“Listen, I know we’ve had our moments, but before you make your list just hear me out…” (Photo: Gossiboocrew.com)
We’re only a few hours into the new year, but unless your head hit the pillow just as the ball dropped, you’ve probably already carried some of your bad habits with you into 2012. We are creatures of habit, and change doesn’t come naturally to us. If it did, we wouldn’t make such a big production out of our ‘New Year’s Resolutions’. The sport of mixed martial arts and its fans are no different. Here’s a quick look at some of the bad habits we’ve picked up and poor decisions we’ve made over the past 12-months. Let’s hope we can leave them behind in yesteryear.
“Faggot”, “Cunty”, Rape Jokes, Etc.
“That’s why pencils have erasers.” (Pic: MMAMania.com)
2011 was a year that pushed the envelope of political correctness, even for a sport largely celebrated for its ‘anything goes’ mojo. After witnessing a gruesome motorboating accident, debating the proper way to address a woman, and being dragged along for Michael Bisping’s one-man homophobia tour, fans heard so many rape jokes that, well, let’s just say they became commonplace.
If I cared about people’s feelings I probably wouldn’t read this site and I certainly would write half of what I do, so don’t look to me to carry the torch for easily offended. And while I also think that it’s certainly not in the best interest of any public figure to use divisive, hateful language, it’s their right to speak their mind and live or die by their words. Lastly, although these incidents have been used by our enemies to suppress our mainstream progress, I don’t think anything short of an in-Octagon death can stop us now.
So why am I opposed to this controversial language? Simple: I don’t want a poor choice of words coming between me and great fights. We’ve already seen one fighter cut, albeit briefly, for an off-color joke, and I don’t want it to happen again. Had the UFC pulled the plug on the Brock experiment after his UFC 100 tirade, we would have missed out on many of the highs and lows of his polarizing career. And just imagine how less interesting the welterweight division would be right now if Diaz’s many past crimes were held against him. If we continue down this road, a major star is going to cross the line and we’ll all be deprived of great fights. That’s why it’s time to draw a line in the sand.
Which brings me to our next item…