Do you ever feel guilty?

Being 'a bit freaked out' is likely your compassion and as such is the way that your guilt is displaying itself. Not all guilt has to be of the crying into the pillow, wishing you'd done things some other way, kind. I felt the exact same way as you described when I watched the McClellan fight. Was rooting for Benn so hard the way he came back. It was horrible that he was lying their crumbling as Benn was (quite rightly) berating the disbelievers who claimed he would never be able to defeat McClellan. The feeling of realisation when it sinks in that "I have just cheered on as this man effectively ends this other man's life" is quite frightening. BUT...its boxing.

guilty? no. embarrassed? frequently.

That was the first time I ever saw a fight live where the guy ended up like that. So I was a bit freaked out because all I was thinking of was McClellan and how he broke down the same way. All signs are saying hes going to be ok though, so its all good. I dont feel guilt though. They know what they are getting into when they get into the ring. They make that decisian, and they might have to pay for it unfortunatly.

Intelligent responses guys...I actually feel a little better about it than I did this morning when I first heard the news.I just hope Victor's pulls out of this alright.

I love seeing a bit of Freud brought up in a boxing debate. Bravo for keeping the tone raised high. I will be looking for a way to bring philosophy and theology into a thread wherever I can. Makes for so much more interesting of a discussion than 'hating and nuthugging'.

Yes, I feel guilty and somewhat ashamed of myselft, that I could be a fan of a sport where the contestants run the risk sustaining a life-altering injury such as brain damage or even death. On saturday night I watched about half on the Burgos-Darchinyan fight before flipping the channel to HBO to watch the Miranda fight and remember saying that this guy(burgos) is taking some huge shots and won't go the 12. Today, I checked boxingscene for the results and was devastated by the news of Victor's injury. I just hope that his injury was similiar to Joe Mesi's in that he will recover with no permanent damage. My prayers are with Victor and his family today.

Well said. Now forgive me for a little of what they call spamming: "His aggressiveness is introjected, internalized; it is, in point of fact, sent back to where it came from—that is, it is directed towards his own ego. There it is taken over by a portion of the ego, which sets itself over against the rest of the ego as super-ego, and which now, in the form of ‘conscience’, is ready to put into action against the ego the same harsh aggressiveness that the ego would have liked to satisfy upon other, extraneous individuals. The tension between the harsh super-ego and the ego that is subjected to it, is called by us the sense of guilt; it expresses itself as a need for punishment. Civilization therefore, obtains mastery over the individual’s dangerous desire for aggression by weakening and disarming it and by setting up an agency within him to watch over it, like a garrison in a conquered city." -- SF

Indeed. Which is why I think that you should feel it. If you dont feel guilt, it means that you are missing a basic human instinct. The instinct of compassion, remorse or guilt. Which is a bit dangerous, isnt it? It also just happens to be the one instinct that many psychopaths and serial killers also live without.

I dont think so. To an extent people need to accept that they ARE watching a blood-thirsty sport where invariably they are hoping to see someone knocked unconcious (very few people actually want to watch a technical shut out with no knock downs). I'm not saying that its wrong to do so, I watch boxing for the same reasons. However with the rewards of entertainment you should be accepting the guilt of realisation. The realisation that you were hoping to see another human being hurt for your entertainment. If you feel such a guilt, then it should be aleiviated by the fact that these boxers are professional athletes who are being rewarded for their trials and tribulations and that to them, it is a job and a sport and a way of living. If I didnt feel any guilt at all, then I'd worry about myself. There's nothing wrong with boxing being a guilty pleasure. Taking pleasure in violent acts, in this case vicariously, is one of the most basic human instincts. The feeling of guilt itself is derived from this.

A little excessive here, MIksterious. I dont think so. To an extent people need to accept that they ARE watching a blood-thirsty sport where invariably they are hoping to see someone knocked unconcious (very few people actually want to watch a technical shut out with no knock downs). I'm not saying that its wrong to do so, I watch boxing for the same reasons. However with the rewards of entertainment you should be accepting the guilt of realisation. The realisation that you were hoping to see another human being hurt for your entertainment. If you feel such a guilt, then it should be aleiviated by the fact that these boxers are professional athletes who are being rewarded for their trials and tribulations and that to them, it is a job and a sport and a way of living. If I didnt feel any guilt at all, then I'd worry about myself. There's nothing wrong with boxing being a guilty pleasure.

Yeah, of course. If you didnt feel a single measure of guilt or remorse over seeing a guy get punched repeated in his head while you are baying for him to be knocked unconcious, then you are a heathen and a neanderthal. You have to console yourself with the fact that they are highly skilled athletes who are being richly rewarded for it and should be protected as much as possible by their corner and their referee. When that doesnt happen and fighters end up dying or brain-damaged, I dont see how anyone can not feel guilt. A little excessive here, MIksterious.

i partially agree, but that is why i like boxing and dont like other fighting sports that are much more brutal. of course it very sad when things like this happen, but is part of the game. there are a lot of other sports or even jobs that are dangerous and life threatening, but that is what they have chosen to do, and that is what they love. also that is the reason i respect every fighter out there, they all have guts just standing in the ring.

Yeah, of course. If you didnt feel a single measure of guilt or remorse over seeing a guy get punched repeated in his head while you are baying for him to be knocked unconcious, then you are a heathen and a neanderthal. You have to console yourself with the fact that they are highly skilled athletes who are being richly rewarded for it and should be protected as much as possible by their corner and their referee. When that doesnt happen and fighters end up dying or brain-damaged, I dont see how anyone can not feel guilt.

Not really, I just think it's sad. But as said before, every fighter knows the risk. That's why I can't agree with all this "save Evander from himself" thing that people talk about, and when the NYSAC took away his license, I thought it was wrong. Every fighter knows he can die or end up brain-damaged. If they want to take the risk, that's their choice. It's up to the commissions to make sure a fighter is physically and mentally fit to fight.

no for the fact i box myself i love this sport. and every boxer knows that its dangerous anything can happen. you can get hit once and your done for life. its a chance we take for the love of the sport.

I certainly did after the Burgos incident, especially because the whole fight I was getting angry at him for not fighting. Hopefully the 12th round was the first time he felt the effects of what was happening to him. Otherwise, he should have had his trainers throw in the towel.