GainesvilleMoms.com

What do you think about the involvement of children in violent sports like mixed martial arts?

Here is an article with more information on this topic:

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/23828211

My husband told me about a special they did on ESPN on people putting their children in MMA lessons. I personally highly disagree with it. You're teaching a kid to make another kid beg for mercy. Your putting other kids' lives in danger and in the hands of a child that probably has to be reminded to brush his own teeth, let alone know when to say when. It's like giving a child a chain saw and telling them to be careful. I'm sure I know what the other side of the argument is, self defense what about karate or even football. But if you watch UFC for less than 5 minutes you will quickly realize that this is something that children do not need to be allowed to watch let alone be involved in. If so, why not take your 7 year old to rated R movies and then teaching them how to do all the things that make that movie rated R? I could think of a million examples, but bottom line is, learning to fight on that level can only lead to a dangerous situation.

The major difference is that martial arts is about learning discipline and self-control, and MMA is just about beating the other guy up.

Any martial arts teacher will prepare his students to avoid fighting... and also what to do if there is no other choice. Self defense is a MUST these days, I feel. But MMA isn't self defense. By its very definition it is combining all fighting styles for the purpose of beating up other fighters.

Yeck Yeck Yeck. But nothing should surprise me as society goes down the drain in so many areas.
Our son takes karate lessons 3x weekly; he learns discipline, restraint, respect for authority and elders, and he gets great exercise. With karate, you learn that fighting is your last option.

There will always be immature parents or parents who simply don't have a clue about what is healthy or unhealthy for their children. We see parents take young kids and young teens into R-rated movies. Wrestling matches on TV (and in Gainesville when they were here) were filled with YOUNG and teen boys watching the women parade around like pieces of meat and the guys talk stupid before and after supposedly beating eachother. Many parents allow their children to watch hours of television, play on the computer all afternoon & evening and some even buy violent and/or sexually explicit Playstation/XBox (etc) games for their kids. Heck, two of my friends (who are very good Moms) didn't even know the games their boys had received (Grand Theft Auto) contained sexual encounters with prostitutes!

When families deteriorate and God's teachings become less important, MORE slime will find its way into the homes and hearts of children. It's sad...