I have a groundbreaking theory about prolonged playing of contact sports, traumatic brain injury, and far right politics... You generally don't hear these headlines about tennis/soccer players, or nearly as often about basketball/baseball players.
As someone who enjoys American football and hockey, it's a damn shame that we still paint athletes as role models.
I know it's funny to insinuate that brain damage caused people to become conservatives, but I think we should accept that the culture around aggressive, full-contact sports tends to be conservative to start with. Surround yourself with that culture day-in, day-out, and before long you find yourself ingrained in more than just their favorite sports.
But I mean, that doesn't mean it's not the brain damage. A thing can be more than one thing.
That's true, it's a combination of factors. A big part is the insular nature of the team and coaching as you go higher up the ladder. If you're not thanking God in your post-win interview you're a "locker room problem"; if you want a coaching job after you retire you've gotta be on good terms with the good ol' boys network.
I do think that the brain damage does compound heavily though. I know Mormons who get out and become well adjusted people later in life; the semi-pro football players I know get more irrational and violent as the CTE sets in.
Football (soccer as you call it) is so underrated in this respect it's not even funny, heading the ball is extremely dangerous for the brain in the long term. Not to mention head clashes in challenges etc. Granted, most injuries are in the lower limbs but still.
Why does it matter? He chose america willingly and they welcomed him a long time ago. They say never meet your heroes but the internet makes that almost impossible.
I'll spam this fact wherever I see comments on CTE.
CTE is not correlated with the number of concussions. It's correlated with years of exposure to repetitive minor hits. It's a very important distinction because the NFL (and every other professional sport with blows to the head) is trying to push the narrative that concussion is the boogeyman, so that if they can reduce concussion (and they can), they can declare their hands clean from CTE. The only way to reduce CTE is drastic changes to the game.
While I have no doubt they'd skin their grandmother's alive to save a buck, reducing concussions and head injuries is straight up just a good thing. Having concussion protocols etc and taking these decisions out of the hands of people motivated to win at all costs and into the hands of medical professionals is a good if incomplete step
Yeah, agreed that reducing concussion is definitely a good thing. Especially strict rules around return to play after concussion cause that's when you can really do damage.
My problem is that scientists can say: "CTE is a problem in the NFL." And then the NFL can say "we are addressing it by offering goofy helmet coverings, reducing punt return collision speed, and using better protocols for post concussion". Then no one is pointing out that none of those changes address CTE at all, and the NFL knows that. In reality, reducing CTE would involve changing the sport in ways that the fans would not like.
We know this from military deployments. Even office staff near bombed regions get TBI, and certainly civilians will get brain damage from forces traveling through them.
NFL players die 25 years younger than national average, a combination of brain injury and long term effects of steroids.
Wayne wasn't the subject of very many hits in hockey. CTE isn't a factor that you can blame. As it goes with shit stains, everyone around him probably has the CTE as they were collateral damage, guys like Dave Semenko (it's never been publically disclosed but he was post-mortem investigated for it after dying of cancer) or Marty McSorley (who is not dead but he states he has memory loss and other symptoms).
One of my best friends is from Brantford, huge hockey nut and a big Gretzky fan and man this must sting her so bad and it's understandable. Gotta be so frustrating.
I'm not from Brantford, but I'm from SOnt, and he was a god to a kid in the 80s. I remember fighting every ounce of my energy trying to stay up to watch the late night games as a little tiny kid. I remember saying as a 3 or 4 year old that I'm going to Edmonton when I grow up, I'm going to work and watch Wayne Gretzky (and it's funny how that almost actually played out, but I got the wrong city). It breaks my fucking heart. You broke our hearts Wayne. Never meet your heroes they say, and it's a funny saying because most of my heroes have actually turned out to be pretty stand up in person too. All but one.
Lemieux still isn't the goat. Gretzky sucks hot ass, fuck the guy thoroughly and completely. But you can't take his stats away. There's plenty of athletes who have done impressive feats of athleticism and are still total pieces of shit.
I think Walter would be ashamed, I knew him personally from his charity work and he was a good man, a true Canadian and pretty opinionated in his own quiet way. I'm glad he didn't live to see his son involved in and downplaying this shit. I can't imagine how he would've felt good about it. Money and celebrity (and as someone else suggested, maybe CTE too) corrupts some people. It seems Wayne is one of those.
Yeah, I've started getting (more) annoyed at the people that say "you miss 100% of the shots you don't take.
Mostly because fuck anyone who is MAGA. But I've also always found it to be a stupid quote. Gretzky was more of a set up player than a goal scorer. In the hockey world, idiots quote him as an excuse for making a pass.
