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Junior Seau’s death should force fans to ask uncomfortable questions
The Washington Post ^ | May 12, 2012 | Jason Reid

Posted on 05/13/2012 2:37:42 PM PDT by MinorityRepublican

With each bone-breaking, head-injuring hit, NFL players are killing themselves slowly. It’s not a possibility. It’s a fact, no less certain than the league’s immense profitability.

Football injuries can kill in a variety of ways. One particularly tragic way might be by making life unbearable for the afflicted. And autopsies have revealed that several former players who committed suicide suffered from brain trauma caused by repeated blows to the head.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: braintrauma; football
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To: God luvs America

You are right and Jr. Played much longer than he should have.


41 posted on 05/13/2012 5:04:06 PM PDT by Hildy ("When the debate is lost, slander becomes the tool of the loser." - SocratesHill not text while dri)
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To: SquarePants

I think it’s shameful for them to attack and blame the sport that gave them such a great opportunity.

Yeah well that is dress right dress with the America hater’s after they get what they want . Good post SP.


42 posted on 05/13/2012 5:05:52 PM PDT by Ben Bolt
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To: Ben Bolt

Two or three years in the $ million NFL should floorplan a guy for the rest of his life.
Staying longer must be ego.


43 posted on 05/13/2012 5:18:36 PM PDT by Eric in the Ozarks
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To: MinorityRepublican
Solve the problem by banning football. In its place, institute gladiatorial combat to the death. The pay scale can remain the same and the pool of eligible candidates will expand exponentially with unemployed criminals on the make for the big score. Televise it and increase ticket prices 2,3 or 4 times. The gub’mint will, of course, make a fortune on taxes fees and the like. Money would gush our of this enterprise and everyone could get a taste. Stadium funding? Pishaw! Take the money out of petty cash...
44 posted on 05/13/2012 5:23:09 PM PDT by WorkingClassFilth (I'm for Churchill in 1940!)
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To: Dilbert San Diego

It’s not that the old leather helmets provided good protection.
It’s that when you’re wearing one, you’d better hit with another part of your body!

It’s the counter-intuitive, law of unintended consequences - when you efficiently sheathe the head, it IS used as a battering ram. Correct! They would NEVER do that with a leather helmet.

Any attempt to conflate suicide with football, even the way it is played today, is an effort to castrate.

Not to t/j too much, but I’m convinced the directors - the ones who say; “Camera two!....go to camera 4, etc” (who show the game) did NOT play football.
How many times did you WANT to see a snot-bubbler get up, want the camera to linger on the scene... and instead, you get the qb’s face, or *something else*...?

Think about it. There’s a high percentage of faggotry in showbiz.


45 posted on 05/13/2012 5:25:06 PM PDT by spankalib (The Marx-in-the-Parks crowd is a basement skunkworks operation of the AFL-CIO)
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To: Eric in the Ozarks

Ego ? That’s the 1st thing to kick in . Instead of building a bigger dream or mentoring other’s to be better than even they knew they could be ....... Something constructive .
No . He kills himself . Your on it Eric . Pure selfish ego .


46 posted on 05/13/2012 5:27:20 PM PDT by Ben Bolt
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To: SquarePants
If you were to tell me a job would put me in the grave by 50-55, but would retire me by 35 and secure the financial independence of my family for generations... I might seriously consider the deal, if I didn’t have any better plans.

Add to that, a career that would have them being pursued by hot cheerleaders and groupies from high school, be admired by millions, live the high life until they died -- I think a very high percentage of men would make the trade, to give up your old age, but be living large right up to the end.

47 posted on 05/13/2012 5:33:37 PM PDT by PapaBear3625 (In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act. - George Orwell)
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To: MinorityRepublican

I played football from the time I was 5 right through college. I was a running back and a strong safety type. I knocked people out and I got knocked out. I’m 60 now and suffering no ill effects from concussions including the one I got playing combat football in the Army sans equipment. I understand that the guys are bigger and faster but the equipment and technology are better as well and the money paid to pro football players is large.

But medical technology is such that a grown man can make a very informed decision. I would play all over again if I find the fountain of youth.


48 posted on 05/13/2012 5:33:52 PM PDT by jwalsh07 (.)
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To: FreeFromWhat

I think steroids are the real problem. Players retire, get off the steroids and then have mental problems. Not hard to figure out. Concussions are just a socially acceptable excuse for this pathetic behavior. Eliminate steroids and you would cut down on the size of these players colliding with each other as well.


49 posted on 05/13/2012 5:40:18 PM PDT by Bizhvywt
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To: MinorityRepublican

Sports Ping


50 posted on 05/13/2012 5:55:38 PM PDT by Chainmail
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To: dfwgator

I think the small hits are exactly the problem...and a lot of these players have been taking small hits since they were playing football in pads since they were 5-6 years old.

My son played a year of football when he was maybe 9 or 10 years old. Got his only potential “concussion” in a scrimmage. It was a clean hit by a bigger kid. He wasn’t trying to crack his helmet but accidentally did. My son got up and claims he saw stars and didn’t remember his name for a couple plays and also forgot to tell the coach because he wanted to stay in the game since he wasn’t a starter.

