or not? Is how the Vikings are doing (I'm a huge fan) creeping toward becoming more important than my Faith walk?
Although the outcome of politics does (or SHOULD) have more impact on people's lives than who wins the Super Bowl, politics can become idolatrous also. Do my politics drive my Faith, or does my Faith drive my politics? Those are the kinds of questions I need to stop and ask myself once in a while. If your primary reason for waking up every morning is becoming your sports team, your politics, or American Idol, etc… then you might have a problem.
Several years ago, I had to let fantasy sports go. I was getting way too caught up in them. I don't put this on anyone else, but my already addictive nature was being sucked in by it, and I had to let it go. Unfortunately, I lost a couple friendships over this, which reveals how much sports CAN become all-encompassing, and a distraction from more important things.
My last point would be that whether it's sports or American Idol, we SHOULD all take a break from our Godly and activist labors once in a while. I think that's the point of Sabbath — to take a minute to remind ourselves that we aren't ultimately running anything ourselves. Self-importance can become addictive also. Yes, fight the good fight against injustice and lies, but always take a moment to remember who the highest General actually is.
Grace and Peace,
Mark
I agree, there are different things for different people. I personally am not in circles where I here a ton of talk about American Idol, but I'm well aware it consumes many people's time, much the same as professional sports do for others.
Sabbath. Good call.
Yes. But I've stopped giving people a hard time for watching sports…mostly. Moderation is key. The real problem isn't so much watching sports or watching soap operas or playing video games, it's partaking of these opiates to the exclusion of the important stuff, and giving them too much value in the culture at large. After reflection, I've realized I'm not so much angry that people watch the Superbowl as I am at the Superbowl ads that sell for millions of dollars or that the top-selling magazines obsess over what dress some stranger wore to the Oscars. All this while Howard Zinn dies and my mother's reaction is "Howard who?" I can't really make much of an argument for the moral superiority of my own personal recreations (DJing, music, reading, writing) despite their inclusion under the hi-brow unbrella because they don't inherently increase my political awareness. But anyone who has enough time to read People Magazine every week and Perez Hilton every day and still watch all the games of the season is not likely to have a good education in civics, and that's a real problem in this country.
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Always brilliant Karma.
There are so many things that consume people's energy other then addressing the real problems.
Right on