Insidious Play For Lives

As you watch the NFL playoffs this weekend, notice how many military recruitment ads there will be. As you watch the NBA on any weekend notice how many ads for the military. The military and their bosses pulling the puppet strings like to equate the military and professional sports. They like to use team work as being something you can find in the military. And of course, there are troops being in...ducted during half times, troops holding those field sized flags, color guards in dress uniforms. "God bless America" during the games. Yep, if you can't grow up to be Dirk or Lebron, you can grow up to be Pat Tillman.


What does it say about organizations dominated by people of color on the playing fields allowing recruitment to be done throughout the games? What target audience is there watching these ads? Does Steve Nash and Champ Bailey plan on letting their kids join the Marines real soon? But even more egregious are the Donald Sterns and Mark Cubans of the management and ownership groups. They know the effect of the ads on young people. But somebody has to fight the wars on the cheap while boys and girls playing kid's games make millions each year, right?

We shouldn't put a damper on sports, though. The insidious ads of recruitment are everywhere. They want you to "be all you can be", "Army tough" and "Semper Fi" but unlike those ads selling you all the wonder drugs that list all the side effects in small print and fast talk overs, the recruitment ads don't tell you, "WARNING: enlistment in the military can cause death, dismemberment, traumatic amputation, PTSD, TBI, MST and other serious side effects. Talk to a veteran before you enlist"