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Second Half by MHSAA

Lift

November 11, 2011

Not too long ago there was a television commercial that depicted a huge jumbo jet taking off.  Then the pilot spoke about what it takes to lift such a large load off the ground.

The pilot said that to get such a huge weight off the ground you don’t go with the wind.  You go against it.  He said, “What pushes against us, lifts us up.”

There is no question that this is the recent story for the MHSAA which, momentarily in 2008, was knocked off balance by an adverse judgment by a federal court.  In many respects, the MHSAA is stronger – financially and in other ways – because of 2008.  The bad times made us better.

I’m hoping we will be able to say the same about local school sports generally a few years from now.  That these bad times made us better.  That today’s headwinds gave us the lift we needed to reach new and improved heights in school-based sports.

Rocket Science

January 5, 2015

I have always been fascinated by space exploration and in awe of all that is required and must go right to send a space vehicle atop a multi-stage booster rocket from a moving object like Earth, and land it softly on another moving object like the moon or Mars or most recently a massive rock, after a journey of many months and millions of miles. How can people figure that stuff out?
There cannot be a problem of school sports that is more complicated than those of space exploration, except for one feature – which is that our problems deal with people, who are far less predictable and dependable than the laws of physics.
Making matters worse is that we are working with people in a competitive arena, and in an emotional setting, where the objectivity which characterizes the scientific method of rocket scientists is generally if not universally absent.
As long as potential problem-solvers view potential solutions through the lens of what does or does not benefit them in terms of competitive edge, our efforts to make good changes will never launch or, if launched, will miss the target.