I guess my point is that there are a lot of kids who are taking little unreported head shots really early in life, and I truly wonder if we’re starting our kids in organized football (i.e. pads and helmets) too early in their lives.

I think when I was a kid they didn’t really start tackle with pads until high school or junior high. We played tackle without pads but you didn’t lead with your head because it would hurt. Luckily stiff arms only hurt the neck...and only temporarily.


51 posted on 05/13/2012 5:59:37 PM PDT by perez24 (Dirty deeds, done dirt cheap.)
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To: perez24

Replace stiff arms with clothes lines. Stiff arms only hurt the other guy’s face.


52 posted on 05/13/2012 6:02:40 PM PDT by perez24 (Dirty deeds, done dirt cheap.)
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To: MinorityRepublican

I’m asking just one question: When does the 2012 season start?

It can’t be soon enough.


53 posted on 05/13/2012 6:30:54 PM PDT by Henry Hnyellar
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To: MinorityRepublican

Exactly what is the suicide rate for young famous celebs? Pretty darn high, is my guess.

It’s like the over-dramatization of Veteran suicide rates. Young males living far from home have a huge suicide rate.
College males not have a suicide rate 7 times the national average.


54 posted on 05/13/2012 6:42:55 PM PDT by cookcounty ("We're all born idiots, and we only get over that condition as we get less young." -J Goldberg)
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To: cookcounty
Ooops..meant to say "College males not have a suicide rate 7 times the national average."
55 posted on 05/13/2012 6:45:39 PM PDT by cookcounty ("We're all born idiots, and we only get over that condition as we get less young." -J Goldberg)
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To: MinorityRepublican

Uncomfortable question: do homosexual males commit suicide at a higher rate than heterosexual males?


56 posted on 05/13/2012 6:56:43 PM PDT by petitfour
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To: Dilbert San Diego
Another factor is that the players have bulked up so much in recent years. Years ago, 300 pound players were rare. Now there are huge numbers of such players.

Yeah, I remember in the 1970's and up to about 1990 or so, 300 pound players were a novelty. IIRC, William, The Refrigerator, Perry was like 300/325 and he was all the talk back in the day. I remember when they mentioned the then rare 300 pounder, Mom and I stared at each other with open mouths.

A little OT, I remember a 1979 article on Sports Illustrated about football in the year 2000 where they said players would have suits with power assists, radios in the helmets and I think a HUD in the helmet too. It was wild.
57 posted on 05/13/2012 7:03:16 PM PDT by Nowhere Man (General James Mattoon Scott, where are you when we need you? We need a regime change.)
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To: Nowhere Man
It's like one of my friends joked, "get rid of all pro sports and go virtual reality all the way. Just get 22 Playstations, tie them into a mainframe, get 11 video game geeks for each side and tie the whole mess into network TV and run virtual football seasons." Madden 2K13 anyone? B-)

Or we could go the Jetson's route below with robot football players



Even so, with the control the coaches had in the games, it does resemble Madden 2K13 in a weird way.

Seriously, we need to check and treat injuries to the head with more scrutiny and if the doc says, "hang it up," then you retire.
58 posted on 05/13/2012 7:11:27 PM PDT by Nowhere Man (General James Mattoon Scott, where are you when we need you? We need a regime change.)
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To: Venturer
I just started reading this thread and I'm sure that someone downthread has pointed out the logical problem with this statement:

I worked as a Firefighter for 25years until retirement. I saw guys get their backs broken by falling debris, I saw head injuries, hand injuries, smoke inhalation,Burns , hell I suffered some of them. I don’t see anyone saying we should do away with Firefighters.

You do see the problem here, don't you? Firefighters are necessary, football players simply aren't.

59 posted on 05/13/2012 7:11:47 PM PDT by OldPossum
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To: MinorityRepublican
Let's see what chronic pain medication (opiate addiction), testosterone, HgH, cocaine, alcohol, amphetamines, diuretics, decadron AND head injury does to a person. The players are opening up an entirely bad deal if they go to trial, cause each one is going to have to open up to ALL the drugs that they've taken over the years in order to keep on playing.

Hyper aggressive males with poor impulse control and all of a sudden losing the 40000 screaming fans every week and self worth might just make someone despondent.

Chronic alcoholism causes memory impairment and the use of HgH/testosterone , decadron/solumedrol/prednisone and other masking agents that have to be metabolized in the liver or through the kidneys in addition to suppressing the immune system (higher risk for cancers/inflammatory diseases might also cause cognitive disorders.

So the players are going to be on the hot seat for drinking , drugging and getting hit on the head. I thought it was pathetic that the well known DRUNK , Jim McMahon, of the Chicago Bears was not blaming alcohol but concussions on his short term memory loss. The NFL lawyers are going to chew them up.

60 posted on 05/13/2012 7:47:22 PM PDT by Dick Vomer (democrats are like flies, whatever they don't eat they sh#t on.)
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