mrjames
Professor
Posts: 6062
Loc: Montclair, NJ
Reg: 11-21-04
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05-23-20 01:47 PM - Post#307833
In response to HARVARDDADGRAD
I know we're all trained to be skeptical of Ivy presidents and their feelings toward their institution's athletic programs, but... some things to keep in mind here.
President Bacow put a stop to the Ivy Tourney after looking at the evidence and realizing that the virus was spreading rapidly and there was no guarantee that it wouldn't be in the building that weekend potentially to infect some very at risk segments of the population that would be attending. In fact, President Bacow, himself, was on the border of the most at-risk demographic.
Despite cancelling the tourney and taking precautions, President Bacow contracted the virus, and he and his wife had a long battle with it and recovery from it. It's hard to imagine anyone both more personally and professionally aware of the risks associated with this virus among a campus community - and by COMMUNITY, I mean ALL that are part of the campus, not just the 18-22 year old undergrads.
I trust President Bacow to make a prudent decision here that puts the safety of the entire community first, and I'm happy to wait for athletics to resume until the safety of all involved can be guaranteed at the level that all members of the community would expect if they were living their daily lives abiding by the governing social protocols. If that means no 2020-21, so be it. This is a pandemic we haven't seen on these shores in 100 years. Maybe it's good that this country's vapid generations that have been untouched by true crisis at our doorstep finally get a clue that the world isn't always going to be a safe bubble where the greatest concern is the number of likes on an Instagram account and the greatest indignation is insensitive speech.
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