I agree it's not "useful," but for the current state of the game, I
understand why Thomas did what he did, and I would have done the same
thing.
I would say it's time for a change in culture for the game. A culture isn't
always a good thing. I'm Canadian, I grew up in a culture that said guns were
for killing game. The American Culture of guns is that everyone has the right
to bear arms. Last week I read a story about somebody walking into a building
and killing 14 people. Last weekend some wing nut found his wife with another
man and his culture was to take a gun and kill his children, then himself.
Last summer I read an article where some kid at Gun Show in MA picked up an Uzi
and killed himself when he fired it. I'd say not all culture is a good thing.
I just think that when something like this happens, a part of what is going
through the aggrieved players mind is *If I don't do something I am going to be
ridiculed as a coward* I think if there is ever going to be a change in the
culture more people are going to have to praise the guy who regards something
like that as *water off a
ducks back* I've been in hockey fights, I just think it's a whole lot harder
to do nothing, than it is to throw a fit. I think we just have this twisted
idea of what the courageous thing to do is. What Rosa Parks did took courage.
If you and I had been sitting on that bus in Montgomery in 1955 it would have
taken a great deal of courage on our part to get off our ass and give Rosa a
seat. Sitting there and doing what everyone expects us to do takes no courage,
it's what's expected.
I don't think what Thomas did was a particular show of manhood. I agree it's
probably what most players would have done, and a large part of that is due to
the culture of the game. I think for Thomas to do nothing would have taken a
lot more courage. I think if more writers and commentators would point out
reacting a different way is a laudable thing, then the culture would start to
change.
Quite apart from the ethical elements and what takes courage and what doesn't,
I have watched a lot of hockey over the years, and on balance it's usually the
guy reacts who ends up on the shitty end of the stick not the intiatator so I
think on balance you'd just be better off ignoring the whole thing.
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