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Concussion doctor says he found CTE in living NFL player

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Re: Concussion doctor says he found CTE in living NFL player

#151

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>The players are not really aware of the health risks, furthermore they are young and foolish and impressionable and are following the path of glamour which has been sold to them as youngsters. I think a great deal of them would still choose to play despite knowing the risks. There are likely neighborhoods where people raise families that are less safe than playing in the NFL. And I'm sorry, but 25 year olds are not…

This particular thread was about the NCAA, which does recruit players at 17-18 (just entering college).

The recruiting actually starts earlier than that for the most gifted players.

Re: Concussion doctor says he found CTE in living NFL player

#153
post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your premise is wrong. It sounds as if it should be right, but the framing is awry The players are not really aware of the health risks, furthermore they are young and foolish and impressionable and are following the path of glamour which has been sold to them as youngsters. The sports organization is aware of the risks and are using the players to make vast sums for themselves, they are pushing the glamourous path a…

>The players are not really aware of the health risks, furthermore they are young and foolish and impressionable and are following the path of glamour which has been sold to them as youngsters. I think a great deal of them would still choose to play despite knowing the risks. There are likely neighborhoods where people raise families that are less safe than playing in the NFL. And I'm sorry, but 25 year olds are not…

> And I'm sorry, but 25 year olds are not "young and impressionable" any more, so I don't buy that defense.

I'll say this because it fits the demographic here on HN, but have you ever met mid-20-something techies in the bay area? My experience has been that many of them are still very impressionable. Being technically an adult doesn't magically make you immune to being impressionable.

Remember the state of being impressionable is about a lack of critical thinking. Given what we've seen with the recent election, it seems very plausible that many adults lack critical thinking. No?

Looking at this more objectively - 1 out of 4 college football players drops out of school and doesn't finish their degree. Also, more objectively, at the age of 25, you're only a third of the way through your expected life (~78). So, yes these people are still considered "young".

Re: Concussion doctor says he found CTE in living NFL player

#154

Question for football fans: Would the game suffer that much if we changed the rules to reduce contact? Say, like flag football?

Yes, significantly. One of the biggest draws of football, for better or worst, is the tackling. People watch to see the big hit and the great escapes to evade the tackling. Here is just a single example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8geJp5mVLA

If the game used flags, the quarterback would have almost certainly been down. Instead he runs for a first down and keeps his offense on the field.

Re: Concussion doctor says he found CTE in living NFL player

#155
post #109
post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> In a healthy society this sport would be forbidden by law. Give me a break. Are we going to ban football at home, too? Or just at school? What about community leagues? In a healthy society, the dangers would be well-known, minors would always have a right to refuse and forcing a minor to play would be considered child abuse, and children would have to be old enough to form rational opinions before being eligible fo…

It has. Compare to healthy societies.

Could you elaborate?

Re: Concussion doctor says he found CTE in living NFL player

#156

There's a lot of hate towards the NFL but the NCAA is an even worse actor on CTE. 70,000 college players every year, and they aren't paid professionals like the NFL. But NCAA programs make billions of dollars off of the players (and their coaches millions). Destroying brains for profit, in the context of the education system, is truly evil.

NCAA programs do not make billions of dollars. All NCAA programs combined might have that much total revenue.

http://sports.usatoday.com/ncaa/finances/

Clemson, where I went to school and the current defending champs had a budget of $104,000,000. Of that, they spent $103,000,000. If you'd be so kind as to identify the shareholder who's rolling in that $1 million profit I'd appreciate it.

When I was in school around 2000 it was a $30,000,000 budget. All of that extra money happened because of Tivo and Netflix making it so much easier to skip commercials on anything that you didn't need to watch live...which make live sports (that people watch) the most viable advertising channel for traditional broadcasters. Couple that with college sports having the added benefit of mostly aiming advertising at the eyeballs of alumni and you have the most valuable advertising resource in TV.

In the mean time, have a look at the new facility that the team gets to enjoy.

http://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/18614393/tak...

In regard to not being paid professionals, if you'll explain walk-ons...the people without scholarships who work to join the team on their own dime and have to meet the exact same requirements to be on the team yet might not ever see the field. The ones who clearly seem to think that there's enough value that they'll pay for the chance to participate.

