Pink cancer pins
 

NFHS

I was asked to wear a pink lapel pin on my officials uniform in recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness month. They were handing them out at the gate entrance. All the players wore pink socks and there was recognition during the pre-game about what they were doing and some local breast cancer survivors were introduced.
This was a first for me. Has anyone else been asked? Your response?

I think it would be appropriate as long as the entire crew wore them and there was nothing of a team logo for one team or another on it. I know some are using pink whistles, etc... shows we zebras are not only mammals but human as well;)

Nothing against you guys but the whole pink thing is pretty stupid. If you want to help breast cancer then make a donation; don't rely on some company to make a donation, and don't just use some random thing which is pink and think that you are helping.

Kentucky Fried Chicken sells Buckets for the Cure. So if someone buys a bucket of fried chicken they are helping breast cancer, but when they eat the chicken that doesn't really do anything to prevent heart disease which is the #1 killer of women in the United States.

Then there is smoking which kills about 440,000 people every year is the US, while breast cancer is about 39,000 deaths per year. All of this time and effort is spent on trying to figure out how to stop breast cancer. We already know how to stop a number of diseases caused by one product but I don't see the NFL having a "Ban Cigarettes Month".

Breast cancer is a problem. The excessive use of pink is a fad. YouTube - Who doesn't want to wear the ribbon?

My crew has been wearing pink whistles for all games in October. Last year we had some wristbands that were pink as well for our first round playoff game as that was in October as well.

The best part of that playoff game was that we had a few women came up to us immediately after the game and want to have the pink wristbands and we gave them to them. They reason were cancer survivors and they wanted something that showed they survived this disease with these symbols. I was skeptical about wearing the wristbands before the game until that very moment. Considering that these were African-American Women and my aunt in 2001 died from this disease that made me very happy considering that African-American women die more than the vast public that is diagnosed with breast cancer. These symbols are about awareness of the disease and proceeds to research to that disease. We did not make a big issue of wearing them or even have it announced. Someone noticed and they wanted to be apart of that.

And at the end of the day it shows that we are human beings inside our stripes no matter how we do our job.

Peace

We were told no pink by the NCHSAA.

I bet if the pink stuff had a big script looking H on it the tune would change!
<insert devil looking thingy here>

We didn't ask. We've been wearing pink whistles and a pink wristband since the beginning of October.
</insert>

We didn't ask either. We were told in July.

Now, now....don't go there. :)

Sounds like NC has bigger control freaks than our state office, which is hard to imagine.

One of the crew members had his wife make pink bean bags for our crew. We have had more comments from coaches and parents than you can imagine. Just a side note my daughters volleyball team is all wearing yellow live strong bands around their shoes during matches. The assistant coaches' husband has testicular cancer. The girls are showing their support as well as cooking meals for the family to help them out as well. I agree the pink is a symbol but it should be backed up by time or money to help the cause as well.

Some really sound advice I've found applies to many things beyond football, "It is often better to beg forgiveness than seek advice."

I've been wearing a pink whistle, lanyard and shoelaces for the month.

Our association has gotten every official a pink flag to use as well.

We've used them every game.

I am proud to wear pink, as there are quite a few wives in our association that are breast cancer survivors.

+1 ;)

Evidently not. :(

High school refs may be penalized for pink whistles

The advice says "often" not always. There is a news video of this incident on the NFHS forum wherein the quoted Officials Assocciation spokesperson really makes himself and his association look like horse's backsides. The more he explained his position the more ridiculous and pompous he looked. The position they took is really dumb and excessive down to the gnat's eyelash level.

The problem with any "Zero Tolerance" application of any rule is that it removes the judgment factor from decision making which usually produces some sort of really stupid, extreme conclusion, from time to time, such as this one.

I don't know about the specific language of the local Official's Association, but I can tell you there is no specification for whistle color in the NFHS manuals. Sometimes in life, rules for adults don't necessarily extend to children, and vice versa, and that's just the way life is.

Wouldn't it be a shame if none of the officials in the area decided to be available for the playoffs?

