I Feel Weird About the Paralympics (Tiger Woods, athletic, league, sport)

[saobi]

On the one hand, I guess disabled people need a platform for them to compete in sports. But on the other hand, I feel like we are creating this Paralympics out of "political correctness", as if to say "Look, disabled people can perform just as well! We don't discriminate against them!". I think we can accept the fact that disabled people generally will not perform in sports on the same level as a non-disabled athelete; we can accept and still respect them. I mean if you are missing a foot, of course you can't run as fast, what is wrong with accepting that? Why force the society to pretend they are "equal" to normal people? Clearly they are not! That is not a discriminatory statement, that is a factual statement. Is it not? And that does not mean we are going to look down on them.

What if we held a math competition for retarted, or, "special" people? And say publicly, "Those kids can perform high level math just as well as we do! They are equal to us!". I feel that itself would be an extremely uncomfortable, and almost offensive thing to do.

I feel, and correct me if I am wrong, it's almsot the same with "feminist activists" who insist that women are equal to men in all aspects, even athletically. I mean come on, why with a clear mind would believe that other than for the facade and charade of political correctness? Why can't we accept that women are NOT equal to men in many aspects, and that will not detract one bit from our respect for women. Why can't we just do that and accept what is common sense?

Do you agree with me? Thanks.

[LINCOLNSHIRE]

It doesn`t make me feel uncomfortable in the slightest.. Do I feel uncomfortable about women competing against women or children against children?? Not at all..Horses for courses. What I would find offensive would be if they were forced to compete against the able bodied..

[willdufauve]

Originally Posted by saobi

I feel, and correct me if I am wrong,

Do you agree with me? Thanks.

I don't agree with and I'm correcting you because you're wrong. You have some fairly unattractive ideas running around in your head .

Disabled people can do what they want in life, including participate in paralympics. Fortunately, they don't need your acceptance or permission. Try a little compassion and understanding.

[dookieboy]

Originally Posted by saobi

On the one hand, I guess disabled people need a platform for them to compete in sports. But on the other hand, I feel like we are creating this Paralympics out of "political correctness", as if to say "Look, disabled people can perform just as well! We don't discriminate against them!". I think we can accept the fact that disabled people generally will not perform in sports on the same level as a non-disabled athelete; we can accept and still respect them. I mean if you are missing a foot, of course you can't run as fast, what is wrong with accepting that? Why force the society to pretend they are "equal" to normal people? Clearly they are not! That is not a discriminatory statement, that is a factual statement. Is it not? And that does not mean we are going to look down on them.

What if we held a math competition for retarted, or, "special" people? And say publicly, "Those kids can perform high level math just as well as we do! They are equal to us!". I feel that itself would be an extremely uncomfortable, and almost offensive thing to do.

I feel, and correct me if I am wrong, it's almsot the same with "feminist activists" who insist that women are equal to men in all aspects, even athletically. I mean come on, why with a clear mind would believe that other than for the facade and charade of political correctness? Why can't we accept that women are NOT equal to men in many aspects, and that will not detract one bit from our respect for women. Why can't we just do that and accept what is common sense?

Do you agree with me? Thanks.

I can think of a few "special' people that probably have a better thought process than you do.
Also what you seem to be saying is that if you are not a Michael Phelps, a Tiger Woods, a LeBron James etc., you have no business getting any face time or coverage for what you are doing. The team from Hawaii that just laid the wood to the Mexican team in the Little League World Series couldn't compete against the Yankees (well it is September, so they might hold A-rod hittless), but they had all sorts of coverage.
When you can line up with the best paralympic sprinters and compete with them, then maybe you have an argument. Just keep in mind, that the best paralympic sprinters are but an eyeblink slower than the "able bodied" sprinters.
It's not about "having a platform" or being politacally correct. It's about the love of competition at any level from pee-wee t-ball to the Super Bowl or World Cup.
Just my thoughts...

[jrmontag]

They weren't created out of political correctness. They were created following WWII for injured war veterans and it developed from there. So what's wrong with that?

[Toxic Toast]

Originally Posted by saobi

On the one hand, I guess disabled people need a platform for them to compete in sports. But on the other hand, I feel like we are creating this Paralympics out of "political correctness", as if to say "Look, disabled people can perform just as well! We don't discriminate against them!". I think we can accept the fact that disabled people generally will not perform in sports on the same level as a non-disabled athelete; we can accept and still respect them. I mean if you are missing a foot, of course you can't run as fast, what is wrong with accepting that? Why force the society to pretend they are "equal" to normal people? Clearly they are not! That is not a discriminatory statement, that is a factual statement. Is it not? And that does not mean we are going to look down on them.

What if we held a math competition for retarted, or, "special" people? And say publicly, "Those kids can perform high level math just as well as we do! They are equal to us!". I feel that itself would be an extremely uncomfortable, and almost offensive thing to do.

I feel, and correct me if I am wrong, it's almsot the same with "feminist activists" who insist that women are equal to men in all aspects, even athletically. I mean come on, why with a clear mind would believe that other than for the facade and charade of political correctness? Why can't we accept that women are NOT equal to men in many aspects, and that will not detract one bit from our respect for women. Why can't we just do that and accept what is common sense?

Do you agree with me? Thanks.

Go watch the movie "Murderball." Come back and report to us your thoughts about the paralympics after you watch it.

[ogre]

It seems to me to be more about the opportunity for those with disabilities to compete at a high level, and experience the fulfillment this can bring, than about some p.c. guilt trip.