UFC Spawning Violence? It's Possible

(Aired on June 17, 2010)

Does violence spawn violence? That's often a hotly-debated topic. But sometimes, I do believe some who are prone to violent acts can be triggered by watching violence. I believe when the adrenaline starts to pump, a person can react just about any way humanly possible. That's why I'm against gratuitous violence on television, that's why I believe Ultimate Fighting matches should be banned.

I suppose some might get a high out of watching someone literally kicking and punching someone else's head in. Some may not get affected, but if circumstances were right, I bet someone could easily walk out of a match, walk down the street and crank someone for no reason at all. Don't tell me that people don't react that way to things. They do. Not everyone. But some do. And we have to put those matches under wraps because of the greater good.

Screaming fans yelling for blood does something to unnerve me. It's the same with dog fighting or cock fighting or whatever else someone wants to tell you is really OK and not as violent as you think.

I've never thought of myself as a violent person, in fact, as I grow older, the opposite is more and more true. I boxed a lot as a youngster, and very seldom lost. I took karate too. But as I got older, I began to enjoy it less and less. Now I can very seldom watch a boxing match on TV. And I would never watch an Ultimate Fighting match. It just seems so senseless all of a sudden. When I think of those people fighting those matches, I wonder how many of them will be still alive twenty years from now. I don't want to seem like a prude, but aside from the fighters' health, I worry about the reaction the fights cause in others.

Scientific evidence is somewhat lacking on this issue, but I can't see how one could avoid being swept up in the violence when watching these things. And when the body is pumped, who knows what might happen?

MMA Violent, Barbaric... and Lucrative

(Aired on March 31, 2010)

It seems mixed martial arts is not in the mainstream yet - at least not for some people.  Abbotsford recently booted out an MMA trade show because someone thought it would attract gang connections to the city.  Now, an Ultimate Fighting Championship event is having trouble establishing itself in Vancouver, encountering red tape and behind-the-scenes resistance.  Word was UFC 115 might have had to be moved to Cincinnati - of all places - before a resolution was reached today.

Let's get one thing straight.  Mixed martial arts is a fad sport that has gained a following because of its no-holds-barred violence.  It's testosterone gone completely out of control.  The sport crosses way over the line between athletics and pure barbarism - and for my part, I hope it fades into oblivion as quickly as it arrived on the mainstream sporting scene.

But that's just me, and my take is no reason to stop events from happening.  What separates MMA from human cockfighting is the fact that these participants are willing to subject themselves to this abuse and injury.  They signed on the dotted line, and people want to watch it, so let the events go ahead.  I can say what I want, but the sport is not underground anymore, and the likelihood that an event would evolve into a gang battle is extremely small.  And a municipality like Vancouver, that has a mandate to attract economic activity, should see a cash cow staring it in the face.

If no one showed up to MMA events and the sport failed miserably, that couldn't make me any happier.  But it's not up to local governments to make that happen.