Friday, September 14, 2001
Don't let fear rob us of our games
No one said playing football Sunday would heal the American heart. The trip back to normal would have continued long after the 4:15 games had ended. But it had to start somewhere.
Following the massacre of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics, Americans urged the Games be ended. The Israelis insisted they go on. They did not wish to yield to the terrorists.
Now, neither should we.
Live. Work. Hope. Take time for joy. Be American. Play.
Our history has shown us that we are not afraid. We don't act out of fear, as cowards do.
Taking three days off from baseball has been a good idea, for all reasons practical and psychological. We respect human life in this country. We needed to grieve. But it's time to get on with it.
NFL made tough call
No one can condemn the NFL's decision to yield. “Our priorities are to pause, grieve and reflect,” commissioner Paul Tagliabue said. Of course they are. And nobody could feel anything but heartsick watching a game in Giants Stadium Sunday, 12 miles from lower Manhattan, where rescue workers would be continuing their grim business.
But how long do we postpone attempting normalcy? When do we give ordinary a chance? If the ballparks and stadiums and arenas are deemed safe — or as safe as they can be, in this age of the human bomb — we should play in them. If the logistics could be made practical, the NFL should have shown up Sunday.
It is not showing disrespect to play games. It is not business as usual. It never will be again. We know that. It is perseverance. Don't let the bastards get you down. We're good at that. Always have been.
What can be done is being done. The injured are being fixed. The dead are being mourned. Consequences are being plotted. Grief is on every chest. No one needs to be reminded of what we've been through. No one should be stopped by it, either.
Play on.
Play on, to resume our way of life. To let the world know we haven't fallen, only stumbled. It's Kerri Strug, making the gold medal vault on a bad ankle.
Sports' rightful place
Any other day, sports assume an importance beyond their worth. A week ago, many of us couldn't tell you who Osama bin Laden was. But we knew Danny Almonte. Now, we're told sports are not important.
But sports are important, if only symbolically. Sports offer a tie that binds us, even as we become more diverse in who we are and where we're from. We like the Yankees. Or we don't.
Let us not be daunted. Play on.
Go to the games. Do not feel guilty about feeling good. Observe silent moments, give blood, pray. Do what you can to make the world a more loving place. Do not fear. Live your life.
My brother works at the Justice Department, about 4 miles from the Pentagon. He got up Wednesday and went to work. Is the Justice Department any less of a symbolic target than a football stadium? My brother went to work. So did his colleagues. Fear lost.
Terrorists want us to be afraid. Fear is their intent.
Let's show them we're not afraid. Play on.
E-mail: pdaugherty@enquirer.com. Past columns at Enquirer.com/columns/daugherty.
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DAUGHERTY: Don't let fear rob us of our games
