Posted By: Mike Furches
Wrestling is War - 11/11/05 11:32 AM
Aaron Sweazy sent me this article yesterday. It is an article that he wrote and he and the publisher of the article gave me permission to post it. On this of all days, I think it appropriate to put up. Thanks to all the Vets for the gift and sacrifice you have made for freedom.
HARDLY A WAR
For those that love a rivalry there is nothing better than beating your bitter foe. But, one thing is for certain the atmosphere will be electric every year regardless of what side of the mat you’re rooting from. Even in victory or defeat you are sure to see one exciting evening of matches with a bit of everything from the dominating to the disappointing, which brings me to another matter at hand. I was disappointed the other day when I read something that caught my eye on an Internet message board in regards to wrestling competition that occurred at a recent National Level event. Some anonymous person left on a message board that they thought two wrestlers that were to wrestle in the National Finals at Fargo, ND were going to have a war.
I don’t know how many veterans are out their reading this, but being young is no excuse for ignorance, and I apologize as the son of two military veterans for some derelict making that statement. The notion that some fool would even think of calling a wrestling competition a war is asinine. Back in 1962 the Chapman-Abilene (Kansas) high school rivalry finally made it’s way to the wrestling mats. At the beginning of this wrestling rivalry there was a little war going on called Vietnam, in which many of America’s best never came home from alive. Fast-forward to 2004 where just down the road at nearby Ft. Riley 26 lives have already been claimed in the current conflicts over in Iraq. While Chapman and Abilene have had some great skirmishes on the mat, they were far from a war.
When Oklahoma State’s Steve Mocco and Minnesota’s Cole Konrad took on each other in this past years NCAA finals both competitors left alive and well with one side victorious and the other feeling the tranquility of defeat. I think it’s pretty safe to say no matter the outcome of a war there are no real winners on any side. Many of our young men and women are still overseas and had to leave behind new spouses, babies, and the simple luxuries we take for grated behind. Some of these soldiers may return fit as a fiddle, while others may suffer wounds of war and be changed forever. But lest we forget the ones that we will never truly get the chance to give our appreciations to; the ones that lost their lives fighting for us only to return home to be carried by fellow troops and have their caskets robed in the great American flag.
Regardless of what happens when you go to watch a fierce competition, whether your team wins or loses, know that we would not get to enjoy them if it weren’t for those heroes that stood up for the colors of the Red, White, and Blue through all these years. When you look up at the American flag, I hope you think about what I said. I hope seeing the flag makes you think of those who may have died serving our country and left behind a young family, and it makes you realize just how fragile life truly is.
HARDLY A WAR
For those that love a rivalry there is nothing better than beating your bitter foe. But, one thing is for certain the atmosphere will be electric every year regardless of what side of the mat you’re rooting from. Even in victory or defeat you are sure to see one exciting evening of matches with a bit of everything from the dominating to the disappointing, which brings me to another matter at hand. I was disappointed the other day when I read something that caught my eye on an Internet message board in regards to wrestling competition that occurred at a recent National Level event. Some anonymous person left on a message board that they thought two wrestlers that were to wrestle in the National Finals at Fargo, ND were going to have a war.
I don’t know how many veterans are out their reading this, but being young is no excuse for ignorance, and I apologize as the son of two military veterans for some derelict making that statement. The notion that some fool would even think of calling a wrestling competition a war is asinine. Back in 1962 the Chapman-Abilene (Kansas) high school rivalry finally made it’s way to the wrestling mats. At the beginning of this wrestling rivalry there was a little war going on called Vietnam, in which many of America’s best never came home from alive. Fast-forward to 2004 where just down the road at nearby Ft. Riley 26 lives have already been claimed in the current conflicts over in Iraq. While Chapman and Abilene have had some great skirmishes on the mat, they were far from a war.
When Oklahoma State’s Steve Mocco and Minnesota’s Cole Konrad took on each other in this past years NCAA finals both competitors left alive and well with one side victorious and the other feeling the tranquility of defeat. I think it’s pretty safe to say no matter the outcome of a war there are no real winners on any side. Many of our young men and women are still overseas and had to leave behind new spouses, babies, and the simple luxuries we take for grated behind. Some of these soldiers may return fit as a fiddle, while others may suffer wounds of war and be changed forever. But lest we forget the ones that we will never truly get the chance to give our appreciations to; the ones that lost their lives fighting for us only to return home to be carried by fellow troops and have their caskets robed in the great American flag.
Regardless of what happens when you go to watch a fierce competition, whether your team wins or loses, know that we would not get to enjoy them if it weren’t for those heroes that stood up for the colors of the Red, White, and Blue through all these years. When you look up at the American flag, I hope you think about what I said. I hope seeing the flag makes you think of those who may have died serving our country and left behind a young family, and it makes you realize just how fragile life truly is.