Good morning, Netizens...

 

There is no way in hell I would ever attend Hoopfest. In fact, given the parking dilemma of monstrous proportions that takes place when you inject an expected 250,000 people into Downtown Spokane, most of my family are avoiding even passing through downtown Spokane until all the madness ends.

 

I believe the part that truly makes me reluctant to participate in this annual debacle is not just the parking miasma, nor even the questionable pleasure of watching participants trying to knock their opponents on their derrieres, and there is a lot of that. Perhaps the biggest source of my reluctance to participate in such mass mayhem are the number of felons and other miscreants who are playing in what is termed the world's largest three-on-three basketball competition. Given that I know of at least four convicted felons who are competing this year, not to mention the gang shootings that took place last year, why should I take a chance that this year will be as predictably safe as police spokespersons are saying?

 

Perhaps the most obvious reason for my total lack of involvement in this tourist magnet public relations affair is I have somewhat proudly reached the age when I stand little to no chance of ever being a muscle-bound athlete, and I don't care what the late Jack LaLanne said about aging gracefully. I do get a respectable amount of exercise jumping to conclusions as it is; why should I engage in a sport where the objective is rapping an opponent in the gonads without a court-side referee seeing me? I'll save that sort of conduct for certain politicians and other riffraff.

 

So, without regrets, I'll simply have to pass on Hoopfest. Of course, your results and opinions may differ.

 

Dave

---

---