Absolutely stupid, control freak behavior. Someone needs a lesson in public relations. But Toad did something that is pretty hard to do -- rally everyone around the officials involved.

If the "idea" comes from his office, he gets the recognition, now that he doesn't, he's throwing a hissy fit.

Just the kind of guy I want leading my group....:mad:

I am mailing my two pink whistles to Todd this afternoon. He can stick them wherever it may be appropriate. ;)

I agree with all three of you.

Somebody above this guy needs to jerk a knot in his a$$ and say, "Will you just shut up!"

I have met Todd too at a conference in our state in 2009. I think they have missed an opportunity here. If they did not like the pink whistles, then just give the officials a way to use them. This has nothing to do with the kids (and if I hear that one more time I am going to scream). Every level and multiple sports use some sort of awareness for Breast Cancer symbols and the officials are involved in just about every sport. Come on guys, it is not about a rule, it is about awareness. If they are not following a policy, just inform them. Did the game change because an official had a pink whistle? It is not like they wore different shirts or socks. They just had a whistle??

Very disappointed in that people do not get it sometimes.

Peace

We all ought to mail him a pink whistle.

Unless the state said "no pink whistles" in advance (like NC), exactly what are they basing this "decision" on? The NFHS manual only says "whistles" without reference to a color.

Only thing I could think is they have a policy that the whistles must be black. Their policy always trumps anything in that manual, but I had a friend claim there is more to the story. Not sure what that is but I still think the WOA is overreacting to a situation that really is not a big deal.

Peace

Well,
 

I have sent Todd an e-mail and asked if he would like to be interviewed for the NFHS banner magazine High School Today and explain his statements more fully to educators, school board members and superintendents across America.

Let's see if he'll man-up and accept my invite.

T

~Sigh~
 

I just received the following from Todd:

Approval? Really? They can't let this be just a local issue? :rolleyes:

Just as I suspected....

If it's on the local level, they (he) do not (does not) get the recognition.

The whole point is that awareness initiatives raise more money by encouraging others to donate as well.

Yep, we could just donate our game fee; or we could do that and wear a pink whistle (or shirt or whatever) and publicize our efforts, thus encouraging spectators to donate as well.

Agreed. I have a white one that I won as a prize at a clinic. Rarely, if ever, gets used....sub whistle on occasion for someone who forgot or breaks theirs. Should I not be using it? Ridiclulous.
I know some pretty good officials who work all the way to the state finals here every year and more than one uses a Roy Gonia bright orange dog hunting whistle.

Since those of you who are bashing on Todd do not live in Washington State, let me take a moment here to tell some of you to lighten up. You heard/read one side of the issue - a very slanted side, I might add. One of the officials involved works for the tv station that ran the story - they taped almost 25 min. of interview with Todd, and then whacked it down to several short sound bites to make him look like the bad guy.

Short story - there is a process in place to apply for a waiver of the WOA policies. The PNFOA did not follow that process - and has violated many other policies of the WIAA/WOA over the last several years. This is not the first issue where they have done their own thing and told the WIAA and the WOA to stick it. If they lose playoff berths over this, they knew it beforehand and chose to forge ahead anyway.

It is not about the pink whistles or not supporting breast cancer. It is about one local association in the State trying to tell the State Association to take a hike, over and over. And now that it has come back to bite them in the butt, they run to the media...and people who know nothing about the situation inundate Todd Stordahl with e-mails and pink whistles because they believe what they see in the media without taking the time to get the whole story.

Rocky,

I have tried to see this from their point of view too. I had a friend that lives in that state and is more familiar with the situation than I will ever be and makes similar statements that you have made (ironically he has been on this site).

Here is what I do not get, this is just a whistle. We are not talking about changing the entire uniform or something that most people would care about. If this was not made and issue through the media, I doubt many people would even know the officials were doing this in the first place outside of the field. We all know the media can blow a situation out of proportion, but this is partly based on the comments from Todd. Todd should realize that what he was saying is going to get used maybe the way he does not want to it to be used. Heck officials know that, why not him?

