12/03/24
January 18, 2011
Team Apologizes for Fan Lap Dance Contest: The Boston Blazers indoor lacrosse team has apologized for a halftime contest in which three female fans competed to give the team's mascot Scorch the best lap dance. "You try explaining to my kids about what they were doing to the mascot," said one offended onlooker.
Such a shame because there is a real concerted effort being made to popularize youth lacrosse and it's paying off handsomely in my area. Team registrations are way up each year from the previous year. Some programs are running short of field space and coaching/administrative help. The growth in the girls' game is especially exponential.
This was all over the local news last night and I think I heard the anchor say that the Blazers were going to make a couple of thousand free tickets available for an upcoming game to anyone who was at the game in question and was appalled by the halftime show. That's an insufficient band aid. They need to do more than that. They need to take a active leadership role in making sure that the sport continues to be popularized in a positive, appropriate environment.
posted by beaverboard at 12:36 PM on January 18, 2011
No doubt the American public is really not ready for this type of thing so I can't imagine why anybody would think this is OK. That said, as Americans if we would spend just a portion of the time we spend trying to "protect" our kids from something as natural as sex or nudity, just actually educating them and or communicating with them we would probably be better off.
Ever watch European television commercials? Just maybe we should be eliminating some of the taboo from this our kids would be better adjusted and have a more natural, comfortable and better adjusted viewpoint regarding sexual behavior. I don't think we do ourselves any favors by trying to hide so much of what is normal human behavior from children.
I never wanted my children to learn about human relationships and sex from porno on the internet or in a liquor store dumpster like we did in the old days.
I will never forget when my father, I and my four year old son at the time, sat down on a Monday night to watch a football game. I asked my son what he learned at preschool that day and he replied, my friend told me girls suck boy's dicks. I was shocked, but without missing a beat my Dad's said Jake only the fun ones. Next think out of the kids mouth was "can I watch Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles upstairs?" I guess the point is kids are not interested in this stuff until they are of a certain age and then the bigger deal we make about it the bigger deal they think it is.
Of course the instance at the lacrosse game is bad marketing and not appropriate as it will undoubtedly offend the potential customer base but we are way too uptight. It was just good clean fun.
posted by Atheist at 12:48 PM on January 18, 2011
That said, as Americans if we would spend just a portion of the time we spend trying to "protect" our kids from something as natural as sex or nudity, just actually educating them and or communicating with them we would probably be better off.
I don't believe in shielding kids from normal parts of the world either. This isn't exactly the natural/normal sexual behavior I would want to explain to a kid because this would have been inappropriate without any children present. People who want to see strippers can go to a strip club instead of a lacrosse game. Further, since there were children, I honestly can't think of any words to explain this to a first or second grader. If my daughter decides to come home and mimic that "dance," I might have a melt down.
posted by bperk at 12:57 PM on January 18, 2011
... without missing a beat my Dad's said Jake only the fun ones.
So wrong, but so funny.
posted by rcade at 01:17 PM on January 18, 2011
That said, as Americans if we would spend just a portion of the time we spend trying to "protect" our kids from something as natural as sex or nudity, just actually educating them and or communicating with them we would probably be better off.
We would be, but I think you'd agree that this is one of those situations that you wouldn't want your kid to learn about sex from. And if they were learning about sex in a sensible way such as you advocate (and presumably they are), what would you say to them if they saw this performance? It's not the sex that would be hard to explain...it's stuff like "why are people watching this" and "oh, you mean that people do this in other places?" and then "wait, you mean people get paid to do that?" and then "what is that man yelling?" and so on.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 02:04 PM on January 18, 2011
The backlash against the stunt prompted the team's president and general manager, Doug Reffue, to issue a public apology, which read, in part:
The Boston Blazers half time act for Saturday's game was clearly not executed according to plan.
I wonder what part of the lap dance to the team mascot was "clearly not executed according to plan".
Lame excuse.
posted by BornIcon at 02:50 PM on January 18, 2011
So, who won?
posted by graymatters at 04:43 PM on January 18, 2011
Agreed BI. That was a pathetic attempt at an apology. Perhaps fans who might be angry about the halftime performance might institute a plan of their own when it comes to purchasing tickets for the next game.
