(Yes, I know some of these services are paid for by sales and other taxes, but it’s still a tax. If you wish that taxes were included when you see the price of something instead of tacked on at the end or at the cash register, I’m in your boat too.)
Be proud to pay your taxes. If you don’t want to pay taxes, I hope you’re willing to give up everything that your taxes pay for.
Was scratching a check to the government the highlight of my year? No, but I was happy to do it for two reasons:
I want the state and federal government to provide most of the services that my taxes pay for, and
As an entrepreneur, it means I made money.
I have no problem paying my fair share.
Any company or billionaire that flaunts that they don’t pay taxes should be ashamed. All that tells me is that you’re probably a selfish ass.
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I’d love to see the NFL shift from tackle football to flag football, and create a cascading effect through every level of play. Unfortunately, teams are making too much money off their players to make such a drastic change that could risk alienating their audience. From a business perspective, I understand their logic, but from a human perspective, I can’t wrap my brain around a sport where the risk of developing CTE doubles every 2.6 years that some plays contact football.
While a top-down approach would have yielded fast results at all levels of play, what it appears we’re seeing is a bottom-up change in American football.
Even before the COVID pandemic, there was a 48% decline in the number of people playing tackle football in the U.S. between 2006 and 2018. These numbers include players ages 6 and over, so it’s not reflective of high school athletes; however, it supports the data that parents are more concerned about preventing concussions, so they’re less likely to allow their kids to play.
The latest survey from the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) shows that the 2021-22 school year was the first time less than 1 million high school students in the U.S. participated in 11-player high school football. It’s encouraging to see that the number of people playing this dangerous game are decreasing.
High Schools Don’t Have Enough Players for a Football Team
At some high schools, the number of students who want to play football had decreased so much that the school doesn’t have enough players to have a team. The total number of high schools with an 11-player football team dropped from 14,247 to 13,733. It appears some of these school shifted to offering 6-, 8-, or 9-player football instead, but others dropped teams completely.
This past fall, there were multiple high schools that started their football season and had to cut the season short because they didn’t have enough players. Holland High School in Michigan ended its varsity football season after only 4 games. The roster was filled with sophomores when few upperclassmen went out for the team. When the coaches noticed the substantial different between their players’ size and skill development compared to their opponents, they shortened the football season due to the risk of injury.
Likewise, Bellevue High School in Ohio cancelled the remainder of its varsity football season due to a “limited number of healthy players.” There were only 20 players on the varsity team, 2 of which had suffered concussions, and the senior captain was playing while wearing a cast.
Alleman High School in Illinois has already cancelled its varsity football 2023 season due to low student participation. The varsity team had 30 players in fall 2022, including 10 graduating seniors. The school won’t have a varsity team in the fall due to their concern for the health and safety of the remaining players.
There may be additional factors that are contributing to decreased participation in high school football, such as the decrease in population of high-school-aged children, the decline in enrollment at rural high schools, budget constraints at schools, and players deciding that football isn’t worth their time if they don’t get much playing time.
Is Football Taking Advantage of the Disadvantaged?
Where high schoolers are more likely to continue to participate in football is in rural areas and where it’s culturally ingrained for youngsters to participate in tackle football. A study also found that black Americans and people will no more than a high school education were not as negative about tackle football compared to white people and people with a college education.
“For less-advantaged people, football is seen as one of the only ways they can get ahead in society, which may explain why they support it for kids.”
Reading this made me wonder if American football will turn into a sport where the educated and the wealthy won’t play, but rather take advantage of the fact that some people are willing to risk their brains and their lives in the hopes of creating a better future for themselves and their families. This prospect makes me sad, and a little sick.
As we’re seeing a decrease in the number of people playing tackle football in high school, I wonder if these people will be less likely to want to watch it as adults. I wonder if parents limiting their kids to only playing flag football as children will lead to a demand from fans to shift the NFL to flag football as well. While I would love this change to happen instantly, I suspect this type of shift will take generations to occur.
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It’s not a secret that I live with depression. As an introvert, social distancing is great – to a degree. However, being alone most of the time means I’m left alone with the thoughts in my head all day. (I’ve been warned that my mind is a dangerous neighborhood, and I shouldn’t venture there alone.)
In order to deal with the social distancing aspect of COVID-19, I’ve created some rules to help me manage my depression:
1. Shower every day.
2. Brush your teeth twice a day.
3. Moisturize. Moisturize. Moisturize. Every day. No matter what. This rule has served me well for 40-something years. I’m not going to fuck up my skin now.
4. Put on fresh clothes each day. PJ pants or athletic shorts are fine.
PJ Pants!
5. Put on jeans to walk the dog. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with going out in PJ pants. My PJ pants are men’s medium and drag about 4 inches on the floor. I am not going to destroy them by dragging them around on the sidewalk.
6. Eat a mostly balanced diet, well more balanced than not.
7.Open the blinds every day. There is a sun out there.
8.Do whatever workout Coach David assigns. (I’m training to do my first Ironman in August, and anticipate it will go on as scheduled.) It doesn’t matter if I don’t like it. As Rocky Kees used to say, “I didn’t ask you to like it. I told you to do it.”
9. Try to talk with a real person each day – by phone or from at least 6 feet away.
10. No more than 2 Zoom-based events per day. I have enough challenges with the voices that reside in my head. Pumping in too many extra ones will make me bat shit crazy.
11. When in doubt, wash your dishes. Doing a simple task can make me feel like I’ve accomplished something worthwhile.
12. It’s ok to do the bare minimum. Every morning, I create a to-do list on my white board. If I only have energy to do the bare minimum, and I need to spend the afternoon taking a nap, that’s ok.
These are the rules that are helping me survive mostly sheltering in place. Hopefully they’re helpful to you too.
Legal services are considered essential, but I’m limiting my contact with the outside world, trying to do my part to flatten the curve.
