>>[purpleandyellow] In Menken's day (and before and a bit after), teaching English was a low paying slot among teachers.<<
>>[Coach Chass] Hence the importance of the lowly English teacher!<<
I thought it was apropos only because of the deep syntactic discussions going on, not because of Mencken's penetrating insight into English teachers. Mencken had a problem with vested authority, whether it be English teachers, politicians, organized religion, or whatever. Quite often I find him to be an insufferable bigot (being a Christian, for example, I find his attitude toward religion and faith to be particularly obnoxious); however, his writing is absolutely amazing in its clarity and power. Really fascinating character...
>>[Coach Chass] The brain surgeon/ditch digger analogy breaks down a little simply due to the fact that club refs and high school refs essentially perform the same function, just at different certification levels, and I think there are many HS refs who might take exception to the assertion that the difference between a high school official and a club official is as dramatic as that of a ditch digger compared to a brain surgeon.<<
Let's go back to basics here. You asserted earlier So...they refuse to participate because they feel overqualified for the job? Seems a bit counterproductive...I would think the more certified officials we have in the ranks, the higher the overall level level of officiating would be--accepting, of course, that a certification necessarily indicates a higher level of performance (not always true). Perhaps it would help if more officials with higher certification would come and bring examples of officiating to the masses, rather than walking away...
My analogy was made to illustrate that different people choose to do different things based not on how much others might need them, but due to their own selfish interests and their own judgements concerning where their talents might be best put to use. Personally, I would think being a very good high school referee would be more difficult than being a very good club referee; the deviation of players tends to be greater and from what I've seen the crowds are louder in high school soccer. However, the larger point here is that if there are referees choosing not to participate in high school soccer, then it might be best to understand that not in terms of what benefits the "masses", but rather to understand that in terms of what benefits the referee.
Or...to view this more specifically, when you note: So, IF a certified official happens to be at leisure to participate in a HS match--and I understand and agree with what you mean about a busy schedule--what would be the drawback to getting in a few more games, doing more of something presumably enjoyable, and bringing in a level of training and expertise to enhance the high school experience for the many who are playing at that level, often without the benefits of club play?
I think the argued drawback is that the referee doesn't find it "presumably enjoyable." Others, tremendously more qualified than me, have raised crowd behavior and the two referee system as obstacles. My only point is that it's probably worth the time to understand the obstacles to "enjoyment" so that we can get more referees if that is needed.
