No More Trash Talking in High School Sports is Just Total Trash [POLL]

We’re getting to the point in New Jersey where the next war will not be fought with weapons, there will be no guns, knives, bombs, or missiles. What’s going to happen is the enemy will just show up and call us names and we will just shrivel up and die.

The next phase of the anti-bullying laws cover “trash talking” at high school games.

New Jersey high school athletes who engage in trash talking could soon find themselves under investigation by the State Division of Civil Rights, and face other penalties as well. The policy also applies to fans at games, who verbally abuse each other, players, coaches or referees.

In this country, we have freedom of speech as well as a freedom of opinion. Are we now going to be penalized for that? Can they do that in America?

Trash talking in sports goes back to the day they began playing sports. The NFL used trash talking to sell its product. Trash talking has turned up many personal on field battles and as far as what’s said during the trash talking, I believe the players should police themselves.  The incident with the Knicks' Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Garnett and Honey Nut Cherrios comes to mind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBj_xPYLKPQ

It seems like the old saying of “sticks and stones will break my bones but names will never hurt me” is no longer in play.  It should be.  You should never let a name hurt you. In sports, your play can simply put it to a stop. You can also use it as a motivating tool.

When I was a kid, they used to call me fat, I got so angry that I went on a diet and lost the weight. When they said I sucked at a sport, I just practiced until I got good enough to put an end to it.

I’d rather know how my team really feels, then have them keep it inside. That will manifest itself in other ways. Growing up in Union City, we used to trash talk each other all the time. I know a lot of comics who got into the business because they were made fun of as a child.

As a parent, I would like to protect my boys from all that is bad in the world, but I know that I can’t. Sooner or later, someone is going to call them a name. I pray that when that happens, I’ve given them enough self-confidence to not let it bother them.