Does Hockey face a similar fate?
An economic perspective on safety in High School athletics
"The most plausible route to the death of football starts with liability suits. Precollegiate football is already sustaining 90,000 or more concussions each year. If ex-players start winning judgments, insurance companies might cease to insure colleges and high schools against football-related lawsuits. Coaches, team physicians, and referees would become increasingly nervous about their financial exposure in our litigious society."
Tyler Cowen and Kevin Grier
full article: http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/755 ... d-football
What Would the End of (Hockey) Look Like?
Moderators: Mitch Hawker, east hockey, karl(east)
-
Haute hockeymom
- Posts: 75
- Joined: Thu Jul 10, 2008 9:17 am
What Would the End of (Hockey) Look Like?
Everytime I think I'm out, they pull me back in
-
HShockeywatcher
- Posts: 6848
- Joined: Thu Aug 31, 2006 10:21 pm
Interesting topic, surprised no one has commented yet.
I ran into an ex-NFL player in the last couple years in work. He discussed the amount of injuries that occured in the NFL. Went on to talk about the players who aren't playing anymore who have long term injuries. And his opinion was that the NFL owed the players something like medical care.
To a point I agree. You have an organization that puts safety of its players second to winning now. The Colt McCoy incident this year is a great example. And when players are seriously hurt, they are "called out" by other players around the league for not playing. There is research discussed about what NFL organizations have known for a long time and not publicized. Some very unethical things.
That being said, for the most part, the players know what they are getting themselves into. They are choosing to play a violent games that many of them love. And they are paid well for it. The league rookie salary this coming season is $390k; to make more more than the average American will make in a lifetime, they only need to work 4 years. I won't pretend to know what insurance plans are like, but they should be responsible with their money.
Anyway, none of that exists at the lower levels, which is where the lawsuits will come and potentially kill the sport. I have met multiple people that cannot continue their football or hockey careers because of head injury related problems. When you throw in the other injuries, the numbers are outragious.
Is injury part of the game? Yes. It is with any everyday activity non-athletes participate in.
Is there known research about long term effect of participation that is not actively discussed with parents/communities about the sports? Yes.
Some of these lawsuits are outragous. You hear about parents wanting football to be outlawed because it's too dangerous. And many times, even with outragous allegations, lawsuits are settled to save time.
But we now know it is a fact that long term, repeated head contact can lead to brain damage of some level. An athlete can get a concussion, or worse, despite only "normal wear and tear" from the sport.
So, where is the line drawn? Where does personal responsibility end and national responsibility begin? To be hard nosed and say "there is no issue" is to be ignorant given the current state. Whether the issue is in the legal system, the families, or on our field/ice, there is an issue.
Do I think it would happen with hockey as soon as it would with football? No, but it's definitely a possibility in the not so distant future.
I believe it is an adult's choice to play a sport and that there should be more information given to parents/children about what is known. Beyond that, my opinion on the "right" answer is limited.
Anyway, I don't have answers, just more food for thought.
I ran into an ex-NFL player in the last couple years in work. He discussed the amount of injuries that occured in the NFL. Went on to talk about the players who aren't playing anymore who have long term injuries. And his opinion was that the NFL owed the players something like medical care.
To a point I agree. You have an organization that puts safety of its players second to winning now. The Colt McCoy incident this year is a great example. And when players are seriously hurt, they are "called out" by other players around the league for not playing. There is research discussed about what NFL organizations have known for a long time and not publicized. Some very unethical things.
That being said, for the most part, the players know what they are getting themselves into. They are choosing to play a violent games that many of them love. And they are paid well for it. The league rookie salary this coming season is $390k; to make more more than the average American will make in a lifetime, they only need to work 4 years. I won't pretend to know what insurance plans are like, but they should be responsible with their money.
Anyway, none of that exists at the lower levels, which is where the lawsuits will come and potentially kill the sport. I have met multiple people that cannot continue their football or hockey careers because of head injury related problems. When you throw in the other injuries, the numbers are outragious.
Is injury part of the game? Yes. It is with any everyday activity non-athletes participate in.
Is there known research about long term effect of participation that is not actively discussed with parents/communities about the sports? Yes.
Some of these lawsuits are outragous. You hear about parents wanting football to be outlawed because it's too dangerous. And many times, even with outragous allegations, lawsuits are settled to save time.
But we now know it is a fact that long term, repeated head contact can lead to brain damage of some level. An athlete can get a concussion, or worse, despite only "normal wear and tear" from the sport.
So, where is the line drawn? Where does personal responsibility end and national responsibility begin? To be hard nosed and say "there is no issue" is to be ignorant given the current state. Whether the issue is in the legal system, the families, or on our field/ice, there is an issue.
Do I think it would happen with hockey as soon as it would with football? No, but it's definitely a possibility in the not so distant future.
I believe it is an adult's choice to play a sport and that there should be more information given to parents/children about what is known. Beyond that, my opinion on the "right" answer is limited.
Anyway, I don't have answers, just more food for thought.