Eventually, hell has frozen over. Jeff Miller, the National Football League senior vice president for health and safety policy, has told members of Congress that playing American football can lead to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). The NFL has switched from the criticizing the research of medical scientists who demonstrated that playing football can scramble a … Continue reading »
NFL
King Henry VIII and the Super Bowl
Henry VIII, famous for abandoning the Catholic Church and marrying six times, liked jousting. Jousting is martial sport where two horsemen in armor gallop towards one another at breakneck speed holding wooden lances. The aim is to strike your opponent and if possible unseat him. Henry was concussed several times, the most severe battering occurring 1536 … Continue reading »
Dialectics of dialect
There are many interesting tales to tell about the current NFL scandals; many have been told, eloquently and well. But some seemingly minor points have been overlooked, and should not be, especially as their understanding extends well beyond the range of the NFL. When Adrian Peterson, the Minnesota Vikings running back, was questioned about his … Continue reading »
NFL and team leadership misses the goal
This piece was coauthored by Sudha Shetty, assistant dean of international alliances and partnerships, UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy, and Jeffrey Edleson, dean and professor, social welfare. The NFL leadership and team-management responses to domestic violence committed by Ray Rice of the Baltimore Ravens and Ray McDonald of the San Francisco 49ers missed the goal … Continue reading »