Kevin Leavitt

Phil,

Thanks for explaining your position more.

I think there is a difference between this argument and a helmet law designed to protect people.

If your argument is that MMA should not be allowed for kids because it is dangerous, then I say it is illogical because it completely ignores all the other things and sports that are as or more dangerous for kids

I played contact football growing up from the time I was 8 years old. Knowing now what I know about sports medicine (limited) and kinesiology, I would choose to not let my kids play. having an 8 year old wear an oversized heavy helmet that has probably not been properly sized, that his neck and spine cannot support, then crash into another kid of the same condition is absurd I thiink.

We won't ban that though, even mentioning it can make your patriotism be questioned!

(BTW, it appeared that the kids were wearing protective gear in the MMA stuff).

I could come up with more examples.

Anyway, the point is this, I don't think it is so much an issue of genuinely wanting to protect kids as much as it is an emotional or ethical/morality argument.

Helmet laws are good I think, as they do indeed protect people against their own ignorance, and more importantly they prevent society in carrying the cost economically.

However when we enter the realm of emotion, that is legislating morality or ethics...it becomes more complex.

Should we allow cockfighting? No I don't think so.

MMA for kids? I think it depends on how the events are conducted. Certainly there needs to be a great deal of supervision and adequate rules which cover ethics.

However, once we start applying those ethics to MMA, we need to look at all the sports that kids participate in from football, to soccer, to TMAs or sport/contact Karate, Judo, Gymnastics, whatnot.

If we do not apply the same judgement and criteria sans the emotional issues to them...then we are hypocrites.