Love the wording of the apology, though. Clearly someone is going to get executed employment speaking wise.
posted by THX-1138 at 04:44 PM on January 18, 2011
I think this has less to do with American views on sex and sexuality (have you ever seen an NBA team's dance squad perform?) than it has to do with what is somewhat tasteless and arguably debasing/degrading behavior. I am sure someone can (and perhaps may) make the argument that lap dancing is not in any way degrading and is fine if women choose to do it, but I am not sure that it sets the best example generally and particularly in a supposedly family-friendly environment.
posted by holden at 05:27 PM on January 18, 2011
Not considered a good example in some parts even for college students. Alabama didn't seem pleased when Mike Price went clubbing.
posted by beaverboard at 05:40 PM on January 18, 2011
Since more than one adult was involved with this promotion, you'd think that someone would have realized that they were crossing the line of good taste. Clearly, families with children would be in attendance and lap dances probably aren't a good idea.
I agree with the point that we tend to make some taboo's more of an issue by our over-reaction to them, but this was over the top.
As to the pathetic apology, I'll blame corporate lawyers for at least part of that. At every corporation I've worked for some legal type would stress that we shouldn't take responsibility, or say we were sorry for our actions, as it would help those that might sue us. That's why we get the lame excuse making that they threw out.
posted by dviking at 05:44 PM on January 18, 2011
As to the pathetic apology, I'll blame corporate lawyers for at least part of that. At every corporation I've worked for some legal type would stress that we shouldn't take responsibility, or say we were sorry for our actions, as it would help those that might sue us. That's why we get the lame excuse making that they threw out.
If this is the case, we can blame opportunistic plaintiffs' lawyers in equal measure.
posted by holden at 06:00 PM on January 18, 2011
Perhaps I'm alone here but when I first saw the subject of this post I thought, "Oh no..." and then when I saw that it was about a lacrosse team I just shrugged and said, "That explains it."
posted by MW12 at 06:28 PM on January 18, 2011
Since more than one adult was involved with this promotion, you'd think that someone would have realized that they were crossing the line of good taste.
Yea, that's what I was wondering. I can see if a college student was in charge of arranging this activity and thinking it would be funny (right after he proposed a routine about lighting farts on fire), but I can't imagine how this routine got through an adult. Seriously, which adult would see this and say "sure, that sounds great! How about if we add a boing!!! sound, I'm sure that'll get lots of laughs!"
posted by bdaddy at 06:37 PM on January 18, 2011
The Boston Blazers half time act for Saturday's game was clearly not executed according to plan.
Well, in the team's defense, Scorch wasn't supposed to have sprouted such a vigorous erection.
posted by tahoemoj at 06:48 PM on January 18, 2011
Since more than one adult was involved with this promotion, you'd think that someone would have realized that they were crossing the line of good taste.
Yup. You have to wonder how someone with this kind of impaired judgment got a job as anything but a mascot.
I agree with the point that we tend to make some taboo's more of an issue by our over-reaction to them, but this was over the top.
Well, see, that's the thing. In USAian society, we seem stuck with thinking of behavior in terms of taboos. Whether you favor upholding taboos or subverting them, it's still a one-dimensional way of thinking about human behavior, and doesn't IMO tend to produce good decisions that respond to different situations. The problem with this behavior wasn't so much that it violated a taboo as such -- it was that it seems to have created much more discomfort and (sympathetic) embarrassment than amusement and enjoyment. It wasn't fitting to the situation, and people knew that. The same can be said for "entertainment" that is cruel, or destructive, or that just simply glorifies asshat behavior: you can find examples of those that don't break any taboo, and that somebody's always going to vigorously defend, and yet that a sense of restraint would forbid. If we don't come to understand the guiding forces of restraint and good taste, how are we ever going to recognize the situations when it makes sense to transgress them?
posted by lil_brown_bat at 06:56 PM on January 18, 2011
Something about the absurd "not according to plan" explanation seemed hatched from a familiar source of vacant logic that I couldn't quite conjure from memory.
Then it came to me: "Wardrobe Malfunction"
posted by beaverboard at 07:43 PM on January 18, 2011
This was obviously the mascot's idea, yeah?
posted by Ricardo at 10:44 PM on January 18, 2011
Holden, I agree 100%, it's all the lawyers' fault!
posted by dviking at 11:23 PM on January 18, 2011
dviking and holden, maybe if the team had a lawyer to inform them of what a dumbshit idea this was, we wouldn't be discussing it. Most lawyers spend an awful lot of time putting out fires for said dumbshits. Before blaming all of society's ills on lawyers, remember that there wouldn't be lawyers and lawsuits without plaintiffs. And dumbshits.
Although I realize that there is a frequently-taken-out-of-context quote from a 500 year old playwright that may sound witty to those who believe otherwise.
posted by tahoemoj at 11:38 PM on January 18, 2011
"The first thing we do, let's pay all the lawyers."
