you give wade… a bad name

first, read this. (then come back).

wow. there are 38 different things wrong with this story. most importantly, people named \”wade\” should *not* be that ugly. less importantly, though, this (and similar stories about raging parents) is making me dread the day when the littl\’uns want to get involved in sports. too many idiot parents a) lack a sense of perspective about the importance of sports, and 2) lack a sense of judgment about their kids\’ talent for this *not* to happen frequently.

almost everyone thinks that their kids are great. i, for example, am blessed to have the two smartest and cutest children in the history of the world. no, really. but for other parents, it\’s a valuable lesson– for the kids– to know that you don\’t always make the a-squad. dealing with disappointment is a skill that needs to be developed. And that\’s hard, because it pains me so greatly to see it when soph (and eventually max) gets hurt feelings. unfortunately, though, that\’s life. as a parent, it\’s better to acknowledge this early and help your child learn how to deal. instead of being in denial and criticizing coaches for not realizing he\’s benching the next alex rodriguez.

(and, yes, it sorta kills me to use a-rod as the exemplification of the greatest contemporary baseball player. sort of the same feeling i got when taking him in the first round of this year\’s fantasy baseball draft.)

a follow-up on this that i heard on the radio but didn\’t make this story: campbell apparently told police that he yelled at his son after he struck out because he (the father) hadn\’t experienced athletic success as a youth and \”had carried that with him his entire life.\” well, that\’s just great. i\’m sure the kid will *completely* forget about that time when his dad threatened to kill his baseball coach by the time he gets older…