Problems West Raleigh Doesn't Have

I think we can all agree that no youth sports organization is perfect. Some play the games too early. Some play the games too late. Some try to play the games while there is a tornado watch.

But even with all the problems we see every day with the leagues our kids play in, and even with the long list of things we'll do differently "when we get to be in charge," a story that came out this weekend is still a shocker.

I realize no one has time to read lengthy stories anymore. But print it out, save it for later (InstaPaper is a wonderful invention and you can link it to your iPhone or to your Android phone via InstaFetch), read it at lunch...whatever you have to do to read this story about the extensive gambling on youth football in south Florida. There's a video and print component, and both are worth your time. At its core, the story is about gambling, but there are also some illuminating points made about how that gambling perpetuates the cycle of problems in those communities.

It's hard to know where to start--the story includes a bail bondsmen who is a coach in the league and has a self-expressed "zero tolerance" policy for gambling on his kids and then is confronted on camera with the fact that a hidden camera caught him exchanging money in the stands--but the most surprising thing is that it isn't happening in some other country we've never heard of. It's not ESPN's piece on golf in India, the Mumbai Masters (which is another must-see). It's less than a three-hour flight from home. And while our fans are busy passing carrot cake cheesecake around, in the stands at other leagues they're passing around $20 bills.

I'd like to make it clear that Asher is absolutely not up for bid...unless the purchaser is paying in cupcakes, in which case we'll have to talk.