But Everyone Gets A Purple Ribbon!
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| Canadian athletes all deserve a purple ribbon for participation. |
IN MY ARMCHAIR– I’ve been following the Olympic games in Beijing (on television, not actually from Beijing), and I must admit that I’m mildly disappointed in the lack of podium finishes (that is to say, none) by Canada, my home and native land. I say mildly, because there are plenty of beach volleyball matches to distract me from my moderate pain.
I’ve watched numerous hours of broadcasting on the CBC, and I think there has been more content about China, than actual events. However, whenever I do get to see Canadians participate in various swimming and rowing and other Olympic events, and I see them finish fourth or fifth or last, or whatever, I keep hearing the same thing over and over again: “Well, we’re just happy to have been able to compete” and “I think that every Canadian deserves a medal just for getting here”.
WHAT????
Okay, it’s all becoming quite clear to me now. It’s the Canadian school systems that are to blame for this failure to medal in the 2008 Olympic Games. You see, it goes back ten or fifteen years to the days when parents began to complain on Sports Day that their children didn’t get a gold ribbon for finishing first in some hula hoop obstacle race, or for beating the rest of the seven-year-olds in the 100 metre egg-on-a-spoon hurdles.
{mosimage}Somewhere somehow, sometime, school boards across the country modified the rules of competition, and changed the awards so that EVERYONE GETS A PURPLE RIBBON. Yes, some soft-hearted parent/teach group decided that it wasn’t fair that little Joey finished fourth in the balloon toss and wasn’t able to earn a ribbon for his efforts, so they changed the first-second-third method of competing into a free-for-all where everyone gets congratulated just for participating.
Yes, I believe this Purple Ribbon practice has completely destroyed individual competitive sports in Canada entirely, because hey, it’s okay if you don’t win, as long as you tried.
Canadians (as individuals) must lack the fierce competitive fire that drives athletes from other countries because their Sports Days still award the winners, while Canadians are content to put everyone on a level playing field, and not crush little Joey’s spirit and instead, embrace his mediocrity. He still has hopes of getting to the Olympics in the world-class balloon tossing event, but it doesn’t matter if he wins. He’s just glad for the chance to represent his country. Go Team Canada! or whatever…
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