The more things change…

I don’t step outside of the Wrestling genre much when I write this blog, usually for good reason – wrestling is one of the things I *know*, and can speak about fairly eloquently. However, reading through the usual Sports articles lately, I ran across a piece by David Whitley that speaks to the subject of Women competing in MMA. http://www.fanhouse.com/2009/08/19/mma-is-no-breakthrough-for-women

Now, Mr Whitley is entitled to his opinion, so I won’t be attacking him for having one as others are doing. What I will attempt is a counterpoint to his narrative, to give the flip side to his argument. I may not do well – MMA is not wrestling, obviously. Or is it?
I will do this by giving you a snippet of what he wrote, followed by my thoughts. Again like him, these are my opinions – only you can decide which is more to your liking.

“We all know that looks matter, which is why the WWE long ago replaced the Fabulous Moolah with pole dancers. If female combat is going to ever make it big, it will need competitors who look like strippers and fight like bouncers”

You understand there IS a difference here, don’t you David? Pro Wrestling is Entertainment first and foremost, and in the venue of Entertainment looks matter. But in Sports, even though of late people seem to react favorably to appearance, what matters most is *ability*. You can look like a Greek God (Or Goddess) all you want, but if you can’t play the game, your time is severely limited.

Picture it – 3rd down and 7 in the waning minutes of the 4th quarter of the Superbowl. Everything depends on the quarterback. Do you care what he LOOKS like – or do you care about his ABILITY to put together a play that may get your team into the endzone?

I’m betting (And since I live in Vegas, I know a bit about that) that well over 95% of people will make the call that they want the guy with Ability. The other 5%? They’ll be wondering why they are paying off that stupid bet they made based on that cleft chin on the QB…

“That concludes the Male Chauvinist Pig portion of this column. Honestly, I don’t think a woman’s place is on the sideline waving a pom-pom. I’m all for equal pay, a female president and my daughters growing up in a misogyny-free world. I just don’t care to see them in a boxing ring, even if they’re beating up some Russian for a gold medal.

Women are called the better half for a reason. They are better than men.”

Actually sir, that doesn’t end the chauvinist portion of your article. You want us to believe that – but your own words give evidence to the contrary. Are you so blind as to not understand that ANY competitive sport, regardless of it being a contact sport or not, is about aggression? Sure, you may want to subscribe to the “Good fellowship” ideal, but at it’s core, competition is about who is *better*. That is a direct relationship to the shared ‘animal nature’  of human beings of both sexes. Winning proves we are better, more able to provide for potential mates than the person who lost.

The only thing that HAS changed is the nature of our competitions. Instead of fighting to the death, we now spare lives in the ring, or make pretty gestures on the Ice. And in this, Women are every bit as competitive as Men – or do you honestly believe that Women throughout history have just stood back and looked pretty?

“In general, we are territorial, hunter-gatherers, hard-wired to see who is the king of the jungle. Women will show more fight than 10 men when their children are threatened, but they need a good reason to drop the gloves. Men just need an excuse.

You may consider that Neanderthal reasoning. I think it’s human nature prompted by visions of my mother looking like Tex Cobb or babbling like Meldrick Taylor.

It’s the same feeling I get about women on the front lines in Iraq or Afghanistan. As much as I hate the prospect of a young male soldier getting captured and tortured, the mere thought of a female getting that treatment is horrifying.”

As I said, your chauvinism isn’t anywhere NEAR finished. You’re forgetting that while us hairy men were out hunting, the Women were back in the cave, defending it from predators, Animal and Human alike. Women competed back then to be with the hairiest of us – and that includes *gasp* fighting! That is unless you believe that all they did was gossip over the rock fence and have their hair blow dried by a mammoth ala The Flintstones.
It’s understandable to be horrified at the thought of a female being tortured. But as you yourself point out, they are better than men. Think about a woman who has undergone natural childbirth. Many I have spoken to have proclaimed that Torture would have been a step UP from that experience. And sir, they are ‘hard wired’ to undergo the birthing process – in many ways they are far BETTER suited to handle torture. But, you aren’t chauvinist, so you understand that. Right?

“There is obviously an audience for what she does. The Carano fight headlined the Showtime pay-per-view, and 13,524 showed up at the HP Pavilion in San Jose.

From all accounts, the crowd loved it. Of course, some people like snuff films and Michael Vick’s ex-hobby. And our ancestors had season tickets to the Christians vs. the Lions.

At least we’ve dialed it down to boxing and MMA. I’m not a big fan of the steel cage, but I’m not against it. It taps into our historic thirst for a little bloodsport. Of the hundreds of sports events I’ve covered, nothing matches the primal buzz right before a title bout.

I love it. I just can’t get psyched to find out who will be the female Mike Tyson. Is there something wrong with me or something wrong with somebody who does?”

Nice subtlety there. Or perhaps you didn’t MEAN to make the claim that those who enjoyed the bout are cut from the same cloth as people who watch Snuff Films?

The answer to your question sir is readily apparent to everyone but you. There’s nothing wrong with any of us, even you – well, aside from your predeliction in believeing women should only be figure skaters, or synchronized swimmers. You are projecting your obvious distaste at seeing women in the ring into areas it doesn’t belong. It’s not about Chauvinism, it’s not about Women’s equality – it’s not even about MMA. You made it about all of those things with your article.

I’ll make it easy for you, and give you the real answer. It’s about Sports, and the desire to be the best you can be regardless of the nature of the Sport one chooses, or the gender one happens to be.