And I met Todd over a year ago and he seemed like a very good guy and tries to help out with officials and their issues. He represented his state well when he was at our conference. Many officials in my state asked him questions and he was nothing but accommodating. Of course none of us are going to totally understand, but to get all upset about this very specific issue and to talk about that to the media is kind of silly. If that was the issue then talk about the other things that are at hand and not allow the issue to only be about the pink whistles. I am sure there is some radio show or some forum they could talk about all the issues not this issue. I remember that was the case when my state was going through the uniform issue in basketball a few years ago.

BTW, we contacted our person over the "Official's Department" and who also is the Administrator of Football that assigns all officials to the State Football Playoffs and he was asked about the pink whistles. His email response was quick and simple and said there is "No problem with pink whistles in our state." And I am sure he could have made it clear there was a policy or some standard and he just allowed them and we moved on. I think the WOA could have done the same in this case.

Peace

That all may be true, but it doesn't change two important things: 1) Washington even cares in the first place what color whistle is used. 2) They chose to use this instance to finally do something.

The color of whistle used is a pretty insignificant thing. If their uniform rule really dictates this, they are being far too controlling in the first place.

If the association has been bucking the state's authority for some time, there was no particular reason to make this time the straw that broke the camel's back. As much as Todd may try to say it has nothing to do with breast cancer awareness, he can't get past the fact that he's suspending them for an act that was to promote breast cancer awareness when he (apparently) let other acts go unpunished. This is, at the very least, an unforced PR error and one that was completely unnecessary.

Did the crew knowingly subvert the state's authority? Apparently yes.

However, what the rest of the world sees are bureaucrats that are so consumed with their own power that they can't make reasonable exceptions for charity. It's all about deciding to fight the battles you can win, and the state can't win this one.

Life is all about choosing which battlefieds you want to fight about, and unfortunately, this was an extremely poor choice for WIAA-WOA to make.
Before you start spinning your wheels you have to determine whether or not you're sitting in soft sand.

And all of you need to understand that this is a progression...the first time the local association bucked the State, they were warned. The second time, there were meetings. The third time...it goes on. The loss of possible play-off berths is a progressive consequence. They knew it and bucked the State anyway.

Look, our local football and basketball associations in this part of the State do the pink whistles and blue flags and all of thet - but we go through the proper channels and get the proper waivers. These clowns have been telling the State to stick it for the last few years, and it has built up to this point. This is not some knee-jerk reaction by some bureaucrat, no matter how badly some of you may want to make it seem like that.

It looks like one of two things:
1. The state finally got fed up with the behavior with this issue.
2. The state has been following procedure with progressively stronger statements. The locals knew the next step before hand and did this anyway.

If officials can't be expected to follow the proper procedures and rules, who can?

Does Washington have a football officials manual that specifies a color of whistle or not? The NFHS manual does not, so if the WIAA (Washington)'s manual does not, Todd is making rules up that don't exist. Someone please answer this question and post the relevant written section of the WOA's manual.

Todd has the head of the WOA has per the WOA By-laws the right to determine the proper uniform fo officials in the state of Washington:

ARTICLE III – UNIFORMS
Section 1. Officials shall wear the uniform as approved by the WOA, including the WOA patch.
Section 2. Uniform exceptions may be requested by Associations/Boards to the WOA Executive Board thirty (30) days prior to each scheduled meeting.

This association was told prior as was the entire state by the WOA in their newsletter not to use the pink whistle. They decided to use the whistles anyway.

Hi, Todd, question for you. Where are the written details of what is the approved uniform? Or do you get to decide week by week, depending on your current whim?

We'll wear our pink whistles in support of two groups tomorrow night.

Trust me the issue is really about the color of the whistle as is it really about the recent history between the local assocoation and WOA.

I am not Todd just an observer to the events in question.....

If that is the case, the state fell directly into the trap that the local association laid. By not making an exception for something that everyone's in favor of, they acted like jerks, even if their actions were justified.

You can't get past the fact that the proximate cause of their suspension had to do with breast cancer awareness. The state should have taken a pass on this one and dinged them on the next one.

