My question is 'What is wrong with hazing?' Everyone gasps at the word, only because political correctness has gone so over-the-top in today's society that 'hazing' has gotten a bad connotation. Truth is that 99.9% of what administrators call 'hazing' is absolutely harmless, and in fact, probably serves to strengthen the bond amongst teammates. I know that my team has annual traditions that are likely considered hazing by some people, but just because an administrator places a taboo title on it, doesn't mean we are going to stop something that has been going on, literally, for four decades.

I'm not just saying this to ruffle some people's feathers. I want to hear legitimate reasons for why hazing is now a bad thing. Having said that, I DO NOT want to hear the one-in-a-million story about how someone was actually abused or physically hurt in some way. Those stories are just freak incidents. They should be dealt with appropriately on a local level, but they do not justify ruining the traditions of countless teams across the country. I also don't want to hear stories about how little Johnny had to do something that embarrassed him, and he got his feelings hurt. Kids are becoming too soft nowadays, so these 'embarrassments' will only build character. I, as a senior and captain of my team, am still having some of those moments, and I relish every single one of them.

I think what people fail to realize is that it is very difficult to distinguish between the severity of different acts considered hazing. I think that is why it is considered such a terrible thing. I believe that is why regulations are set to abolish all hazing rituals. They are set to target the most dangerous, and rituals not considered as dangerous (physically or mentally) simply slide by without notice.