By Gary Dickson
When I was in my early 30s I started Tae Kwan Do lessons. I eventually reached second degree black belt level. But, early on, when I was just a blue belt there was a teenager in the school named Anson. He would have been a black belt in most schools, but our instructor would not allow anyone to test for black belt until they reached 16.
Anson had been winning major tournaments since he was in grade school. He didn”t really look the part. He was short and thin, plus he had blonde hair down to his belt. Many were the competitors who underestimated Anson and wound up on his list of match victories on the way to another tournament championship. Anson was intelligent. He didn”t win fights with his physical abilities alone; he outsmarted his opponents.
I hadn”t thought about Anson for years. The tragic beating of Bryan Stowe, a loyal San Francisco Giants fan, in the parking lot of Los Angeles Dodger Stadium on opening day, pushed him out of my memory bank.
Not only was Anson bright, he was also fox-smart. He had often been taunted because of his size and his long hair. He could have easily made almost any bully cry “Uncle,” but he lived by the Tae Kwan Do rule to only use his fighting art for self-defense. He would never have made the first physical move.
I thought of Anson after the Stowe beating because of how Anson transformed himself, like a chameleon, to avoid being pushed into fights. I recall him riding in my car when we went to the national championships in Oklahoma City one year. We started out from Hutchinson, Kansas. He got into my car wearing a Kansas University T-shirt and a corresponding Jayhawks cap. At the first town across the Oklahoma border we stopped for gas and a snack. Before he got out of the car he took off the KU shirt and cap and replaced them with an Oklahoma University shirt and a Sooners cap.
Of course, I didn”t have to ask what he was doing. I knew that he was using a “When in Rome, do as the Romans” approach that would keep all the Okies from picking on the short kid with the girly locks. Of course, the strategy worked beautifully and we drove back to Kansas at the end of the weekend tournament lugging his national champion trophy, which was taller than he was. The only kicks and punches took place on the tournament mats.
Personally, I have always hated the fact that we humans act so strongly, both positively and negatively, based upon the colors or name that appears on someone”s clothing. We are territorial, whether it involves school, team, state or country.
If Anson had left his KU attire on in Oklahoma, he might have been picked on. And, if Stowe had not been wearing a Giants jersey at the game in Los Angeles he probably would not have been beaten and he would not be in critical condition in the hospital.
Philosophically, I believe it is disgraceful that in order to keep the peace and remain safer it is necessary, when in the enemy”s territory, even if the enemy is the fans of another city”s sports team, to not wear items that show the name and colors of the team that you support.
Pragmatically, though, I would not choose to wear a Giants jersey if I were going to a Giants-Dodgers game in L.A. There is a history of violence involving Dodger Stadium and its parking lots. In addition to this year”s tragedy, in 2003 a man was shot and killed in the parking lot. At the 2009 Dodgers home opener a man was stabbed in the parking lot. At last year”s home opener police arrested 132 people in the parking lot for drinking in public.
Why place yourself at risk?
Gary Dickson is the publisher of the Record-Bee. Call him at 263-5636, ext. 24. E-mail him at gdickson@record-bee.com.
