Sound and Fury Alert: Tennessee Edition

"But aside from shallow rationalizations and false truisms, there is a complete evasion of the moral question here: Can it ever be right to create or draw entertainment value from paying two people to try to beat each other into unconsciousness or into battered helplessness?

The moral question turns the queasiness tables on proponents, and so is scrupulously avoided. But the character of our community is defined by which elements and values among us hold sway in such questions. We diminish ourselves in what we’re setting into here, and especially in pretending that the moral dimension is beside the point."

-- Roland Erhardt, writing a letter to the editor in The Tennessean. This is the type of writing that smacks of pretentiousness and ignorance to anyone with a modicum of rationality. Erhardt, self-appointed arbitrator of moral dilemmas, actually believes "society" has tumbled into a land where moral questions and considerations don't exist. They do exist, of course, it's just that the answer is unsatisfying to poseurs like Erhardt. When the truth is that character traits generally held in high esteem such as discipline, sacrifice and hard work are the underpinnings of the sport, Erhardt's argument evaporates. Yes, there are ignorant louts feeding off the less savory elements of MMA fighting. But like anything in life, I don't let them define for me my reality or what's actually going on. Perhaps Erhardt could do the same.