Let the Games Begin
I’m generally not a big fan of “reality” television programs. I’ve tuned in from time to time, but mostly just so I could mock them for their banality. I do, however, enjoy physical or mental competition shows. Fear Factor is immensely entertaining, and I think I can say that other than all the disgusting food segments, I’d like to do every competition they’ve done? How fun would it be to walk a tightrope 10 stories in the air if you knew you couldn’t get hurt?!
The thing about Fear Factor is that they are always very aware of safety issues. In one competition, a girl had an allergic reaction to the fish they were handling and they forced her to exit the condition, out of concern for her health. I just saw a new show on ESPN2 called I’d Do Anything. It is a show that features a variety of contests where the winner gets to live out a sports fantasy, like meeting a pro athlete or being on the sidelines of a game, or some such thing.
The second competition, in the show I watched, involved the contestants going barefoot and dragging two large tires on a racetrack, which was heated by the California sun to a temperatures of over 150 degrees Fahrenheit. The first contestant was obviously in a lot of pain, and quickly set the tires down and sat on them to give herself a break from the blisteringly hot pavement. Actually, “blisteringly hot” isn’t quite the right phrase, as her skin wasn’t being blistered, it was being burned clean off her foot.
She and one other contestant spent two weeks in the hospital recovering. For one of those weeks, they couldn’t even walk.
As they were struggling down the track with the tires, the host was urging them to continue, reminding them of their potential reward.
Now, I understand that the contestants could have bailed out at any time. I don’t think there is any legal problem with what happened. What I do think, is that we’re headed down a dangerous moral road when we subject people to pain and hospitalization for our entertainment.
The Romans, at the height of their obsession with the gladiatorial blood games, flooded the Coliseum and staged a “mock” naval battle in which 9,000 men lost their lives. The games started quite innocently enough with rich people having their slaves wrestle for their amusement. Next, they were given blunt weapons, followed by sharp ones. Eventually, at a funeral ceremony, two slaves were ordered to fight to the death. Let’s not go down that road.