57 Comments
Lemmyoutofhere@lemmy.ca · 83 pts · 251d
Ya, we already knew about the traitor.
cecilkorik@piefed.ca · 19 pts · 251d
Elbows up, our defense doesn't care whether he's a star player or not.
ininewcrow@lemmy.ca · 12 pts · 251d
The not so great one
Peppycito@sh.itjust.works · 20 pts · 250d
The Great Once
k0e3@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 250d
Seriously this is really old news.
qwestjest78@lemmy.ca · 51 pts · 250d
People in Edmonton have been literally shitting on his statue. We know about the traitor.
notreallyhere@lemmy.world · 48 pts · 251d
stickly@lemmy.world · 41 pts · 251d
I have a groundbreaking theory about prolonged playing of contact sports, traumatic brain injury, and far right politics... You generally don't hear these headlines about tennis/soccer players, or nearly as often about basketball/baseball players.
As someone who enjoys American football and hockey, it's a damn shame that we still paint athletes as role models.
Glide@lemmy.ca · 16 pts · 250d
I know it's funny to insinuate that brain damage caused people to become conservatives, but I think we should accept that the culture around aggressive, full-contact sports tends to be conservative to start with. Surround yourself with that culture day-in, day-out, and before long you find yourself ingrained in more than just their favorite sports.
But I mean, that doesn't mean it's not the brain damage. A thing can be more than one thing.
Lemmyoutofhere@lemmy.ca · 7 pts · 250d
Just look at Fetterman. Had a stroke, and he’s now conservative.
stickly@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 250d
That's true, it's a combination of factors. A big part is the insular nature of the team and coaching as you go higher up the ladder. If you're not thanking God in your post-win interview you're a "locker room problem"; if you want a coaching job after you retire you've gotta be on good terms with the good ol' boys network.
I do think that the brain damage does compound heavily though. I know Mormons who get out and become well adjusted people later in life; the semi-pro football players I know get more irrational and violent as the CTE sets in.
Ougie@lemmy.world · 13 pts · 251d
Football (soccer as you call it) is so underrated in this respect it's not even funny, heading the ball is extremely dangerous for the brain in the long term. Not to mention head clashes in challenges etc. Granted, most injuries are in the lower limbs but still.
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca · 4 pts · 250d
Footballers have a much high chance of developing and dying from ALS.
Medic8teMe@lemmy.ca · 4 pts · 250d
Basketball as well. Elbows inside are real and thumping opponents is normal.
DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social · 3 pts · 251d
As opposed to victims of the never ending human thirst for blood sports
MushuChupacabra@lemmy.world · 31 pts · 251d
Oh we all know about the Great Once.
Cruxifux@feddit.nl · 27 pts · 251d
Who fucking cares. Old rich guy likes Trump. Shocker.
TheJesusaurus@sh.itjust.works · 26 pts · 250d
You're like 2 years late
Archangel1313@lemmy.ca · 22 pts · 251d
We know. Not that it matters. He moved to the US decades ago, anyway...so they can keep him.
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 250d
and they can keep his shitty grape juice and industrial solvent whisky.
HertzDentalBar@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 20 pts · 250d
Gretzky has always been that way. I'm not sure why anyone respects him anymore.
Trex202@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 246d
He skates by
Tigeroovy@lemmy.ca · 18 pts · 250d
He was at the inauguration, we know.
panda_abyss@lemmy.ca · 18 pts · 250d
We know.
olbaidiablo@lemmy.ca · 16 pts · 250d
We know. He is a dickhead. His "whiskey" is shit, his "wine" tastes like his "whiskey" (also shit) and he is shit.
olafurp@lemmy.world · 15 pts · 251d
That's the guy that ripped off the Michael Scott with the quote "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take"
melsaskca@lemmy.ca · 15 pts · 250d
Why does it matter? He chose america willingly and they welcomed him a long time ago. They say never meet your heroes but the internet makes that almost impossible.
DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social · 12 pts · 251d
CTE is a hell of a series of traumatic brain injuries yes
evasive_chimpanzee@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 250d
I'll spam this fact wherever I see comments on CTE.
CTE is not correlated with the number of concussions. It's correlated with years of exposure to repetitive minor hits. It's a very important distinction because the NFL (and every other professional sport with blows to the head) is trying to push the narrative that concussion is the boogeyman, so that if they can reduce concussion (and they can), they can declare their hands clean from CTE. The only way to reduce CTE is drastic changes to the game.
TheJesusaurus@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 250d
While I have no doubt they'd skin their grandmother's alive to save a buck, reducing concussions and head injuries is straight up just a good thing. Having concussion protocols etc and taking these decisions out of the hands of people motivated to win at all costs and into the hands of medical professionals is a good if incomplete step
evasive_chimpanzee@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 250d
Yeah, agreed that reducing concussion is definitely a good thing. Especially strict rules around return to play after concussion cause that's when you can really do damage.
My problem is that scientists can say: "CTE is a problem in the NFL." And then the NFL can say "we are addressing it by offering goofy helmet coverings, reducing punt return collision speed, and using better protocols for post concussion". Then no one is pointing out that none of those changes address CTE at all, and the NFL knows that. In reality, reducing CTE would involve changing the sport in ways that the fans would not like.
TheJesusaurus@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 250d
I think you've pretty sussinctly explained exactly why they are doing what they are doing
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca · 1 pts · 250d
We know this from military deployments. Even office staff near bombed regions get TBI, and certainly civilians will get brain damage from forces traveling through them.
