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Kids know who wins and loses, winning trophies are for winners and the competitive spirit is alive and well. I am not sure how recognition for participation in an activity has somehow led to the downfall of our society.



Sure they know. But do they care?

And I am against giving losers trophies because it teaches kids that they will be rewarded for just showing up, like most people do at their jobs when they get older. If your life is just about showing up, I pity you. I do everything 100% and 100 miles per hour. That's because I was raised in a generation that taught me that the hardest workers succeed. Of course that means I also crash hard when I crash. Life is to be lived, experienced and enjoyed, not just endured. That kind of comment usually comes from paents who were eggheads and bookworms and never experienced the joy of working with a team and achieving a common goal. If they do choose sports, the goal is to excel. If not, that is fine too. If they choose arts, music, dance, carpentry, plumbing... do it 100% and excel at it.

Trophys to losing teams is a bad thing. A trophy is supposed to represent excellence, not participation. Little doughy kids like "Chad" and "Cameron" do not deserve trophies just for showing up in their uniform to please their yuppie parents.

Yes, I am an old school inner city kid who grew up scuffling on the streets. I did not have permissive parents, and many times during on field confrontations my father stood and watched me get the stuffing beat out of me. Rather than stepping in, he allowed it to be motivation for me to become better at defending myself so it didn't happen. And it resulted in my being Northast Ohio Golden Gloves runner up 2 years in a row, at the same time helping me realize that fighting outside of organized boxing is stupid and pointless. After Golden Gloves, I never got into a fight where it wasn't to rescue someone from an outnumbered beating. However, once I step in, it's a battle to the death.

You don't learn that being rewarded for nothing but showing up.

All these parents now jumping on the "my kid won't play football because he might get hurt" bandwagon should just put them in dresses and eye makeup and prepare them for the gender change surgery. Planes crash too. So your kid will never fly because there that chance? How about driving? Cars crash more often than planes. You may not have noticed from your position, but life is tough. Wear your helmet.

Remember. Conceive it, perceive it, believe it, achieve it.

I am using the new 1040XTRAEZ form this year. It has just 2 lines.

1. How much did you make in 2023?
2. Send it to us.