Relax: MMA is legal but democracy still rules

Wednesday afternoon I received a call at the office from a man with a wicked South African accent, asking if I could provide a contact number for "Mixed Martial Arts."

Knowing what he wanted but taking his question at face value, I told him that I could also furnish him with phone numbers for "Hockey" and "Auto Racing." I had to stop myself from laughing but our friend wasn't amused and wouldn't hang up without some type of contact info, so I reluctantly provided the email address of the person I figured he was seeking.

Just another day in my life ever since the provincial government announced last Saturday that it would move to legalize professional mixed martial arts in Ontario. 
Just to clarify it for anyone still fuzzy on the issue, I don't work for the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the Athletic Commission or anyone else in the world of professional MMA. But like everyone else even remotely connected with the sport I've received several calls from people who had scarcely heard of the sport before last week, but whose interest was aroused by last Saturday's announcement.

Some of them have been opportunists, folks looking for a way to do business with a cash cow like the UFC.

But most are simple citizens, enraged that the government would sanction such a brutal bloodsport and looking for a place to vent their disgust.

A few lucky folks already had a platform to express their displeasure with the Liberal government's decision. 

Wednesday my Star colleague Heather Mallick made plain her opinion that the prospect of making money for the government doesn't justify legalizing such a dangerous sport. And in NOW Magazine, Susan G. Cole makes an impassioned argument that MMA events are better left underground, and that government regulation of nearly-no-holds-barred fighting is a sign of the depravity into which we're all sinking.

Points taken, but this after-the-fact arguing over the pending legalization of MMA reminds me of the debate over gay marriage.

In both cases we see people well outside the scope of the legislation question railing against it simply because the rule change doesn't square with their values.

But at least gay marriage opponents fought against any official change in the definition of marriage from the beginning, opposing same-sex marriage legislation wherever it was proposed well before any laws were actually changed.

In contrast, MMA's adversaries in Toronto barely know what they're arguing against, and didn't decide they hated the sport until they realized it was legal. Otherwise they would have started speaking out against this move last week, last month or last year.

Or they would have at least spent some time reading up before speaking out. If you think the sport is called "THE mixed martial arts," or believe that MMA and UFC are synonyms, you need to do a little more research simply to qualify yourself to speak out against either one.

And if you're making a safety-based argument about why MMA is more dangerous than other combat/contact/collision sports, you should read up on the link between pro football and brain trauma. The info isn't hard to find, and no sense in avoiding it simply because it undermines your point. The truth is that football helmets make the sport more dangerous because they function not just as protective gear but as weapons. 

And the bigger truth is that boxing, hockey, football and MMA can all, over time, traumatize your brain. To single out MMA as the most dangerous sport among them is beyond arbitrary. It's like selling vodka but banning tequila.

But the point here isn't to provide a tutorial on the relative danger of the various bloodsports we support.

It's to lend direction to a debate that has strayed far from what's important.

And what's important is how the pending changes to Ontario's Athletics Control Act will affect our lives.

Reality check.

It won't. Unless you're one of the handful of people who a) works for the Athletic Commission, b) hopes to promote a show or c) is brave (or crazy) enough to throw punches for money, your life will not change.

Seems to me this whole debate has some people's brains so rattled that they no longer recognize the difference between the "legal" and "mandatory."

Let me clear it up.

While sending your kids to school is required, promoting or attending an MMA show in Toronto is merely permitted. 

Get it?

I'll put it another way.

If you believe same sex marriages are immoral and unnatural, don't engage in one. 

And if you hate the idea of legal mixed martial arts in Ontario, don't go to the show. It really is your choice. 

Last night I arrived in Boston, where MMA was legalized last year and where the UFC will debut on Aug 28, and half expected to see octagons erected in public parks, people grappling in the street, and Dana White and Deval Patrick standing side by side, strong-arming Bostonians into buying tickets for UFC 118.

 But none of that happened. Somehow, despite the legalization of MMA last December, Boston is pretty much the same place I visited last September. People here still say "wikkid" when they mean "very," "jimmies" when they mean "sprinkles," and "Linder" when they mean "Linda."

And like people in Ontario, Bostonians will attend the UFC's first event here because they want to, and anyone who isn't interested is free to ignore it.

Because Massachusetts, like Ontario, is a democracy and nothing can change that.

Not even the legalization of MMA.

So relax.

Comments

[thebusinessman]

Is the UFC saying "lets reduce the number of concussions"? - NO.

Because KNOCK OUTS is their business. The nastier the better.

Is the NHL and NFL working openly to reduce concussions? - Absolutely.

[Regan]

It's the culture that comes along with the UFC. I don't care if two guys beat each other to death, but I do care about the 10,000 drunk morons who leave the fight looking to get in their own scuffle. Those are the maniacs who don't need to be viewing this garbage. Nazi culture was inculcated. So too can violence.

