Comments on: Equal opportunity for what ?

By: ahem

ahem — Tue, 24 Feb 2004 03:55:01 +0000

He said, misspelling ‘bachelor’. Dear me. It’s been a long day.

By: ahem

ahem — Tue, 24 Feb 2004 03:53:18 +0000

The varsity sports system is vital to the American collegiate system because it sustains dozens of institutions which would otherwise be closed down on academic grounds. In short, a successful football/basketball team allows countless thousands of not-very-bright people to get academically-worthless batchelors’ degrees.

By: Dave F

Dave F — Mon, 23 Feb 2004 12:03:54 +0000

Ophelia Benson: I seem to recall the esteemed National Gallery flogging itself as “an ace caff with rather a nice gallery attached”. For those who don’t get cheerleading, see the admirably energetic movie “Bring It On” which certainly opened my eyes and was hugely enjoyable. A lot of chaps are needed, by the way, for the girl-tossing bits of choreography. By the by, I found out on ESPN that skipping rope is a national sport in America – and believe me, you have never seen skipping till you have seen its annual championship.

By: Tom T.

Tom T. — Sat, 21 Feb 2004 23:09:46 +0000

Yes but that’s because classical music and theatre/drama are academic subjects. Cheerleading and basketball aren’t. What about dance?

By: the hanged man

the hanged man — Sat, 21 Feb 2004 18:33:57 +0000

Since when is cheerleading only open to girls? I’m with the other commentors who say that a lot of colleges have guys on the squad.

By: Ophelia Benson

Ophelia Benson — Sat, 21 Feb 2004 03:11:37 +0000

Err – cheerleading and basketball are gymnastics? Who knew!

By: sidereal

sidereal — Sat, 21 Feb 2004 02:09:40 +0000

“Yes but that’s because classical music and theatre/drama are academic subjects. Cheerleading and basketball aren’t.” Decouple philosophy and gymnastics? What would Plato think?

By: EKR

EKR — Fri, 20 Feb 2004 21:51:53 +0000

Well, there certainly are cheerleading competitions (e.g. http://www.cheersport.net/Nationals/national_index.htm) so I think it’s at least arguable that cheerleading can stand on its own.

By: Judith

Judith — Fri, 20 Feb 2004 19:25:20 +0000

I don’t think cheerleading can be recognized as a “competitive sport” because it cannot stand on its own. What is cheerleading in the U.S. without a football or basketball team to cheer? If a person enjoys jumping and leaping, etc., and wants to compete against others at school sponsored events, they can join the gymnastics or track team.

By: Davis X. Machina

Davis X. Machina — Fri, 20 Feb 2004 18:59:08 +0000

Why have basketball and football been able to trick-bribe the universities to run their minor leagues for them, at the cost of hundreds of millions, when baseball and hockey, where some players come up through the colleges, but many, perhaps most do not, failed to do so?

By: JSN

JSN — Fri, 20 Feb 2004 18:10:26 +0000

That’s not right, he was the only one in Modern Algebra with me, not real analysis.

By: Josh Narins

Josh Narins — Fri, 20 Feb 2004 18:09:15 +0000

My college was based on the ideas of Robert M. Hutchins. It is called SImon’s Rock College, associated since the early 1980s with Bard. http://www.simons-rock.edu I was B.A. graduate #239 (depending how you count). Real Analysis (after Calc III) had one other student (aged 15) and the Japanese teacher. I hope that guy’s OK.

By: Jason

Jason — Fri, 20 Feb 2004 17:53:46 +0000

yabartleby wrote: and, exactly as frequently, perform worse. No? Perhaps ... but then, I'm not sure how that helps your case against my broader point, which had to do with the lack of equity in support. My even broader point was that aside from men's basketball and football, college sports are usually a little less "professional" (in terms of the original post) and not as large a detractor from the educational goals of a university. I've never been told that my students and I aren't allowed to use the campus parking lots because a (men's or women's) lacrosse game is scheduled during class time. That has happened on more than one occasion for a men's football or basketball game. Of course, usually the students just used that as an excuse to skip class.

By: Ophelia Benson

Ophelia Benson — Fri, 20 Feb 2004 17:31:52 +0000

Yes if it’s there for recreation and fun and play and all that, that I think is a great thing. But the kind we have here, no.

By: Ben

Ben — Fri, 20 Feb 2004 16:15:52 +0000

Here, north of the border in Canada, sports are really just a sideshow. Universities do not offer athletic scholarships, money for athletic teams is tiny compared to the united states, and athletes are not celebrities that get special treatment is classes. It is one of the reasons I came to Canada from the US for an undergraduate degree. My university’s women’s hockey team was national champions several years in a row, thanks to the olympic gold-medalist goalie, but few of the students know her name or face. Canada does lose some athletic talent to the US, but I think the universities gain socially from it.