Yesterday, John Piper tweeted this
This student won a match he never wrestled. He conquered a sick system. Real men don't fight girls. http://dsr.gd/hIBByh
Today Rick Reilly wrote this piece http://es.pn/gdhdcG
Two very opposing views on the same thing i guess.
Reilly's column makes me angry. It makes me sick in my stomach and brings a burning sensation in my chest.
It may be true that religious conviction in itself is not something to be lauded. People do some evil things in the name of faith.
Yet this boy should be lauded that he put a value of respecting someone above gaining respect.
He understood his boundaries & principles and stood by them.
There were likely many reasons he had for not fighting, but the one he took stance on - is something to be lauded.
Violence against women is a serious problem.
She may consent to the fight. That's ok.
He doesn't want to engage in physical battle for other reasons.
Once a man hits a woman, he has given over a foothold.
He does not want to even entertain the thought. And he should be lauded for that.
The thing is- i don't think he is looking for applause. i think he is standing up for something he believes in - and something others should too.
i don't know the kid, so i could be wrong.
Maybe he is using it to hide.
Maybe he really disrespects women.
But it doesn't seem like it.
Women complain chivalry is dead, not realizing it is because they killed it.
But this isn't about that either.
Wrestling should be male-male and female-female.
But this isn't about that either.
This is about respect.
She may want to fight him.
She may feel slighted.
But he showed respect. He gave respect. His statements about her as a wrestler were respectful. His decision to not fight was out of respect.
i respect women enough, that i will not look at them lustfully. i will not look at pornography, nor will i watch a scene of a movie or tv show with a scantly-clothed woman. i will not allow another man to physically assault a woman, nor will i stand for verbal abuse or abuse of any sort.
When i play sports with girls, i don't let them do anything, but i play with respect.
When a friend would steal a ball from a girl, i wouldn't let him get an easy basket. i would run hard, jump high, block the shot (which is hard for me as 5'6") and if i gave a hard foul, i gave a hard foul.
Reilly mocks the thing.
If the 12 year old boy offered to wrestle him, would he engage? Would he use his strength against him, even though there was consent? Or would he refuse, noting he doesn't want to beat up on a kid? Wouldn't that by hypocrisy?
The boy not fighting shouldn't be under the microscope.
The comment in the Reilly article that is sad and should be questioned is the quote from the father
"She's my son. She has always been my son."
She may be a tomboy. She may be athletic.
But she is not your son.
She is your daughter.
She will always be your daughter.
She has never been your son.
That is disrespect.
If my daughter wants to play sports, i will play with her. i'll be happy.
i have said i want a son to play sports with, and my wife has said Halle can play.
And she can. and i think she will because she knows how much i like it.
But she will never be my son. If i have 4 girls and one likes sports more. She will still be my daughter.
Ugh.
Mike Greenberg in his book "My wife thinks I'm an Idiot" talks about hos sports is great - b/c it is something so trivial and meaningless, that we can wrap our lives around it to take away from the misery surrounding us. And if our team loses, it's not really the end of the world.
i love when faith comes out in sports
something like this.
but when an article shows the depravity of this world, it sickens my heart.
Instead, i guess i should hope that i would make decisions based on faith and conviction and not on what the world deems acceptable.
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