GPS Tracking, Responsibility, and the Business, Inaccurately Named Sport
Defiant Davis forced to wear a GPS tracker in Wagga
David Sygall
July 16, 2006 - 12:03AM
THE Swans were keeping a close eye on star forward Nick Davis yesterday, even though they were the width of the continent away in Perth.
The outspoken Swans marksman, who was dropped after Sydney’s loss to the Adelaide Crows last Sunday, was equipped with a GPS monitor when he took to the field with the club’s reserves against home team Wagga Tigers.
On a cold, soggy afternoon and in front of a tiny crowd, Davis was among the Swans’ best as they smashed the Tigers … Full Article Here:
One of my categories here at the GPS Blog is “Help or Hurt”. I’m pretty much of the opinion that this story will be posted under that category. I’m less than 100% sure, though, because I find I really can’t decipher the story exactly. Usually I can fathom our Aussie English in print (my ears are old, so spoken strine, especially from women talking 300 miles per hour with gusts to 475 often defeats me).
If I can decode Mr. Sygall’s article properly, it appears a football team with a recalcitrant player whom they want to keep, but keep tabs on. Nothing too extraordinary there, the US has plenty of football players who kick out fellow motorist’s headlights or ride recklessly with no helmet until they crash, landing on their head. Just how utterly _dumb_ is that? It’s got something to do with grown men who would make a career out of booting a ball, round or oval, and crashing into each other …. It beats having a purpose in life, but I’m told it’s insanely easy for them to get girls and they are typically very well fed.
The idea that the Swans have ordered Mr. Davis to wear a GPS bracelet is a good idea because the gentleman, at least to some, seems out of control, and short of clapping him in irons and marching him off to jail, this may be a good way to get him under control. Maybe.
On the other hand, GPS is not a behavior management tool. It is a navigation system that, along with other components, can facilitate tracking an object … to include a person. Even in those states that have decided to use GPS to help manage parolees and sex offenders who have served their sentence, the users have to be willing to follow the rules. The GPS system is a tool, along with other long established tools, that help authorities verify that monitories live up to their requirements.
The most important part of any form of behavior modification is the willingness of the person involved to admit their lapses and strive to improve. Quite frankly I feel the management of this team is severely lacking. A “team” is not a pack of miscreants controlled by an electronic lease. A “team” is a group willing to subordinate some of their personal freedoms to work toward a common goal, and to accept the leadership of their management.
Many people wonder about me when they know my aversion to following most any kind of professional sport. This GPS brouhaha is a prime example of why I have little or no interest in the pro sport world. A sad state of affairs when a group will put u with anti-social behavior for the possible gain of a few goals.