From the NFHS Football Forum:

This paragraph appeared in a newsletter emailed to all Washington State officals 2 days prior to Seattle going off the reservation:

Pink Whistles
Although the idea of officials using pink whistles in tribute to Breast Cancer Awareness is a great idea, the WOA has made the decision that football officials will participate in the Prostate Cancer Awareness efforts, while the volleyball and soccer officials will participate in the Breast Cancer Awareness programs. We hate to say no to such great causes, but it is important that we do not over commit in our support. By doing this, the WOA is supporting a wide variety of events without overtaxing the men and women who are out officiating on a daily basis. Although some may not like the position taken by the WOA, there has to be a line drawn and the WOA feels comfortable with the rational used to reach this decision.

No one has a problem with an official using the media to make the state look like jerks?

Nope. Not when the state makes a poor choice of a situation to demonstrate its authoritah.

The state made itself look like a jerk. The media just let us know about it.

How about this gem from Stordahl...

"There's one person who has the authority to make that decision, and it's not PNFOA." Stordahl says he already turned down three other referee groups that wanted to use the whistles.

It's good to be the king....

Ok, so some of you just don't get it. If you ever move to Washington, you will fit right in with the PNFOA.

Rocky,

With all due respect I am not sure what the big issue is. And if they feel they are standing on solid ground and worrying about what color the whistles are, then why would they change their stance and back off?

I know many officials that have personally sent Todd emails. If he is right he should stand his ground.

HS sports are about the community and officials are an extension of that community. Is this really an issue the WOA has to make a big deal? Of all things this is it? And you have not said anything that changes that fact. If the WOA is right they should stand their ground.

Peace

I'm sure there are many officials in WA that feel exactly the same way and quietly comply just because they would rather not get on this guy's bad side. Good on that group for being willing to take a stand over something they feel is important, for whatever reason.

And nope, I don't get it. This isn't basketball. People in football use black whistles, metal whistles, and metal whistles with white tips. Not everyone on the same crew uses the same whistle -- it's personal preference. I've used a Thunderer (metal with white rubber tip) and while I've gone back to a Fox 40, I wouldn't keep someone on my crew from using one if they like it best. Most people don't give a flying fig about the color of whistle for a football official. That's why it's not even specified in the NFHS manual.

Next someone will say that a specific crew card and a certain type of pen or pencil is required, too.

Exactly!!!

Peace

No, rocky, you and the WOA don't get it. Every thing that comes out of the WOA just makes them look worse.

Still looks like a pissing contest to me. True, as you point out, it's one with a history beyond this one episode, and with plenty of vituperation on both sides. But, hey, it's still piss. :rolleyes:

Sure...but it's a pissing match started by and forced by the officials in question...so why aren't some of these other people sending them any e-mails or blasting them? No - let's just blast the one guy who actually followed the "rules" or "directives" or whatever you want to call them.

Some people have some really strange colored glasses that never see wrong from a fellow official. In this case, these guys do not deserve the support thay are getting.

And some people are wearing blinders.

If nothing was done incorrectly by Stordahl, why does the WOA have posted on their website a declaration that they never had any intention to fine or take away games ?

Also, tell me about the disciplinary process that was followed correctly here.....

Look, I have pointed this out before. One of the officials in question has ties to the tv station that ran the story. They cut and edited what they wanted. Are there provisions for disciplinary action? Yes. Did Stordahl say that disciplinary action MIGHT be taken? Yes. Did he explain what that disciplinary action MIGHT be? Yes. So because of that he is a loser, a jerk, a a$$-hole...whatever else you want to think. But again, from wherever you are, you do NOT know what is going on. You have watched an edited clip of a 20-25 minute interview - edited by friends of one of the guys involved.

As far as the process and the directives...do your own research. That might be a nice change up.

But you realize, I hope, that there is no "right" side of a pissing contest? Everyone gets pointlessly wet.

My impression is that the state bureaucrats are trying to wield their power by enforcing arbitrary and capricious uniform rules over an obnoxious and obstreperous association that is rankling at the thought of obeying the state association.

