It's come to this

In post America, everyone has to be afraid - of getting smacked with a ball in an athletic game, of losing such a game, of lawsuits, of the God-imbued resilience and exuberance of the individual human being:

As CBS 2’s Jennifer McLogan reported Monday, officials at Weber Middle School in Port Washington are worried that students are getting hurt during recess. Thus, they have instituted a ban on footballs, baseballs, lacrosse balls, or anything that might hurt someone on school grounds.

Tossing a football during recess has long seemed to be a rite of passage for kids in the school community.

“I think we need the soccer balls, the footballs and everything, so we can have some fun,” one student said.

But the students will have no such option anymore. They were just informed that during recess, football is out and Nerf ball is in. Hard soccer balls have been banned, along with baseballs and lacrosse balls, rough games of tag, or cartwheels unless supervised by a coach.

Students were not thrilled about the news.

“Cartwheels and tag — I think it’s ridiculous they are banning that,” one said. 

“You go for recess — that’s your free time to go let loose and recharge,” another said.

But Port Washington schools Supt. Kathleen Maloney said the change in policy is warranted due to a rash of playground injuries.

“Some of these injuries can unintentionally become very serious, so we want to make sure ourchildren have fun, but are also protected,” Maloney said.

It is so very late in the day.