Here's the real issue: Should a coach be fired for cussing - regardless of what he said?

Reading all of this made me think of a few cliche sayings:

 

"Judge not lest ye be judged first"

 

"People who live in glass houses shouldn't cast stones"

 

I'm not condoning the act, simply saying that I don't agree with the result. I often chuckle that we as a society find this type of behavior morally reprehensible yet the large majority are "sinners" themselves. Myself, as an educator, have found that instead of discouraging the negative behavior(cussing) I challenge them to come up with more creative adjectives. Surely our vocabularies extend well beyond four letter words.......

Reading all of this made me think of a few cliche sayings:

 

"Judge not lest ye be judged first"

 

"People who live in glass houses shouldn't cast stones"

 

I'm not condoning the act, simply saying that I don't agree with the result. I often chuckle that we as a society find this type of behavior morally reprehensible yet the large majority are "sinners" themselves. Myself, as an educator, have found that instead of discouraging the negative behavior(cussing) I challenge them to come up with more creative adjectives. Surely our vocabularies extend well beyond four letter words.......

I do the same. Tell them it is simply word choices. If they choose that word, they could choose a different one. Or rather make one up to be your cussword. You could say Rumplefeathers each time you want to cuss. Or as a former boss of mine said, "Dirty Word" when she got mad. For me it is Golly.

Fine. So we agree.

If your position is that no reason for him to be cussing while coaching but unless his boss had told him they didn't want their coaches cussing at the players, he shouldn't be fired, then yes we agree.

 

 

 

 

One interesting view on this. Is it more acceptable to cuss at male athletes compared to female athletes? As a father can you be more accepting of cussing at your son compared to cussing at you daughter?

If your position is that no reason for him to be cussing while coaching but unless his boss had told him they didn't want their coaches cussing at the players, he shouldn't be fired, then yes we agree.

 

One addition to the conditions of agreement: "however, if he does cuss and as long as its not one of the magic words, we can all overlook it....."

 

 

 

 

One interesting view on this. Is it more acceptable to cuss at male athletes compared to female athletes? As a father can you be more accepting of cussing at your son compared to cussing at you daughter?

 

Assuming we're talking about high school athletes, for the most part, I see no difference.

If your position is that no reason for him to be cussing while coaching but unless his boss had told him they didn't want their coaches cussing at the players, he shouldn't be fired, then yes we agree.

 

 

 

 

One interesting view on this. Is it more acceptable to cuss at male athletes compared to female athletes? As a father can you be more accepting of cussing at your son compared to cussing at you daughter?

Unfortunately, I'd say that I'd find it more acceptable for my son rather than my daughter. I shouldn't but I do think I would. For me it is all in context, how and what is said.

 

I'm a bit torn on this as I see both sides. I've seen a coach degrade and belittle a player nearly to tears. I've also witnessed the same player come back and thank the coach for a kick in the rear. I guess it comes down to how you define the role of a "coach"? Is that person there to coach the sport or is he/she there to coach the child? For the (literal)pennies a day that most coaches earn we sure do ask them to wear a lot of hats.

 

On the other side, these are kids playing a kids game. They are impressionable and will mimic the actions of those they percieve to be "role models". They have enough bad representations out there in the world, coaches shouldn't add one more to that.

 

Ultimately, it is up to the PARENT to teach their child right from wrong.

One addition to the conditions of agreement: "however, if he does cuss and as long as its not one of the magic words, we can all overlook it....."

See, I think it is all about context. I don't think you can paint this with that broad of a brush. For example, a local high school coach insulted a player by saying something to the effect of "maybe he'd play better if he wasn't running around with his girlfriend" (obviously a little more risque than that). I'd take more offense to that as a parent than I would a coach saying that my son was playing like --.

No...you do not need to curse at kids. It is a sign of a weak vocabulary. This was taught to me by a professor of English at Highlands who could rip you up one side and down the other leaving you as small as a gnats nugget...ALL WITHOUT using a curse word OR raising his voice. Norman...you've made the "sports pages" !!!