The state should shut up and learn more about concussions. The association should shut up and do what the other associations do.

JMO.

There's an old saying "Never start an argument with a man who buys ink by the barrel." You're never going to win the public perception battle when the other side has better access to the media than you do. So you have to make a choice: is being right in your mind worth appearing devastatingly wrong to everyone else? WOA made its choice (and now is trying desperately to save face given the statement from their board on the web site).

Complaining that the interview was edited by the friend of one of the involved guys is a cheap cop out. The bottom line is still always going to be that they were threatened with a suspension over a charitable act and that WOA arbitrarily assigns sports with acceptable charities. Maybe this works in Washington, but here in fly-over country it falls pretty flat.

I'd do my own research but WOA either doesn't make this information publicly available or has pulled it down to help hide what they did.

I agree with your point and with your assessment. And again would ask "Why is no one here piling on the obnoxious officials who started this whole mess?"

And to Eastshire...sigh...keep making your judgements from fly-over country.

Hey, I was.

Yep.

I totally respect a guy that publicly states that someone MIGHT be punished before the entire process is finished. :rolleyes:

But then again "he" is the one who makes the decisions.

He made that very clear to everyone. Now he cannot backpedal fast enough.

It's a PR nightmare for the WOA. He should resign.

Not to poke a stick at you, but exactly where does it state that the football officials' whistles must be a certain color? They aren't getting that from the rulebook. So exactly what rule did they need a waiver to break?

Apparently the WOA has a single line in their handbook that gives Todd the right to make uniform rules up as he goes. Pretty convenient.

No one's piling on the obnoxious officials because people only see good-hearted officials who wanted to raise breast cancer awareness and the obnoxious state association that wants to punish them for it.

You say we aren't seeing the whole picture, but there is precious little that could even conceivably change the scenario. The punchline is always going to be that the state association cares more about the color of a whistle (of all things) than women dieing of breast cancer.

Let me repeat: the message from WOA has been to this point that whistles are more important than women.

You can't change that narrative by saying the officials haven't been choir boys in the past.

It's ludicrous to be bent out of shape by the color of a whistle in the first place. Take away the whole breast cancer awareness and if you tell me WOA is going to suspend officials because they used silver whistles instead of black, I'd say they were power hungry bureaucrats that need to find something more productive to do.

Sorry rockyroad, but your association chose this issue to publicly go to battle against, likely without considering the potential fallout and backlash that would be associated with your decision. The result, you have " a wolf by the ears" and there's no safe, or easy, way to let go.

My suggestion would be to curl up while you hold on and wait for the wolf to go to sleep, which may take a while. In the meantime I'd suggest keeping absolutely quiet, because anything you say may keep that wolf awake.

Sometimes being technically right comes up way short of where you expected it would be, and there's just no way to make up the distance.

The WOA was sabotoged by a member of the local association that worked at the TV station. How hard is that to figure out?

If this were to happen in NC, it would not take the NCHSAA long to terminate their relationship with this local association and start efforts to create a new local association. They are independent contractors and have no standing.

The WOA is the one that pointed the gun at their own foot. And yes, officials are usually independent contractors and you can stop hiring any of them for any reason, but if you start treating them poorly you'll find that none of them will work for you either.

Setting up guidelines and creating policies to govern the association is treating them poorly? What total BS.

Suspending people for good deeds is indeed treating them poorly.

Who has been suspended? Nobody.

Either way this was not the fight to have. Even if they did not do anything, they still look stupid for making this an issue with the officials.

Peace

Perhaps. But that doesn't make the local association right.

As rockyroad said, this isn't the first issue.

As I said, if this happened here, the NCHSAA would dump this group as soon as the season was over and create a new association.

So how would they cover the games after losing an entire association's worth of officials (not to mention any collateral damage from other associations)?

One more reason I am glad I live in Illinois. We do not have these "association" issues as others do around the country. Too much drama over silly issues.

Peace

From talking to several officials in Washington, I don't think either would be an issue. You do what you have to do.

