Hillenmeyer: Football, Violence & “The Hunger Games”

“Are you not entertained?” “Is this not why you are here?” – Maximus, “Gladiator”

We often talk of sports in terms of violence. Our video games are becoming more and more realistic, and the top properties involve war, gore and, oftentimes, disturbing imagery.

Hell, do you remember the old NHL video games? You know, the one used in the classic film “Swingers” when they lament the loss of head trauma in the new version of the game? Wayne Gretzky gets laid out and they demonstrate the unstoppable move.

Anyway, enough of the walk in film history for now. I’ll expand on those topics in the daily audio/video bits that start next Monday. For now, I thought I’d bring to your attention an article penned by former Chicago Bears linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer. He discusses his love of the game, the culture of the game and all of the attention afforded the Saints’ “Bounty-Gate” issue. It’s a unique perspective from the eight-year NFL veteran.

This statement, made toward the end of the article, says it all. “Violence is not just a part of football, it’s a huge part of the allure of football.”