A rule is a rule

A couple of months ago a high school basketball player said he didn't want to cut his hair and was kicked off his team.  His parents decided to sue, for among other reasons, that girls aren't held to the same standard.  Oh please. 

In direct contrast is the story of BYU forward Brandon Davies.  Davies turned himself in for having premarital sex with his girlfriend - a violation of the BYU honor code.  He turned himself in.  BYU officials - to my knowledge - were not knocking on his dorm door trying to catch him in a compromising situation.  But Davies knew what he did and he fessed up.  Did it hurt him personally?  Yes.  Did it hurt his team?  Yes.  He let a lot of people down by taking this course of action.  Yet, he knew what he did was against team and school rules.  And he accepted the consequences.

We can joke about the rules at BYU or think they are arcane, but the bottom line is, Davies knew what he was signing up for; he knew the rules of the game at BYU.  If you don't want to - or can't - abide by the rules, then you don't sign an agreement to play at that school.  It really is as simple as that. 

There is no RIGHT to play on a sports team.  You earn it.  To have the privilege means you also agree to follow the rules.  If you're more concerned about your individual expression of fashion, then go do something solo - be a guitar player, compete in chess or become a long distance runner.  If you don't like the rules and think you'll be tempted to break them, then don't even put yourself in that situation.

When I was in high school, basketball was one of the most important things to me - and definitely the most important extracurricular activity.  The school and team had policies about drinking, academics and basically staying out of trouble.  You know what?  Basketball meant so much to me that I skipped the parties with alcohol.  I chose not to break curfew.  And I studied hard.  I didn't want to be suspended or kicked off the team.  I knew the rules and I played by them.  That was my choice.  I didn't have a right to be on the team and I didn't want to take any chances.

So it really comes down to making a decision.  Either you play by the rules or you don't.  But if you CHOOSE not to, then you have to be willing to accept the consequences.  I am very weary of the people who don't think the rules apply to them.

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