Did University of California Berkeley have to cut student sports? NO!

How do you know sports have had no relationship to leadership? Sports have been played for thousands of years, certain skills, including leadership are learned —I sight myself as an example. Now, if you mean school sports have had no connection to leadership I don't believe that either. School sports have allowed children that can't afford to play privately excel with a given sports talent, this in turn has boosted their self confidence and given them the ability to be a leader on the field as well as to come out of their shell in the community, academically (you have to keep your grades up to play) etc. I've seen this in many children. We talk about childhood obesity and then want to cut sports. Huh? I myself came from a large family and played sports in the neighborhood, nothing organized, couldn't afford it. My father talked me into trying out for basketball, telling me what a great experience he had in HS. I was to shy, questioned my ability, and didn't want to be embarrassed. But I tried out— and didn't make the team! But the I got serious, took my basketball and walked to the park everyday and shot hoops and learned defense with my dad at my side. Following year I made the team, became a captain by varsity, my grades improved because I was busy and had to manage my time, had to stay in shape, no drugs or alcohol, confidence soared, ended up 8 th in my graduating class, with an academic not sports scholarship. There are just so many intangibles you learn from sports! I also played soccer and softball, so I kept busy, also in band. Got up at 6:00 got home from school at 5:30, even later on game day. Some of the best experiences of my life! I am a female and have girls that play sports. We all grew up strong because of sports! And as to comparing us to Europe, other then Soccer I'll bet on the USA in any other sport vs any European country in the Olympics!

Contrary to your extremely negative and uninformed opinion,
she IS learning......learning a lot. She has a 4.5 average, and lots of promise in several different fields. And this is a young woman who financially couldn't attend college without some kind of scholarship to help.

Gee, I went to college, graduate school in fact. I'm finding it difficult to understand why so many “freepers” are negative about college, unless of course, they didn't bother to pursue the experience.

I think ALL sports should be cut out of ALL schools.
Sports is utterly useless and teaches nothing.

What if blogpimping were a sport? How about if there were blogpimping scholarships?

Maybe students should just sit on their fat asses and pimp
lame blogs instead of playing sports. How cool would that be?

No problem, FRiend. I have nothing against sports. I like many sports and you’ll need a company of the 82nd Airborne to pry me away from a Braves game.

BUT... I cringe at the thought of the $$$$ we waste on school sports at all levels. I cringe at the numbers of ignorant jockstraps we produce all in the name of a “game”. While participating in sports CAN have lasting beneficial effects on children, far too often the hyper-competitive “win at all costs” mentality and the sense of entitlement they engender amongst the “stars” outweighs those benefits.

You want to participate in sports, or you want your kids to... fine; YOU pay for it. I want my money to go to the education of my kids - and sports plays a very small part in that education.

“Contrary to your extremely negative and uninformed opinion,
she IS learning......learning a lot. She has a 4.5 average, and lots of promise in several different fields. And this is a young woman who financially couldn’t attend college without some kind of scholarship to help.
Gee, I went to college, graduate school in fact. I’m finding it difficult to understand why so many “freepers” are negative about college, unless of course, they didn’t bother to pursue the experience.”

Like Juan Williams, I’m expressing my opinion which is not uninformed, is that everyone, including this young lady, has a choice...in this case to go to Berkeley or not.

I have four earned college degrees, thanks.

I have a young friend who is an absolute star on the Berkeley Women’s gymnastic team, which recently has been cut. She is Olympic quality talent and I think it is a crying shame that Berkeley has abandoned her sport.
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I really feel bad for that lady...I have seen the Cal women’s gymnastics team competing against UCLA at Pauley Pavilion...

I am really disappointed that Cal cut baseball also...Cal is the biggest school in the UC system...But, it will not have a baseball team after this school year...A long time ago, Cal team played Yale in the College World Series...George Bush the elder was on the Yale team...

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