My crew has been using white whistles for four years now. We are in deep trouble.

interesting story... I have a friend in st. louis, thinks organized sports are about as intersting as lint. seriously, he knows that football is a sport, and that's about it.

We we're talking last night, and he asked me if i had heard about the referee's that were getting fired in washington state, because they wanted to support breast cancer awareness by wearing pink whistles. (I know this isn't accurate, but it's the story and impression that he was relating to me.)

That's the impression Todd and the woa chose to make.

Let me clear up a few issues as someone in the mix:

1. No one has been suspended and no games have been lost at this point
2. The association was aware of the potential consequences prior to the use of the pink whistles and choose to go ahead anyway. They were aware prior.
3. Todd Stordahl is the commissioner for all officials in the state of Washington not just football.
4. The association in question did not follow the approved process for use of non approved uniformn equipment.
5. The issue is not breast cancer awareness or the whistle. It is id the official commissioner of the state interpretation of the WOA bylaws should have been followed a local association. Breast cancer awareness as all other noble causes are worthy of our support and money.
6. The association backed Todd into a corner and what options did he have? He headss 150 officials associations in the state. Each one can't go their own way otherwise there chaos.

I will add Todd has been unjustly villified and threats have been made to his wife and children. Come on it its just a whistle.

This is a local Washington issue and debating the righteous of either side in this forum is not warranted. Each state has it's own structure and decision making process. What works in state A does not apply in state B.

The real question is how the media was made aware of this issue and by whom? I know the answer and it was not the WOA!

Please stop passing judgement on WOA, Todd and the association in question.

No. Please stop joining forums just so you can try to tell long-time members what to do.

I know people that posted this story on FB and have nothing to do with this forum and they choose to contact Todd about this issue. This was just a bad PR move by the WOA and that is why they reversed some positions that were originally mentioned about this situation.

No sorry, I think people have the right to form their own opinion. That is what happens when you give an interview to the media to give your side. Same thing happened in my state about a year ago.

Peace

Sorry, this is the issue to everyone outside of WA.

When it hit national news it stopped being a local issue.

It's really irrelevant how the media became aware of it. You don't get to call a foul on the person who alerted the media that you look bad. It's your fault for looking bad.

Then stop doing things that are so easy to pass judgement on. This one is a no-brainer and Todd and the WOA blew it.

Do you have a cousin who lives in Piedmont, CA ?? ;)

This guy is the grand poobah of all officiating in Washnington and he couldn't handle it.

Blaming others for this makes him look worse than he did himself.

Ok, fair enough.
Why should there be consequences for the color of the whistles used by the officials? (see my comment to #4)
Your point being?

Please enlighten us and point us to the document where it states that whistles must be a certain color in WA? As others have said earlier in the thread, there is no rule on whistle color in the NFHS manuals.

Additionally, does this document (which I must assume exists somewhere, or this pissing match is even more idiotic then it appears to an outsider), spell out the penalties for using improper/incorrect equipment?

Breast cancer research (and any cancer research), is definitely a noble cause. Nobody is questioning that fact.
Again, we need to know what the WOA bylaws state in regards to whistle color.

How about this: Don't allow yourself to think you're 'backed into a corner' over something trivial like the color of a whistle. As others have said upthread, don't pick a battle you can't win.
Other options:
1) Explicitly tell officials that the use of pink (orange, blue, silver, white, etc) whistles is allowed prior to the start of the season.
2) If pink (orange, blue, siliver, white, etc) whistles are explicitly not allowed

a) let this go for now, address it at the end of the season.
b) Say nothing about the whistles, and don't assign the officials in question to any playoff games that they haven't previously been assigned. If asked, make up something about the officials "not rating higly enough" or somesuch. (NOTE: I strongly oppose this option, but would have been an option).

Villified, I'm sure. Unjustly, I don't know. However, I'm sure everyone else on this board would agree with me that any kind of threats made against Todd and/or his family are completely unacceptable.

Which is exactly the point that everyone else here has been trying to make. If Todd had taken that stance initially, we wouldn't be having this conversation AT ALL.

