John McCain Breaks Up A Fight example essay topic

986 words
Ultimate fighting is one of the most brutal and barbaric sports ever to be seen on television. Ultimate fighting is a no-rules fighting competition, designed to provide violent entertainment for its viewers. In this competition a fighter is allowed to punch, kick, and choke his opponent to win a fight. Ultimate fighting first came to the United States in 1993 when SEG began promoting it as, 'The Ultimate Fighting Championship. ' ; Ultimate fighting is an unsafe sport and people should not be permitted to view or compete in such violent competitions.

Dr. George Lindberg editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association says, 'Someone's spinal cord could be fractured, an arm could be broken, and choking could result in brain damage. The possibility of injury is very high'; (Sokolove 1). The American Medical Association wants an all out ban on boxing and ultimate fighting. Senator John McCain, the leader in the opposition wants it banned because he is concerned about injury to the competitors (Kirby 20). In the UFC competitors have received broken arms, damaged their spinal cord, and been knocked out on several occasions.

In a recent event in the Ukraine, a competitor died after he was beaten badly. After the fight he collapsed, was taken to a hospital, and later died (Kodi). Cockfighting is banned in almost all states in this country, however in most states ultimate fighting still goes unregulated. Why are we allowing humans to compete in events that we have decided is too dangerous for animals (Sokolove 1)? Isn't allowing this type of event to go on telling our children that it is ok to fight? This type of event serves no positive purpose, and only increases the tolerance for violence in our society.

Fans and promoters of ultimate fighting argue that fighters should be allowed to compete in any type of violent event if both participants are consenting. Isn't there a point then where all of this goes to far though? Suppose someone wants to televise the death of someone who consents to being killed. Under their logic this type of thing would be ok because everyone is consenting. We have already banned such consenting activities such as prostitution, drugs, and assisted suicide; we should just add this to the list.

John McCain believes that the fighter's consent is deceptive. He says a fighter is, 'driven by profits or the enticements of publicity associated with it and unknowingly is placing his or her life at risk (Kirby 20). ' ; Should a free market society include selling brutal events such as ultimate fighting? Obviously this is not the case.

We should not allow this to go on because of the severely negative consequences of allowing this to go on. Should we allow people to die and be severely injured just because they supposedly consented to it? How can the promoters argue that the fighters consent to injuries, up to and including death? This is obviously not the case, and the promoters are widely mistaken if they think this is so. Ultimate fighting is clearly one of the most barbaric events that we have ever seen in the United States.

The promoters of the events are only looking to use the fighters for their own profits. They are in no way concerned with the safety of the fighters. Despite the recent rule changes to clean up the appearance of the sport, it is still at heart the same sport, and is just as dangerous. Two of the biggest cable companies, TCI, and Time Warner, have taken the first positive steps by refusing to air any ultimate fighting events on their systems. A great number of local authorities have successfully been able to ban these events, and hopefully we will soon see a nationwide ban. Ultimate fighting is a disgusting competition, with no place in our society.

' Extremely Repugnant. ' ; Editorial. Montreal Gazette 23 March 1998. Fiore, David C. Letter. Journal of the American Medical Association 25 Sept. 1996.

Harrison, Steve. 'Fighter Doesn't Wrestle With Conscience. ' ; Detroit Free Press. 13 July 1995: 1 D. Kirby, Joseph A. 'Politicians Bully 'Ultimate Fighting'. ' ; Portland Oregonian 16 Feb. 1997: A 20. Kodi, Brian.

Death & MMA. Online. 20 April 1998. Available web art / ko di 2. htmlLitowitz, Douglas E. 'Ultimate Fighters' Also Have Rights. ' ; Editorial.

Chicago Tribune 4 Sept. 1996: 18. Marks, John. 'Whatever it takes to win Ultimate fighting is raw, often bloody, and increasingly controversial. It also draws hundreds of thousands of fans. ' ; U.S. News & World Report 24 Feb. 1997: 46-49. Muller, Bill.

'Ultimate Disappointment: 'No Rules' Fighting Falls Flat. ' ; Editorial. The Arizona Republic 9 Oct. 1997. Sanyo, John. 'Is Bare-Knuckle Brawl a sport or Spectacle?' ; Rocky Mountain News Capitol Bureau 3 Dec. 1995: 5 A. Semaphore Entertainment Group.

UFC - History. Online. 9 April 1998. Available web Amy. 'John McCain breaks up a Fight.

' ; Phoenix New Times Online. Internet. 21 Feb. 1998. Sokolove, Michael.

'Brutal Bouts Become a Big Event. ' ; Philadelphia Inquirer 25 Feb 1996: C 01. United States. Supreme Court. Abrams vs. United States, 250 U.S. 616. Washington: USSC, 1919.

United States. Supreme Court. Hustler Magazine, Inc. vs. Falwell, 485 U.S. 46. Washington: USSC, 1988.

Will, George. 'Does a Free-Market Theory Include Sales of Barbarism?' ; Editorial. Akron Beacon Journal 26 Nov. 1995: A 19.