At least, that's the way I learned it in law school.
posted by graymatters at 12:46 AM on January 19, 2011
tahoemoj -- my comment was somewhat tongue-in-cheek, as I am a lawyer (and a practicing one at that). Just not the bad kind, whatever that is. I am like the HDL of lawyers.
posted by holden at 10:59 AM on January 19, 2011
I am like the HDL of lawyers.
Awesome.
There are a great many people who wouldn't be able to vote, live where they want, attend the college of their choice, use public facilities, or exercise any number of other freedoms that we normally take for granted, if it weren't for the work of lawyers.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 11:08 AM on January 19, 2011
Speaking of lawyers, they made YouTube take the video down. Spoilsports!
posted by billsaysthis at 11:37 AM on January 19, 2011
Ahhhh, my beginning lawyer defense mechanism out-muscled my sarcasm detector. That's what I get for waiting 40 years to actually join the club.
I stand by my dumbshit assessment, however
posted by tahoemoj at 12:13 PM on January 19, 2011
I hear a lot of comments about the team and the mascot, but what the heck is up with these women? They were like "Lapdance in public, sounds good!" "Hey, kid, hold my bra."
posted by LostInDaJungle at 12:27 PM on January 19, 2011
For the record: My last comment was tongue in cheek, and in my first post I said I blamed "part" of the lame excuse on lawyers. Never intended to bruise anyone's feelings. Clearly, some percentage of lawyers have never written a lame excuse for some dumbshit to read in a press conference.
That being said, could you lawyers in the group get your brethren to stop putting "Professional driver on closed course. Do not attempt" on every car commercial, regardless of whether, or not, the car is actually being driven is some dangerous way. I'd appreciate it, thanks.
posted by dviking at 12:56 PM on January 19, 2011
could you lawyers in the group get your brethren to stop putting "Professional driver on closed course. Do not attempt" on every car commercial
When you can guarantee that some dumb shit won't attempt that same stunt and then sue everyone involved with the commercial, they'll stop putting the disclaimer on the commercials.
posted by cjets at 02:39 PM on January 19, 2011
I don't disagree, but what about the ones where it's like on the set of Tron or some mountaintop where they have three-ton swinging weights to drive between? Or the cars driving on ceilings. At some point, you're just rubber-stamping it rather than considering whether a redneck could successfully recreate something close enough to this to sue without dying in the process.
posted by yerfatma at 04:33 PM on January 19, 2011
Never underestimate the ability of the American redneck to kill himself doing stupid things.
posted by tahoemoj at 05:08 PM on January 19, 2011
At some point, you're just rubber-stamping it rather than considering whether a redneck could successfully recreate something close enough to this to sue without dying in the process.
The reality is that giving people warning is a very effective defense in product liability lawsuits. As a result, you see a bunch of useless warnings of the CYA variety, which is counterproductive if you are actually trying to evaluate risks.
posted by bperk at 05:11 PM on January 19, 2011
For clarity, I have no problem with the disclaimer if the car is being driven in a dangerous manner. My problem is with the commercials that show the car being driven down a street with absolutely no obstacles in the way. Should I not attempt to drive that car down a street???
posted by dviking at 05:18 PM on January 19, 2011
I thought it was great in that Nissan Juke ad where they have the driver say "Professional driver; closed course" himself. CYA for sure but points for being snarky or somewhat self-ridiculing about it. Of course, they probably have the text disclaimer as well (I have not paid enough attention to check).
posted by holden at 06:15 PM on January 19, 2011
Except that dude isn't a professional driver, he's from CurrentTV. So they've lied to us!
posted by yerfatma at 07:58 AM on January 20, 2011
the reality is that giving people warning is a very effective defense in product liability lawsuits.
I don't understand why that is, though. Me putting up a "beware of dog" sign in my yard doesn't protect me if my dog bites somebody.
posted by bdaddy at 11:01 PM on January 20, 2011
I just can't imagine how anybody over the age of 25 would have thought that was appropriate halftime entertainment. I mean it was bad even before the "boing!!!" noise to simulate the mascots boner.
I'm not exactly puritanical , but if I had been there with my kids I would have just took them and left, never to return. Imagine trying to explain to your daughter in such a way that she doesn't think it's ok to do those sort of things at parties and the like (heck, it was halftime entertainment, dad! how bad can it be if I gyrate on a guys lap at the 8th grade dance!)
There's a point of being overly politically-correct, and there's a point where it's blatantly poor taste. Really, who signed off on that? And do they still have that job?