It certainly is warranted. We debate the correctness/widsom/intent of rules and interpretations thereof all the time here. That's one of the main reasons why this board exists.

Quite true. However, if an official in state A learns that state B handles situation X in a different, and possibly better, way then state A, that official can use that knowledge to possibly make changes in his/her state. In the business world, this is known as "adopting best practices".

Irrelevant.

This is The Internet. Passing judgment is what The Internet does. If you want some of The Internet to change its judgment, you to give The Internet a valid reason for doing so. Of course, you must realize that part of The Internet will never deviate from it's initial judgment.

I agree with a lot of what you posted. Sorry, you don't get a pass on this statement.

You don't get to tell me what I can and cannot discuss on a disucssion board. if you don't like the discussion, then stay out of it. But it's not up to you to decide what does and doesn't get discussed.

I completely agree with this. In my state in another sport we had a huge controversy with a uniform violation (with a team not the officials) that took place in the State Finals. Well to make a long story short the officials that had had this team all playoffs long and did not apply the rule properly were not assigned games the following year. No media story or even fanfare. Of course in the officiating community and coaching community this went around, but not a national story. No public explanation was given and we have since moved on. Todd S. decided to talk about this and decided to say things that could be questioned. It would have been better if he left it alone and said nothing. Then if they did not follow the procedure properly do not assign them games. Then let them figure out what the reasons were (and it would not be hard). Then no one would be discussing this here or at least we the perception might be differently. I know I would probably have sided more with the WOA if that was the case instead of their position which seems to be over a minor issue in the bigger picture.

Peace

The WOA by-laws state that officials must conform to WOA uniform standards. It was in the on-line rules clinic and on-line rules test what the uniform standards are and what the process is to get a waiver. And you know good and well that individual states have all kinds of policies/rules that aren't in the NFHS manual.

There is no confusion over the issue. They chose to do their own thing - they violated the by-laws they agreed to support. When they realized they might get nailed for it, they ran to the media to cover their butts and completely misrepresented the situation. And lots of people around the country took up their cause because they didn't know any better.

If some took my post wrong, for that I will apologize. I was trying to pass along information so opinions could be formed based upon information rather than speculation. Making a judgment or decision requires information gathering as my old mentor said time & time again. Everyone is entitled to their opinion.

To answer a very well put question; there is nothing in writing in the WOA bylaws or constitution about the color of the whistle nor is the NFHS Officials Manual. Todd as WOA Commissioner made an interpretation that approved color was black prior to this entire happening. If you want to read the WOA bylaws etc go to Washington Officials Association

Another thought is if the association had followed the interpretation of the WOA this would not have happened either. They could have donated money to breast cancer and made stadium announcements and not worn the pink whistles at all. The next season work with WOA get approval from the WOA executive board as needed for uniform exceptions per the bylaws.

For all officials - if your commissioner made a ruling similar to Todd's would you knowingly violate their ruling? If you did would there be consequences? These questions are rhetorical and for thought only. For myself as someone here in the state the crux of the issue is an association knowingly & willfully violated their state commissioner. This is much like a divorce; both sides have culpability in this situation. Neither party has 100% clean hands.

The issue is at rest for now and will be discussed at length next year.

To answer a personal question - no I do not have an uncle in Piedmont CA

You still have not answered or shown where it says that only a certain color of whistle is to be used in the WOA handbook or procedures? I just looked at our uniform procedures and there is nothing about the color of the whistles in even our procedures. And as said before to you this is not basketball. Football officials use all kinds of whistles depending on the individual. Of course black is the standard and the most common, but that does not mean that is all you see. So if they were using a pink whistle that is not a violation unless it is written somewhere. Or would the WOA even make any issue if a official had a white or metal whistle?

