Are we Raising A Generation Of Hansons?

Who knew the Hanson brothers were more than celluloid caricatures? According to an article published in the Washington Post, they may be becoming the norm and not the exception. Or possibly role models.

We all know that youth sports can sometimes be quite an ugly spectacle. Most of the media attention focuses on parents berating or even getting into physical confrontations with officials, coaches, and other parents. But according to a recent study, the athletes and coaches ain't exactly angels.

Among the athletes, aged nine to fifteen, 10% had cheated, 13% had tried to hurt an opposing player, and 13% had made fun of teammates with inferior skills. The coaches fared even worse:  7% had told their players to cheat, 8% had told their players to hurt an opposing player, 20% had ridiculed a player, and 4% had actually struck a player.

What the hell is going on in our youth sports leagues? When did all these wannabe Buddy Ryans start coaching our children? Why are our kids listening to these idiots? Is this some sort of insane win-at-all-cost mentality? Or has this been going on for sometime and I'm just naive?

What do you think? Have you ever seen a kid intentionally try to hurt another kid on the soccer fields? Or a coach that takes his little league job a little too seriously?