Associated Press. "2010 Super Bowl 44" 02/17/2012 via Populous. Public Domain Dedication License.
1. The NFL concussion crisis is one that has been building for dozens and dozens of years dating back to the inception of professional football nearly a century ago. The National Football league has employed tens of thousands of white- and blue-collar workers from stadium custodians to chief executive officers. The National Football League has excited hundreds of millions fans with thudding hits and gamesmanship at its pinnacle. The National Football essentially owns a day of the week, and that is why the audience of this post-controversy mortem will have ties to the subject in more ways than one. The sports industry has taken the world by storm, because no matter the ethnicity, politicization, or religious affiliation, the mirror neurons operating in your brain gives every party a stake in the game, in every hard-hit, in every close victory or loss. Men are particularly prone to watching professional football because of their natural tendencies of aggression, not to say a large percentage of women watch the NFL with their male counterparts. Fans that grew up with the game and are now watching their childhood stars such as Junior Seau and Mike Webster suffer fatal detriments as a result of CTE caused by repeated head trauma during their time in the NFL. Similarly, those of the Millennial generation will remember watching famous wide receiver Antwaan Randle El catch deep throws during his stint in the NFL with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and now they will watch his interviews stating his extreme remorse of playing in the NFL as now he cannot even recognize his own kids or walk down a flight of stairs because of CTE. CTE is a documented medical condition that accounts for death, misery, and mental deterioration among former NFL players, and that is why medical evolutionists will take an interest in this controversy evaluation. ESPN, the most-viewed network on television behind BBC News globally, covered this dilemma for months on end and its viewers, a significant majority of the general public, could have interest in this. Technological innovators who are the helm of conjuring concussion-preventive measures such as the NFL-concussion-protocol and advanced helmets have a major interest in the development of this topic. As briefly touched on before, the thousands of employees and their livelihood are dependent on whether the NFL is able to eliminate the detriment of the violence of football as if they fail to, the league could ultimately fail and people in the media, stadiums, and league itself will be out of jobs. This is such a widespread and appealing subject in aspects of medicine, media, society, passion, among other things, that the audience of this controversy could be universal. Some may not value the sport essence of this dilemma, as many are concerned with just the health hazards. As opposed, some may take an interest for the sole purpose of wanting to see the game of professional football live on as America's favorite past time. Football is generally a sport disregarded internationally but idolized on American ground. Parents will also be engaged as youth football is a very popular thing in the U.S. and many parents may think twice or allow for their children to participate.
2. After reading my composition, I hope the audience will take away that the true power and greed in this consumer-based economy is unhealthy in every sense. In spite of the NFL's failure to acknowledge the reality of concussions up until years ago when they coughed up a $1,000,000,000 settlement to thousands of former and current NFL players for their neglect of the detriment of playing in the NFL, fans and players are still participating the game. My goal is for the audience to be enlightened to every side of the concussion crisis, be aware of how much the NFL has to lose, how much medicine has to gain, and how much the players sacrifice, so they can form their own educated opinion. Additionally, raising awareness may progress the move to inhibit long-term concussion consequences, The sports industry as a whole capitalizes on human neurological tendencies without the viewers even knowing and I think it's only right for the audience to become aware. During the time when this controversy truly came to light was during the proceeding of the players vs. NFL lawsuit regarding the presence of concussions and the league's negligence of the consequences of repeated head-trauma as they knew it would drive away players and fans alike. Former NFL-player Junior Seau had just committed an unexpected suicide and left behind a tragedy-stricken family. Seau took his own life due to what was later revealed as CTE, he simply could not bear the symptoms anymore. The pathological implications of this situation drove the case and media coverage but now I would like to present every ethical and logical side of the entire concussion crisis as a whole. Is it the players' negligence to participate, or NFL's negligence to prevent? Will the sport continue at a professional level long-term because of American obsession with the NFL, or will the risk simply cause it to die out? The lawsuit and case have been solved and the NFL has been determined guilty, but now, I think it is time for the audience to be made aware and answer these questions because the sports industry has capitalized on the neurological tendencies of its viewership for far too long.
3. You will not find many other Neuroscience & Cognitive Science majors around campus, but more importantly, you will not find many nearly as passionate about technological and medical innovation/evolution while holding a stake in the concerned topic. The years of involvement in sports from Little League Baseball and Pee Wee Football to Varsity Football and Baseball on the field and countless nights popping open a medical journal and being fascinated by the evolution of medicinal innovation off the field throughout my life have brought me to this point. I am very grateful for this opportunity to finally merge my passion and field of discipline I plan on building a career in. I aspire to become a Neurotrauma Consultant for the NFL. Moreover, my father is the Orthopedic Consult for the Arizona Cardinals and Phoenix Suns and I have been exposed to this world and only hope to enhance my understanding and expose others. I believe this desire to educate and evaluate fueled by passion and practice puts me in the best position to deliver the post-controversy mortem regarding concussions in the NFL.
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