See, I think it is all about context. I don't think you can paint this with that broad of a brush. For example, a local high school coach insulted a player by saying something to the effect of "maybe he'd play better if he wasn't running around with his girlfriend" (obviously a little more risque than that). I'd take more offense to that as a parent than I would a coach saying that my son was playing like --.

 

The next word in your last example would not be one of the magic words.

What makes cuss words so aweful? Why are certain words considered to be taboo? They are just words just like any other word. Look back through several of these posts...

 

"This was taught to me by a professor of English at Highlands who could rip you up one side and down the other leaving you as small as a gnats nugget...ALL WITHOUT using a curse word OR raising his voice. "

 

Using this one as an example this teacher accomplished the same goal as someone who cussed - punished, disciplined, embarassed, motivated, humiliated a student. So why is it OK for someone who has a bigger vocabulary to have the same effect as someone who does not have / use a bigger vocabulary?

 

I played for coaches who had terrible language and my parents had terrible language - therefore I don't see the big deal because they are just words to me. I have a player who is in the same boat (remember I have not said whether I cuss or not) with his parents and cussing. When I got him as a younger player he would pitch a game and throw a ball in the dirt and then let cuss words fly at the top of his lungs - he had no earthly idea he was even saying them. I have got him to where he just cusses in idle conversation and not yelling at the top of his lungs on the field.

 

Am I a bad coach because I haven't kicked him off the team yet - which this would the same case as firing a coach for cussing?

 

What kids hear from coaches is nothing compared to the music and tv they are around. If a parent wants to hold a coach to a higher standard and not tolerate cussing then that same parent has to make sure their child is not exposed to the hip hop culture that routinely uses foul language like Dr. Suess uses rhymes.

 

If parents are going to have this high standard they need to be consistent and not wishy washy with it.

 

Someone said make up cuss words like rumplefeathers - do you honestly have any idea how bad the kids would make fun of you for saying something like that? I know an adult should never worry about something like that but using words like that then the kids WILL tune you out because they think you are a dork.

My high school coach my freshman and soph year curssed me up one side and down the other and did it bother me no i would do anything for that man today. Do i agree with cursing your players NO i dont but its not that big a deal.

I guess I am just "old school" as they say, but depending on what was "really" said, this falls under the "lets make everyone feel good" mentality that is so loud today. Just my opinion but outside of personal non-baseball attacks, then no harm no foul.

I played for Coach Charlie Taylor at Somerset in the mid-late 80's. He has won a state title and finished as runner-up twice at a school as small as Somerset, he is also in the KHSAA Hall of Fame. In the 4 years I played for him I NEVER, EVER heard him curse or allow one of his players to curse without being removed from the game. He is currently retired and an assistant coach on my son's middle school team. I would wager he knows more baseball than 90% of the coaches out there right now. However, he always managed to get his point across, get us properly motivated and state his case to the umpires and wayward players without having to curse. It isn't a necessity and it shouldn't be taught as such.

I played for Coach Charlie Taylor at Somerset in the mid-late 80's. He has won a state title and finished as runner-up twice at a school as small as Somerset, he is also in the KHSAA Hall of Fame. In the 4 years I played for him I NEVER, EVER heard him curse or allow one of his players to curse without being removed from the game. He is currently retired and an assistant coach on my son's middle school team. I would wager he knows more baseball than 90% of the coaches out there right now. However, he always managed to get his point across, get us properly motivated and state his case to the umpires and wayward players without having to curse. It isn't a necessity and it shouldn't be taught as such.

 

Is he not working with the Twins anymore?

Is he not working with the Twins anymore?

 

He might after the season, I'm not sure. He's assisting Coach Grundy on the high school team and Coach Messamore on the middle school team right now.

I personally don't typically condone a coach cussing directly at players, but in some ways I do. There are some kids who respond differently to certain types of encouragement. I for one think I was one of those players. I liked a coach to get on me pretty tough sometimes because for me it got the adrenaline for me and helped me focus on the task at hand. Some other kids are completely different. I for one loved when a coaches get all fired up and let a few choice words fly to pump up a player or team. However some kids respond completely differently. It varies from situation to situation and some words are definitely more "socially acceptable" then others. After all if we can here many of the words in our evening television and routinely in movies is it really that different to appear on a baseball field.