Or then this: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/americas-growing-student-l...

I'm sorry, but this whole "everybody get the NCAA" thing is just getting tired.

Re: Concussion doctor says he found CTE in living NFL player

#157
post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your premise is wrong. It sounds as if it should be right, but the framing is awry The players are not really aware of the health risks, furthermore they are young and foolish and impressionable and are following the path of glamour which has been sold to them as youngsters. The sports organization is aware of the risks and are using the players to make vast sums for themselves, they are pushing the glamourous path a…

If the NAACP was selling sex trafficking to cheer leaders to profit from them, we'd care. But because we're destroying the brains and bodies of males with illusions of fame and fortunem and brainwashing them into thinking they're "heroes" and "warriors", it's all the young adult boys fault--even though they're still trying to find their place in the world and the brain clearly still develops until at least 25-years o…

Your last several comments all break the HN guidelines by being uncivil and/or unsubstantive and/or flamebait. We've warned you about this before. If you keep doing this, we're going to ban your account.

We do appreciate your substantive posts but you're damaging the site with these other ones, which are not at all the kind of internet forum HN is trying to be.

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

https://news.ycombinator.com/newswelcome.html

Re: Concussion doctor says he found CTE in living NFL player

#158

For my American cousins I thought I would mention a little more about Rugby Union. Concussion is less of a problem in Rugby than in American football, and this is not an accident. Rugby is addressing this in several ways. 1) Years of rule changes, and stricter enforcement. Now a top level player who tackles someone above the shoulder, or tackles without attempting to hold on (so no clothes-linse or body checks) will…

I'm sorry but as someone in the U.S. who played competitive rugby for 7 years I have to completely disagree. In rugby I myself had experienced concussions from collisions at least once a season. Anyone I know who has played have experienced similar. Less protection to the head means lower g-force hits sure, but still I've seen players knocked unconscious by pure body collision hits or an accidental knee to the head (…

I mean.. isn't your argument just as foolish? Lets talk numbers, real numbers, not anecdotes.

Why one sport may differ (less or more) is a difficult thing to discuss, as we likely don't have clear numbers. But isn't debating something like the number of concussions for each sport silly?

Re: Concussion doctor says he found CTE in living NFL player

#159

There's a lot of hate towards the NFL but the NCAA is an even worse actor on CTE. 70,000 college players every year, and they aren't paid professionals like the NFL. But NCAA programs make billions of dollars off of the players (and their coaches millions). Destroying brains for profit, in the context of the education system, is truly evil.

NCAA programs do not make billions of dollars. All NCAA programs combined might have that much total revenue. http://sports.usatoday.com/ncaa/finances/ Clemson, where I went to school and the current defending champs had a budget of $104,000,000. Of that, they spent $103,000,000. If you'd be so kind as to identify the shareholder who's rolling in that $1 million profit I'd appreciate it. When I was in school around 2…

Why in God’s name should an institution of higher learning have a nine-figure athletics budget? That is just pure lunacy. The NCAA represents everything that is sleazy and wrong with the relationship between colleges and athletic programs, that is why everyone hates them. When the reckoning finally comes, and it will, we will look back upon this period and marvel.

Re: Concussion doctor says he found CTE in living NFL player

#160

Earlier quoted context omitted.

NCAA programs do not make billions of dollars. All NCAA programs combined might have that much total revenue. http://sports.usatoday.com/ncaa/finances/ Clemson, where I went to school and the current defending champs had a budget of $104,000,000. Of that, they spent $103,000,000. If you'd be so kind as to identify the shareholder who's rolling in that $1 million profit I'd appreciate it. When I was in school around 2…

Why in God’s name should an institution of higher learning have a nine-figure athletics budget? That is just pure lunacy. The NCAA represents everything that is sleazy and wrong with the relationship between colleges and athletic programs, that is why everyone hates them. When the reckoning finally comes, and it will, we will look back upon this period and marvel.

Why shouldn't they, exactly?

As earlier stated, they supporting multiple programs with multiple facilities, scholarships, Title IX, coaches, strength programs, trainers/medical support, practice facilities, etc.

Of all of those programs, at most schools only 1 or 2 actually MAKE money. At Clemson, the football program supports EVERY other scholarship sport that competes at the D1A level.

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