Playing time at the 8-9 yr old level

Thank you for the kind words, but mine isn't really a mindset that most people don't have! If you look at the response this topic gets on any BB, you know most people think the same way otherwise they wouldn't get so upset! And, from what I see, even those who place more emphasis on winning do have the feelings of the all the players in their heads.

Unfortunately, as in every walk of life, there are leaders and there are followers. One of the key things most leaders possess is aggressiveness. They aren't afraid to make decisions or put themselves in positions where they might have to bear the brunt of criticism. Another way to describe such persons would be to say they are "winners".

Unfortunately, the very traits that make them good leaders, also makes them very unpopular at times. To win, sometimes it means there are casualties, and good leaders have learned that there are casualties in every war.

One of the basic premises about our country is that the elected officials have final authority over the generals, and over the years, I'd say that has paid off more often than not. The problem with youth sports is, the generals, coaches, are most times also the elected officials, board, and that will never change! It doesn't make anyone "bad" or "good", it just makes the situation a difficult one to manage.

There are general guidelines for every program, league and team, but if the electorate, parents of players, don't participate, the officials generally go on their merry way. There is no magic formula or Messiah. For any program to really "work", people have to participate, and in this day and age, that's becoming more and more infrequent. Its called apathy!

I think there are lots of folks out there who if given the opportunity could get this mess turned around, but the trick is to get them "turned on". Personally, my children's well being and happiness mean more to me than anything I can imagine, but that just isn't the case for everyone.

I'm retired and have been for over 20 years. I'm by no means a wealthy person, but if you ever saw me you'd know I haven't missed many meals. I've been able to actually raise my kids from changing dirty diapers and getting that 1st spoonful of that vile baby food into them, to watching my baby start wearing a bra and my oldest trying to figure out how to get dad to help him get that $1,000 stereo in the car so he'll be able to shatter windows when he gets his driver's license.

That means I don't have to worry about getting off work early to see my kids participate in sports. I have the luxury of going to HS practices as well as games! I can get to the field an hour early to make it nice for a game and can spend 6 hours working on it whenever I want. Those are things most parents of youth sports participants can't do, and I understand that.

Its the price we pay as a society that values driving a $50,000 SUV that get 10 MPG, wearing a $1,000 wardrobe to play golf and shoot 100, or buying a $250 bat so their kid can bash out 150' fly balls instead of 145' fly balls!

Face it! We've all become so materialistic, everything has lost its innocence, including kids playing baseball. The sad thing is, I'm afraid its only going to get worse. The one light I see at the end of the tunnel is that more and more leagues are beginning to take control of their own destiny, and make rules and policies that make sense for them.

I'm seeing more and more "mandatory" parent participation and where that happens, it seems like everything works more smoothly. IMHO, it would be better to have a small league with maybe 6 teams that have lots of parent participation than some huge 24 team, 3 division league that is completely impersonal.

There just aren't any simple answers!