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"You Suck! shouted the father in front of his school-age boy, "Over-the-Back, three seconds!", etc
Just think of all the things that boy was being taught at that gym.
I witness this banter at the gym in nearly every game I officiate or attend as a spectator.
The sad reality is that we have a lifetime of learned behavior to overcome. Most view this challenge as overwhelming and choose to not address the ever-present disrespectful and unsportsmanlike attitudes displayed at most sporting events.
Johnny watches as his father unjustifiably blasting the officials. Many game managers would rather ignore or minimize the behavior than deal with it appropriately. In fact, some threads have identified that some game managers are the source of the problem.
That's how our culture of rip the ref perseveres. It's handed down from generation to generation.
We should not tolerate this.
Based on my increased awareness of incidents of verbal abuse that have escalated into physical violence, I have made a conscientious decision, and hope that I and others have the courage to follow through, to stop such behavior as much as I can.
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