NFL players die 25 years younger than national average, a combination of brain injury and long term effects of steroids.
GrindingGears@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 250d
Wayne wasn't the subject of very many hits in hockey. CTE isn't a factor that you can blame. As it goes with shit stains, everyone around him probably has the CTE as they were collateral damage, guys like Dave Semenko (it's never been publically disclosed but he was post-mortem investigated for it after dying of cancer) or Marty McSorley (who is not dead but he states he has memory loss and other symptoms).
DragonTypeWyvern@midwest.social · 2 pts · 250d
https://www.bumc.bu.edu/camed/2024/12/04/largest-study-of-cte-in-male-ice-hockey-players-finds-odds-increased-34-with-each-year-played/
GrindingGears@lemmy.ca · 0 pts · 250d
I get it, but are you a fan of hockey? Like did you watch the Gretzky years specifically? You'll know what I'm referring to, if you did.
CTE is definitely a real bitch though, btw.
Jarix@lemmy.world · -1 pts · 250d
Wayne Gretzky was probably the most protected player in hockey history....
whoisearth@lemmy.ca · 12 pts · 250d
One of my best friends is from Brantford, huge hockey nut and a big Gretzky fan and man this must sting her so bad and it's understandable. Gotta be so frustrating.
As one of the "Lemieux is the GOAT" crowd... LOL
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca · 6 pts · 250d
Brantford is the most MAGA place in Canada outside of Alberta. Worst drunk driving and domestic violence rates in Southern Ontario.
GrindingGears@lemmy.ca · 6 pts · 250d
I'm not from Brantford, but I'm from SOnt, and he was a god to a kid in the 80s. I remember fighting every ounce of my energy trying to stay up to watch the late night games as a little tiny kid. I remember saying as a 3 or 4 year old that I'm going to Edmonton when I grow up, I'm going to work and watch Wayne Gretzky (and it's funny how that almost actually played out, but I got the wrong city). It breaks my fucking heart. You broke our hearts Wayne. Never meet your heroes they say, and it's a funny saying because most of my heroes have actually turned out to be pretty stand up in person too. All but one.
TheJesusaurus@sh.itjust.works · 3 pts · 250d
Lemieux still isn't the goat. Gretzky sucks hot ass, fuck the guy thoroughly and completely. But you can't take his stats away. There's plenty of athletes who have done impressive feats of athleticism and are still total pieces of shit.
JiveTurkey@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 251d
Is dumb piece of shit.
Jhex@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 250d
He was Canadian when he was Great... now he is garbage and became MAGA
Reannlegge@lemmy.ca · 10 pts · 251d
And this is news?
cecilkorik@piefed.ca · 10 pts · 251d
Make Apathetic Gretzky American.
I think Walter would be ashamed, I knew him personally from his charity work and he was a good man, a true Canadian and pretty opinionated in his own quiet way. I'm glad he didn't live to see his son involved in and downplaying this shit. I can't imagine how he would've felt good about it. Money and celebrity (and as someone else suggested, maybe CTE too) corrupts some people. It seems Wayne is one of those.
CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org · 8 pts · 250d
Do some people still doubt this?
KindnessIsPunk@lemmy.ca · 6 pts · 250d
Jarome Iginla was always my hero.
dubyakay@lemmy.ca · 6 pts · 250d
velindora@lemmy.cafe · 6 pts · 251d
At least he doesn’t own a coffee shop chain
SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca · 1 pts · 250d
Stan Mikita Donuts?
velindora@lemmy.cafe · 1 pts · 250d
Party time. Excellent.
garbagebagel@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 251d
Lol @ anyone who thinks wealthy people are on our side.
Coriba@lemmy.ca · 5 pts · 251d
There is a significant percentage of Canadians who wish to be American. I’ve known several. I don’t understand it. I’m expat American.
AlternatePersonMan@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 251d
Yeah, I've started getting (more) annoyed at the people that say "you miss 100% of the shots you don't take.
Mostly because fuck anyone who is MAGA. But I've also always found it to be a stupid quote. Gretzky was more of a set up player than a goal scorer. In the hockey world, idiots quote him as an excuse for making a pass.
scutiger@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 250d
Despite being "a set up player," he was still the highest scoring player of all time until April of this year.
AlternatePersonMan@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 250d
Sure, but Greyzky had twice as many assists as goals.
Ovechkin has almost twice as many goals as assists.
I'm not saying Gretzky didn't score, but he wasn't shooting 100% of the time. He wasn't even shooting most of the time.
paraphrand@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 251d
Wait, so, this was where the puck was going?
IndridCold@lemmy.ca · 2 pts · 249d
Why should I give a shit about Wayne Gretzky? It's not like he's done anything positive for science, technology or society as a whole.
The guy is known for hitting a chunk or rubber around with a stick. Whoopdy-fucking-doo.
FreshParsnip@lemmy.ca · 1 pts · 249d