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IAAF World Championship |
Monday, July 29, 2013
The Cost of Winning
Health, Recreation, & Fitness ---
It seems that winning, having the edge, being superior has
become the highest principle in our society.
There is that drive to do better than the other person, be better than
the other person, know more than the other person, have more than the other
person. We always seem to be measuring ourselves qualitatively or
quantitatively against the other person. This seems to be the mindset not only
for individuals but for groups (large or small) as well. And it is something that gets instilled in
the heads of our children from a young age. We pay lip service to the idea of
having fun during competition but go crazy with delight when they win. The
reality is that if winning becomes our highest principle, then every other
principle will take a back seat to it. With that attitude, an individual or
group will do whatever it takes, apply whatever means to win - to get the edge.
In that regard, personal integrity, morality, loyalty, regard for rule, etc.,
become unimportant. In competitive
sports, for example, there has been a proliferation of the use of banned performance-enhancing
substances by athletes. And it has become so prevalent that even those who
might not be using (Usain Bolt, among others) automatically come under the suspicion of using, since
“everybody is using”. As long as winning
continues to be our highest principle, we will seek to do so at all costs, and
in the long-run, with deleterious consequences for our civilization as a whole.
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