Winning and Losing

[Annie]

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Pajamas Media It?s How You Play the Game: The Fate of Western Civilization and Grade-School Soccer

It’s How You Play the Game: The Fate of Western Civilization and Grade-School Soccer

Posted By Barry Rubin On November 7, 2010 @ 12:00 am In Uncategorized | 187 Comments

It‘s something of a stretch to compare a soccer game among eleven-year-old boys with the fate of the democratic world, but I’ve always managed to see big issues in small things.

My son is playing on a local soccer team which has lost every one of its games, often by humiliating scores. The coach is a nice guy, but seems an archetype of contemporary thinking: he tells the kids not to care about whether they win, puts players at any positions they want, and doesn’t listen to their suggestions.

He never criticizes a player or suggests how a player could do better. My son, bless him, once remarked to me: “How are you going to play better if nobody tells you what you’re doing wrong?” The coach just tells them how well they are playing. Even after an 8-0 defeat, he told them they’d played a great game.

And of course, the league gives trophies to everyone, whether their team finishes in first or last place...