It is obvious there was a dispute over the policy. I am certainly not disagreeing with you on that. But as someone said on another site, it appears that this was in the works long before the game and the Todd decided to send information of his objection just a couple of days before the game. Instead of just letting it ride and fighting another battle, Todd choose to make an issue out of it which and came to a game to make himself part of a story if there was one. Seems to me he could have said nothing and then addressed this at another time and he would come out smelling like a rose. Now he comes off as a jerk or petty. And as I said, if he was not going to assign games to them, just do it and this might not have been as much of a media story. But he allowed everyone to get wind of the attitude and allowed the media to get involved and the country to have a take on the story. It seems like Todd is not as savvy as those that are running for political office around the country and not realizing that when they say something people around the country might take a position on their words or actions.

Peace

So answer my question.

Is the white-colored Fox whistle that is available from nearly every officials supply outlet non-conforming to the WOA? What about an official using an old school chrome metal pea-whistle..? I realize I'm splitting hairs, but your defense of the WOA by-laws has some holes in it. Common sense seemed to elude a few people during this entire process. It could've, and in most people's opinions....should've, been dealt with in a much more silent matter. Had the officials been sporting hot pink hats, flags, or shoes....I could see an issue.

I've also been using blue NFL type bean bags for years. Do I need to go back to a white one..? It seems ridiculous that your State, or the FED for that matter, should have to single out the exact color and/or definition of a whistle for an official's use. But to me, it seems ridiculous that this has spun into the big deal that it has. No offense....just my 2 cents.

It would depend on what they were asking me or others to do. Some things could be easy to follow. Other things would not be easy to follow. Like someone said if they said that a certain style of shirt was the only thing we could wear and I did not have that shirt. It might be hard to follow that procedure.

I will give you a great example of that right now. We have shirts that we can wear that have an embroidered logo instead of a state patch that is required on the shirt to work a game. Well the word is coming around that if an official wears and embroidery, all officials must match style of shirt. But the problem is that is not in writing and people are making that assumption based on word of mouth from people that had a personal conversation. I am not buying one of the shirts with embroidery on the shirt just too hopefully match others that may or may not have those shirts. Not until I see something in writing or if that policy is expressed at the Rules meeting. And at this point this could be as dicey as this situation, but I think our people will use a little bit of common sense. I know that our administrators do not like certain things, but they have yet to put those things in writing.

Peace

...and that's the whole problem...

If the Commish had handled things like a commish should, this would indeed be, as some have argued, a local issue.

I would suspect (and having spoken with to some folks in Washington, my suspicion is merited) that this isn't the first time Stordahl has employed the "do not cross me" attitude.

That shows a lack of respect between the commish and the officials. (both ways)

That's not good for any organization.

My answer to your question is to repeat that there is no confusion in the state of Washington as to what the proper uniform is, what the provisions are for obtaining a waiver for that uniform, and what the procedures are for those who choose to ignore the provisions. All of that is made very clear to all officials in the state at the preseason meetings and on the stare rules clinics. I don't really care that you don't know what those requirements are...that's not the point. These guys did and said "screw you anyway" to the State Association.

for all those so worked up into a tizzy over this whole thing, how about going here https://www.cancer.org/involved/donate/index and making a contribution that might actually help make a difference rather than wasting a lot of time and money mailing your whistles and sweat bands to some guy who made a bad decision on where to fight his battle? Showing support is nice, actually giving support is much better.

I don't understand: I didn't see any pink whistles or red-faced officials at that site. Relevance?
:D

Just about every donation of money you get something to help bring awareness. I have purchased T-shirts that were given after a donation. Awareness is just as important as what you donate, because more people will know about the disease and will do more to help the causes. There are certain communities that do not get checked because they are unaware of the measures of prevention and the success rate of early detection. Based on the original stories these officials gave a check as well as wore a whistle. Wearing a whistle is a sign of support and I am sure many of the participants had people in their lives that were affected. I know I have so the sign of support sometimes means more than just giving money alone.

Peace

That basically sums up half of the problems with the obsession with Breast Cancer Month. In reality a cure for breast cancer would be much more beneficial to the world than showing support. Me wearing around a pink wristband isn't going to help cure anything while donating money would actually do something.

No one said it was going to cure anything all by itself. But like a lot of diseases and conditions, the more awareness the more people change people's behavior is a good thing. If you do not want to wear a wristband that is on you.

Peace