I was reading
this article about a trade in the MLS and it reminded me of something that I know I, and others often forget.
I think people have a tendency to forget, when discussing sports figures, that these are real people, with families and social groups, not just digital entities traipsing around on the television for our entertainment.
I see this, not only in the uprooting of people and families through trades, but when people grouse about players not willing to put their bodies on the line enough for us, while we sit on out butts watching them on TV. "Football has gotten too soft." "He needs a fastball to the head next time, that will teach him not to do x, y or z"
In my daily life, most of us would not wish serious harm or risk of injury on anyone, but on when it comes to sports, we want that guy hit with a pitch because he didn't run in a manner that we prefer. So what if it injures him and costs him a few weeks or months on the DL, we didn't really want that to happen, it was just bad luck, after all. So what if the receiver gets carted off. Unless he is on our fantasy team, or plays for our favorite team, once he is off the field he is out of sight, out of mind.
Just something to think about. As I get older, I find myself getting more and more annoyed at people who don't give a %#$@ about the person involved, all they care about is how it affects their entertainment. And every time I get annoyed at someone for this, I also have to hang my head a bit at earlier versions of myself, who thought the same way.