Where Has All The Integrity Gone?

Where Has All Our Integrity Gone?

Is it me, or has the world gone mad? I know I’m not the first and I certainly won’t be the last person to utter those words... But I am seriously beginning to wonder if anyone in Politics or Sport or even those of us in ‘Civvy St’ have any idea what Integrity means anymore. So, before we go any further, I enlisted the help of the not so Concise Collins English Dictionary, and it defines Integrity as ...” adherence to moral principles; honesty...”

So, (thats 2 ‘so’s now, no more for a while-ed) adherence to moral principles, namely, honesty.

Let me start with Sport, and football in particular. Over the recent few weeks, since the beginning of the new season, we have witnessed Eduardo diving like an Olympic swimmer, and Adebayor stamping on another players head who used to be his fellow colleague at his previous club, and on Sunday, we saw Craig Bellamy sprint across the pitch and launch an attack on a fan who had invaded the pitch to ‘celebrate’ Man Utd’s goal.

These events are not isolated either, there are more, and plenty more in the season prior as well, but lets keep it fresh shall we? Well actually no, lets not, since I do not want to see it at all, ever and I am sure the tens of thousands who watch football every week do not want to see it either.

But the issue that angers me is this: the players receive no rebuke at all from the club or their managers; in fact their actions are defended! in the name of passion, a desire to win, etc etc... This has to stop, because if it doesn’t the ‘beautiful game’ will turn very ugly, if it isn’t already doing so. And that will be a shame, because played in the right spirit, with the talent we have at the top clubs, it is a joy to watch, the Manchester derby being a case in point.

It isn’t just football is it? We have also been shocked, or at least I was, by the revelations of cheating in Rugby Union and the infamous ‘Bloodgate’ saga, we have the Renault Formula One team admitting that it ‘fixed’ a race in the previous campaign, and getting a reprieve from the FIA, its governing body.

I’m sure there any many other instances and examples I could cite, and that is before I mention our ruling classes, I normally write around 600 words for these posts, I could easily surpass that just by listing the nefarious activities of some of our not so Honourable Members Of Parliament.
If you are anything like me, you read these accounts of cheating and lying and think to yourself, now if that was anyone of us we’d be out on our ears by now, we would not be vehemently defended by our immediate boss nor excused because we did ‘it’ in the name of competitiveness or some such.

When we see this going on in Sport and other arenas of public life, and the miscreants not only ‘getting away’ with it but seemingly endorsed for doing so, what sort of example does that lead? We all have our own minds and moral ‘compass’ but it does give a rather general impression of ‘laissez faire’ so those in civvy street who lack or possess a rather loose moral code, are wont to think its ok, because ‘everyone’s at it int they’ ?

I have experienced this myself recently, even to the point of asking people a direct question, only to receive a reply that that doesn’t answer that question and/or completely ignores it altogether. I rang someone yesterday about them buying my car, I think it’s had it basically, and
I was asking him if he would buy it given its situation, and told him the details. He said he would ring me back in the morning, has he? Quelle Surprise! He hasn’t no. Why couldn’t he just say he wasn’t interested? What was I going to do? Insist he buy it? Force him to? Instead I have been listening out for the phone just in case while I write this and get very annoyed...

I’m not actually, because sadly I am now getting used to people saying one thing and doing quite another, I have no compunction telling people that I am not interested or that I don’t think a particular project is for me, whatever, but at least then I am not wasting their time or mine. I do not do this bluntly, well not most of the time, but the message is clear and I really would rather people be honest upfront rather than say nothing then not return your calls etc..

In conclusion, I am not sure what will happen to professional sport, I hope it doesn’t degenerate into a farce riddled with overpaid people who have lost the idea of sportsmanship, maybe they need to look it up? Hold on, let me grab that not so Concise copy of Collins again, here we go, Sportsmanship “ ... a person who exhibits fairness, generosity, observance of the rules and good humour when losing..” Take note, Adebayor, Eduardo et al, we are watching...