Putting the Baseball Issue to Rest

      Editor: Dave Uphoff
I would like to make one last comment about the baseball issue. It is about what is important in this issue and it is not about baseball itself as some writers to this web site have indicated. One parent said he wants to see his son get in as many games as possible. Another said that the issue is about what's best for the kids.

Both writers seem to forget the fact that most of my property taxes every year is to be spent educating our youth, not developing potential major league baseball players. When I played baseball back in the 1950's we played maybe 6 games a year on a cinder packed field that tore your pants or your skin every time we slid into a base wearing hot itchy wool uniforms. We didn't complain because we just felt fortunate to be able to make the team and to play ball.

The real issue is that baseball and its' playing conditions should not be that important. If a few games are lost because of drainage problems, so what? The City of Minonk has agreed to fix the problem. Now let's get back to our studies. Instead, we have an administration dominated with a background in athletics who allowed this to become an issue rather than realizing the potential riff this could cause in a school district whose communities have had a long standing acrimonious relationship. Talk about adding fuel to the fire!

I understand our youth's ambition to want to play as often as possible in the best conditions as possible. That is human nature. However, in the larger context of things our youth must also be taught that there are other things in life one must consider. Making do with what you have and making the best of a less than desirable situation. Isn't that a part of growing up. And shouldn't we be teaching that as well?

We need to place athletics in its proper context in our education system and not allow it to become an end in itself and to become a lightning rod for dissension among our communities. The Fieldcrest administration should have realized this and dismissed the proposal to move the baseball games from Minonk to Wenona.

Comment on adding birthdays to web site

Many of you have been submitting birthdays as a "Coming Event" item rather than a birthday item. I have stated this in earlier editorials. I will not accept birthdays as "Coming Events" items as it requires me to do a lot of editing. I made "Birthdays" as a separate item on the Update Menu and it perplexes me as to why people continue to ignore it and use "Coming Events" instead.

Also, I will not separate group submissions of birthdays into separate birthday items. To those who do not see their birthdays on the Event Calendar, now you know why.


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March 25, 2007