[JoeBe]

For all you over-reacting to the author's comparison between legalizing MMA and same-sex marriage, take it easy, as this is a common literary technique - showing the absurdity with which people are getting worked up over MMA when something like same-sex marriage and equal rights is far more pertinent cause. Regarding the violence of the sport, I - like many others - enjoy the events simply becuase of all the buildup, training, and perseverence of the fighters. It's actually less about the fight than it is about the will to win - not killing someone. Truth is, these athletes train like no other and that is something in itself to behold.

[ihatehockey_banittoo]

I want to ban hitting hockey. It's a brutal and offensive to me. Why do you need to hit someone to play better? they have "enforcers" that go out and start fighting in the middle of the ice for what? does it help to score a goal? maybe they should ban hockey altogether!

[Chris]

Here's what I read on here: "I am important and know what is best for society and therefore everybody should think like me. Furthermore everybody who does not think like me is a moron".

BTW I'm against drive thrus. Millions of cars idling every day because people are too fat and lazy to get out of their cars producing an unnecessary contribution to global warming and the obesity epidemics. Let's ban drive thrus too. Everybody must think this way or he or she is misguided and uneducated.

I'll tell you one point that the author has with his comparison of MMA to gay marriage; neither one affect you. At least my semi-sarcastic drive thru ban proposal actually affects people.

[Michael Critchley]

If you want to convince nay sayers that it's not a free-for-all sport that ignores health and safety, maybe you should touch on the fact that MMA has rules and is not just a pit where two guys are put in to fight till the death. For instance, you can't punch the back of a fighter's head; you can't kick a guy when he's on all fours or in a vulernable position etc. Sure, MMA is viscous at times, but it is by no means any less violent and aggressive than boxing or hockey or football. These guys are the best trained athletes around and should be given the respect they deserve. Get on board now, because MMA is not going away and is only going to get more popular. Bye bye boring boxing...

[Rasheed Ali]

I think of myself as somewhat liberal-minded, but I don't automatically fall into lock-step with the detractors of MMA. Anyone with a shred of intelligence and analytical thinking can see that MMA is a highly tactical SPORT in which two athletes agree to combat. The match is regulated and yes, there are occasional knockouts but there are more severe head injuries in football, hockey and boxing than in MMA.

Any undertaking has it's inherent risks; would you ban airline, car or any other form of travel because a certain percentage of these modes of transport results in casualties? Not likely. These athletes are also protected by the rules of the sport; if one fighter is visibly unable to put forth an effort to defend him/herself then the fight is stopped to prevent any major injury.

Also, the positioning of the opposition to same-sex marriage to that of MMA in the article is not intended to trivialize the civil rights nature of the former. The writer is merely trying to draw parallels in the manner by which the detractors of both came from a position of ignorance with regards to their respective issues while noting that MMA detractors have arrived late to the debate to foster some gratuitous declaration of "for" or "against" compared to detractors of same-sex marriage who, though similarly ignorant in their opposition, voiced their opposition well in advance of any legislative change.

People should stop being so focused on which "side" of an issue they need to represent and actually examine whether or not the issue is actually limiting the freedoms of anyone in our "free" country. If you try to moralize the issue too much, than you're just as guilty of imposing your narrow world view as your "neo-con" opposition.

[Johnny Boy]

You know, my sister is an amateur photographer who went down to the G20 to photograph the protesters. She spoke with quite a few and asked what they were protesting and what they knew about the G20....95% had no clue...the just wanted to protest. These are the same uninformed meatheads who are against MMA. They just have no clue...NONE. They feel threatened, that there is too much testosterone, and know whats best for you and I. Of course the further you move away from T.O. the more people are willing to accept the sport.
So typical of T.O.....spend, spend, spend!!! When money comes knocking they want anything to do with it. WAIT...I know, we'll get the government to TAX us for this event and let the politicians spend away the profits....Ahhh now you're more into it, RIGHT!

[Derp]

Religious Freaks? You mean like after they win the big match / fight / game / championship, and the first thing out of their mouth is to thank god? Yea they must be against it. IT being stereotyping people, because it's getting really old. Personal preference is the only thing that seperates people who like MMA and people who do not, please don't try to mix anything else into that arguement; at least not without excepting that you're now joining the same people who refuse to educate themselves before joining the debate which is what this article is ABOUT!!!

[Derp]

YES - They should ban cars, planes, motorcycles because they cause a majority of deaths. While we're at it, please ban old age, disease & anything else I don't want to have hit me while going really fast; or infect me in anyway (Love too please, it's all mushy and people are constantly being hurt by it, yet willingly jump into it head first; sound similar to MMA?). Especially OLD AGE!!!

[Derp]

Is Boxing working to reduce concussions? Cmon your arguement is like saying is baseball working to reduce them? No they're not, Aaron Hill missed the entire season two years ago; why is this even a discussion? Until someone dies in the ring (which has happened on the ice, field etc...) this isn't even a topic of discussion. Chances are living in Toronto & breathing this crummy air for an entire lifetime is as or more harmful then being a professional fighter for 10 years (granted you don't also live in Toronto, or any major city).